The Housing (Scotland) Bill: A new era for private residential tenants, steady ground for student lets

Although not yet in force, the new Housing (Scotland) Bill (the “Bill”) cleared its final legislative hurdle at the Scottish Parliament on 30 September 2025 and makes a number of noteworthy changes to Scotland’s housing landscape. 

Rent control and private residential tenancy changes

The main impact of the Bill is the introduction of a statutory process for the Scottish Government to designate rent control areas. While rent controls were first introduced in Scotland as an emergency measure in response to the cost-of-living crisis, the Bill will put them on a permanent statutory footing, but with a more localised approach.

In practice, this will involve local authorities conducting rent condition assessments every five years and, if the Scottish Government deems the rent across the zone to be excessive, they may then decide to cap rent increases across the zone at the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) plus one per cent, up to a maximum of six per cent. 

Other changes include providing tenants with a right to request permission to keep pets on the premises and stronger protection against evictions.

Exemptions from rent controls

The introduction of rent controls resulted in a dramatic drop in investment into the build-to-rent (BTR) sector and a significant decline in the provision of new homes, with projects being mothballed or abandoned. After much speculation, concern and debate, it is now clear that the intention is to exclude mid-market rental properties and BTR homes from the scope of rent controls. However, this carve out will be done through future secondary legislation and is not contained in the Bill itself. The regulations establishing the specific exemption criteria for the BTR and mid-market rent sectors will be subject to a future consultation expected in the early course of 2026.

Implications for purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA)

The Bill brings no immediate regulatory change for those operating or investing in PBSA and maintains the status quo.

Students who live in PBSA in Scotland are already specifically excluded from the scope of the Private Residential Tenancy (PRT) regime, and the Bill maintains this position. Proposed amendments to the Bill bringing student tenancies into the ambit of the PRT regime and rent controls were all defeated.

The PBSA sector in Scotland has welcomed this outcome amid concerns that an expansion of rent controls could limit investment in the sector.

However, the Bill does empower the Scottish Government to make future regulations to provide for statutory notice periods for Scottish student tenancies. The Bill itself provides limited detail here, but it would appear that the Scottish Government’s intention is to provide students with a 28-day notice period in specific circumstances.

Importantly, there is an inbuilt requirement within the Bill for such new regulations to be subject to stakeholder consultation (with both landlord and tenant interest groups). This should provide reassurance to the sector that they will have some input to the provisions of these regulations.

Summary: a new regime for PRT leases but status quo for PBSA

Overall, whilst the Bill is significant in introducing a permanent statutory rent control regime and expanding tenants’ rights, when it comes to PBSA and BTR the latest amendments to the Bill should be enough to unlock much needed investment into the sector.  

If you are a landlord, investor or PBSA operator with questions about how the Housing (Scotland) Bill may affect your interests, our team would be happy to advise – please contact Peter Chambers or Sam Wyman, or your usual Burness Paull contact.

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