What this guide is
This guide covers some of the responsibilities you must if you're a private landlord or planning on becoming one.
Becoming a private landlord
Registering as a private landlord
All private landlords, with some limited exceptions, have to register as a private landlord.
General guidance
Read the Scottish Government's private renting policy (gov.scot website).
Providing a tenancy agreement
You must give your tenant a tenancy agreement when they move into the rental home.
Tenancy agreements list certain information, rights, and responsibilities between you and your tenant, such as:
- your name
- the tenant's name
- the address of the property they'll be renting
- the date the tenancy began
- whether other people are allowed to use the property
- how much rent they'll need to pay, when to pay it, and how to pay it
- how often and when their rent can increase
- who will pay the council tax and utility bills
- whether you'll provide any additional services
- how much notice you and your tenant must give before one of you can end the tenancy.
Learn more about tenancy agreements (Citizens Advice Scotland website).
If you do not meet your obligations
If you fail to meet any of your legal obligations as a landlord, your tenant can raise this with the Housing and Property Chamber of the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland.
Where the Housing and Property Chamber establish that the landlord has not met the requirements of the repairing standard or complied with their duties set out in relevant housing law, they can take enforcement action, which might include serving a Rent Penalty Notice.
Landlords who fail to maintain their private rented property risk being removed from the register of landlords.
See more information about your responsibilities for repairs (Housing and Property Chamber website).
Our guide for private tenants
See what information and guidance we provide for private tenants.
Houses of Multiple Occupation (HMOs)
If you rent your property out to 3 or more unrelated people, you'll need a Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) licence. To get an HMO licence, you must be able to show that:
- you meet your responsibilities in relation to common repairs
- all property is clean and well maintained
- all relevant gas and electrical certification is up to date
- fire escape routes are well maintained.
Fire safety
As a landlord, you're responsible for your rented property being compliant with fire and safety standards.
The council has enforcement powers for safety standards of homes if a landlord does not install the correct systems in their rented properties, as it poses a safety risk to tenants.
If you make an insurance claim and your property is not compliant, your claim may fail.
Every Scottish home must have:
- 1 smoke alarm in the living room or the room you use most
- 1 smoke alarm in every hallway or landing
- 1 heat alarm in the kitchen.
All smoke and heat alarms should be mounted on the ceiling and be interlinked.
Interlinked means if one alarm goes off, they all go off, so you will always hear an alarm wherever you are in the property.
If there's a boiler, fire, heater or flue in any room, there must also be a tamper-proof carbon monoxide detector in that room. The detector alarm does not need to be linked to the fire alarm system.
You can read more information about the law on fire and smoke alarms (Scottish Government website).
Antisocial behaviour
All landlords have a responsibility for monitoring and dealing with complaints relating to antisocial behaviour by their tenants or their visitors. We'll investigate all complaints of antisocial behaviour.
Evictions
There are certain processes you must follow if you're planning on evicting someone. This is so we have plenty of notice when someone is at risk of losing their home.
Find out what you must do if you're evicting someone or repossessing their home.