In this section you will find leaflets from Housing Options Scotland about the home buying process, benefits and many other leaflets that you might find useful. At the bottom of this section you will also find useful leaflets from other organisations. If you cannot find what you are looking for please contact us and we will be happy to advise you in any way we can.
0131 550 1561 office@veteransscotland.org.uk
Housing
Finding somewhere to live when we leave the Services is usually our highest priority. Most of us find a home to buy or rent, but for some of us, disability or other problems can make the process difficult. This section is aimed principally at such Veterans and provides access to organisations that aim to make a difficult process easier.
Veteran housing
When you leave the armed forces, the options for where you and your family can live include:
- renting a property
- buying a property
- housing support
- veteran housing charities
- support if you are in danger of being or have been made homeless
Information about housing is available in the Scottish housing guide for people leaving the armed forces and ex-service personnel.
You can find general advice on leaving the armed forces in the GOV.UK Service Leavers Pack.
A housing guide for people leaving the armed forces and ex-service personnel
Deciding where to live is one of the most important choices you and your family will need to make on leaving the armed forces. It is never too early to think about where you will set up home. Whether you are due to leave in a year, a couple of months or have already left, there is support out there to help you.
The information contained in the recently updated "A Scottish housing guide for people leaving the Armed Forces & ex-Service personnel" sets out some of your housing options in Scotland and also looks at some of the questions you might have. It also gives you information about where you can go for further advice and support. A copy of the guide is available via the link below.
A Scottish housing guide for people leaving the Armed Forces & ex-Service personnel
Local Authority Housing
Local Authority Housing Departments
There are 32 Local Authorities (LA) in Scotland. Each LA in Scotland runs their own housing department. If you think you may need to apply for social housing when you leave the forces get in touch with the LA as soon as possible. Below is a list of all 32 Local Authorities websites and contact telephone numbers. DO NOT LEAVE IT TO THE LAST MINUTE.
| Local Authority | Phone | Website |
| Aberdeen City Council | 01224 522000 | www.aberdeencity.gov.uk |
| Aberdeenshire Council | 0845 608 1207 | www.aberdeenshire.gov.uk |
| Angus Council | 08452 777778 | www.angus.gov.uk |
| Argyll & Bute Council | 01546 602127 | www.argyll-bute.gov.uk |
| City of Edinburgh Council | 0131 200 2000 | www.edinburgh.gov.uk |
| City of Glasgow | 0141 287 2000 | www.glasgow.gov.uk |
| Clackmannanshire Council | 01259 450 000 | www.clacks.gov.uk |
| Comhairlenan Eilean Siar (Western Isles Council) | 01851 703773 | www.w-isles.gov.uk |
| Dumfries and Galloway Council | 0303 333 3000 | www.dumgal.gov.uk |
| East Dunbartonshire Council | 0845 045 4510 | www.eastdunbarton.gov.uk |
| Dundee City Council | 01382 434000 | www.dundeecity.gov.uk |
| East Ayrshire Council | 01563 576 000 | www.east-ayrshire.gov.uk |
| East Lothian Council | 01620 827 827 | www.eastlothian.gov.uk |
| East Renfrewshire Council | 0141 577 3001 | www.eastrenfrewshire.gov.uk |
| Falkirk Council | 01324 506 070 | www.falkirk.gov.uk |
| Fife Council | 08451 550000 | www.fife.gov.uk |
| Highland Council | 0845 129 7777 | www.highland.gov.uk |
| Inverclyde Council | 01475 717171 | www.inverclyde.gov.uk |
| Midlothian Council | 0131 270 7500 | www.midlothian.gov.uk |
| Moray Council | 01343 543451 | www.moray.gov.uk |
| North Ayrshire Council | 0845 603 0590 | www.north-ayrshire.gov.uk |
| North Lanarkshire Council | 01698 403200 | www.northlan.gov.uk |
| Orkney Islands Council | 01865 249811 | www.orkney.gov.uk |
| Perth and Kinross Council | 01738 475000 | www.pkc.gov.uk |
| Renfrewshire Council | 0141 842 5000 | www.renfrewshire.gov.uk |
| Scottish Borders Council | 01835 824000 | www.scotborders.gov.uk |
| Shetland Islands Council | 01595 693535 | www.shetland.gov.uk |
| South Ayrshire Council | 01292 612000 | www.south-ayrshire.gov.uk |
| South Lanarkshire Council | 01698 454444 | www.southlanarkshire.gov.uk |
| Stirling Council | 0845 277 7000 | www.stirling.gov.uk |
| West Dunbartonshire Council | 01389 737000 | www.west-dunbarton.gov.uk |
| West Lothian Council | 01506 775000 | www.westlothian.gov.uk |
Housing Options Scotland (HOS)
HOS are a charity who provide advice on Housing in Scotland to service personnel with a physical or mental disability or with a family member with a physical or mental disability.
They have now expanded their service to any service leaver, regardless or injury or no injury: Email:
militarymatters@housingoptionsscotland.org.uk
Website: www.housingoptionsscotland.org.uk
Housing Options Scotland’s Military Matters project have produced a new guide to help veterans who are moving home in Scotland. The guide gives a full list of organisations that help veterans as well as more information around the team at Military Matters. You can find the guide here: https://housingoptionsscotland.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/MM-Supp-guide-6.pdf
Low Cost Initiative for First Time Buyers (LIFT)
LIFT (Low Cost Initiative for First Time Buyers) OMSE (Open Market Shared Equity) is a shared equity scheme funded by the Scottish Government to help first time buyers, and other priority groups – including those serving in the armed forces and veterans who have left the forces in the last two years, get onto the property ladder.
When buying through the scheme, eligible applicants can apply for funding towards the price of a property that has been advertised for sale on the open market. The Scottish Government helps buyers to purchase a property by providing funding for between 10% and 40% of the sale price and gets the same percentage back when the property is sold. There are restrictions to the size and price of property that can be bought through the scheme (see website for full details).
Link administer the scheme for the Scottish Government for the whole of Scotland. More information can be found on our website (www.linkhousing.org.uk/LIFT) or on the page we have created specifically for the armed forces www.linkhousing.org.uk/armedforces the page has a video explaining the scheme and downloadable pdfs with details of the pricing thresholds for each area. We will continue to update the information on the page so let me know if there is anything specific that you think would be useful to include. When buying through a shared equity scheme, the majority of buyers can do so with a much smaller deposit (usually around 5% - depending on the mortgage provider) so buying a property is much more accessible.
Additional advice on housing
Shelter Scotland can also provide additional information on a wide range of housing and homeless issues that you may have. They can provide information on finding a place to live, Renting right as well as information on eviction and repossession of your house/home and how to stop it. Follow the link below to find out more about your options:
Leaflets
Scottish Housing Regulator
The Scottish Housing Regulator collect a range of financial and performance information about each landlord and the sector as a whole. We use this to monitor and assess landlord performance against the Scottish Social Housing Charter and to decide the level of engagement we need to have with each landlord.