Private rent sector sitting at crossroads in Scotland

0 The Springside development in Edinburgh by Moda Living is a major build-to-rent scheme Scotland’s private rental sector faces “clouds with silver linings” amid major changes in the marketplace, a new report has found.

Factors including the rise of Airbnb, build to rent (BTR), a new private residential tenancy regime and tax reforms mean the sector is experiencing a fundamental shift, most pronounced with the millennial generation, of whom around two-thirds are renting privately, notes the Rettie & Co research.

Andrew Meehan, senior researcher, said: “The sector is experiencing a fundamental shift. In this context, the PRS [private rental sector] is now centre stage – socially, commercially and politically.

“This increased focus on the rental sector is driving a number of changes to which tenants, landlords and investors will have to adapt.”

Rettie said the Scottish private residential sector was now in a “very different place” from the rest of the UK and the institutional BTR sector needed to be aware of this.