Elected Member Briefing - Short Term Lets update

About this Briefing Note

Report by: Karen Donaldson, Chief Operating Officer

Date: 7 November 2023

Subject: Short Term Lets update

Responsible Officers: Sarah Rodger, Legal Manager and David Littlejohn, Head of Planning and Development

Details

Purpose

This briefing provides a summary of the current position in relation to the regulation of short term lets. It provides an update for both licensing and planning.

Briefing Information

Short Term Let Licensing 

Short term let licensing is now fully in force across Scotland. Existing hosts had to apply for a licence by midnight on 30 September 2023 if they wished to continue to operate from 1 October. Those who have not done so cannot now receive guests until a new licence is applied for and granted.

Applications Received 

As of 18 October 2023, 1746 applications have been received by Perth and Kinross Council. This figure has been slightly adjusted down from the 1776 figure given following our initial analysis on 1 October, following an exercise to check and verify data. As expected, the vast majority of applications (over 1000) were received in September. There is no way of assessing what proportion of total hosts/operators this represents. However, the figure is very close to the figure used to establish the fee structure, which was based on a range of data including live listings online and non-domestic rates information. As such, we are not able to give an indication of how many premises might be unlicensed and why.

An analysis of the applications received shows a breakdown according to Council Ward and type of licence applied for. It can be noted that:

• The majority of applications are from existing hosts.

• The majority of applications relate to secondary letting as opposed to home sharing or home letting.

• The highest density of secondary letting applications is found in Highland Ward (518).

To date, there have been objections made in relation to 26 applications, representing a rate less than 1% of the total number of applications. A small number of objections came from Scottish Fire and Rescue Service and the remainder were from members of the public. By the end of November, the total number of objections received should be known as by then all hosts will have completed the site notice requirement.

Securing Compliance

The position in relation to enforcement is the same as for any licence dealt with by the licensing team. Operating without a licence is ultimately a criminal offence and failures to apply for a licence are likely to be passed to Police Scotland. However, this will only be considered after licensing compliance and enforcement procedures are exhausted.

Licensing officers have a great deal of experience in both compliance and enforcement. The approach will be to focus on securing compliance in the first instance, which will involve active investigation and discussion with those believed to be operating without a licence. There are a range of options open to officers in terms of identification of potentially unlicensed operators. Operators will also be advised that trading without a licence is an offence and advice will be given that trading should cease until they have a licence to avoid commission of an offence. Only once satisfied that compliance will not be achieved would consideration be given to reporting on to Police Scotland. This is a proportionate response to enforcement which we are required to adopt under The Scottish Regulators' Strategic Code of Practice.

Information about compliance and enforcement will be made available on the Council website. Scottish Government have published information about enforcement which is in line with this approach.

Review of Policy

The Council's policy and fee structure for short term lets was approved by Licensing Committee in September 2022. The report included a commitment to keep the policy under review during the first three-year cycle of the scheme. That work is now being brought forward and a review of the policy (which includes fees) will take place over the next few months. This will be evidence led and consider fairness and equity for hosts and operators in the round, as well as ensuring the fee structure covers Council costs, as required by legislation. It will also include benchmarking with other local authorities. The outcome and any recommendations from that review will be brought back to the Licensing Committee for their consideration.

Planning Update

The planning position has not changed. If there has been continuous use of a residential property as a Short Term Let for 10 years or more, and this can be evidenced, planning permission is unlikely to be required. However, in most circumstances change of use from a residential property to a Short Term Let is likely to require planning permission. Change of use of a flat always requires planning permission.

Following analysis of feedback from public consultation, it is intended to introduce non-statutory guidance to assist both development management officers and applicants in respect of applications for Short Term Let change of use. This guidance will be considered by the EI&ED Committee in November.

A report on the introduction of a Short Term Let Control Area, within which all changes of use would require planning permission regardless of circumstances, will be presented to the EI&ED Committee for its consideration in early 2024 following analysis of licensing data.

Further information

If further information is required in relation to licensing, you can either contact the Licensing Manager Debra Gilkison dgilkison@pkc.gov.uk or Legal Manager Sarah Rodger srodger@pkc.gov.uk. For questions relating to planning, please contact David Littlejohn dlittlejohn@pkc.gov.uk.