Orkney Islands Council is offering owners of homes empty for at least 12 months loans of up to £25,000 for repairs, but borrowers must make the property available at an affordable private rent and give eligible essential workers priority for five years.
The council’s updated empty-homes guidance sets out a secured loan, repayable with interest over a maximum of five years. One- and two-bedroom homes in Kirkwall and Stromness are first in line, while other property sizes and locations will be considered case by case.
The arrangement turns repair funding into a managed letting commitment. Landlords considering a renovation-led return to the market need to weigh the finance against rent limits, tenant-priority rules and a 10-year legal condition on the property’s use.
Up to £25,000 for homes empty for a year
The loan is available for each qualifying property and is secured against it. Owners must obtain at least two itemised quotations, show how any costs above the loan cap will be met and, where there is existing secured borrowing, may need to supply a recent Home Report so the council can check available equity.
Eligible work must bring the whole property up to Scotland’s Repairing Standard. The council lists electrical rewiring, fixed heating, damp treatment, roof and window repairs, alarms, insulation and some HMO work where it forms part of the wider standard-compliance package. Redecoration, ordinary floor coverings and most kitchen or bathroom replacements are excluded.
This follows Landlord Knowledge’s report on the cost of returning vacant homes to use, which examined the scale of the funding gap facing owners. The Orkney scheme is a much narrower local offer, but its affordability and tenant conditions show that public repair finance can come with longer-term letting controls. Full eligibility and conditions are set out in Orkney Islands Council’s Empty Homes Loan Scheme.
Affordable rents and essential-worker priority
For the first five years after completion, the home must be available for private rent, with priority given to listed essential workers including social-care staff, council and NHS workers, construction workers and hospitality workers. If a suitable essential worker cannot be found within eight weeks, the landlord can look for another tenant, but the affordability requirement remains.
The council’s guide uses rent at no more than 30% of a tenant household’s net income as its normal affordability benchmark. It says a household on the area’s median income should generally be able to afford around £600 a month for a two-bedroom home, though applicants must state their proposed rent and the council will assess it.
Conditions continue beyond the initial letting period. From years six to 10, the property may stay rented to an essential worker or become the only or main home of the owner or a family member. A breach can require the outstanding loan to be repaid in full.
What this means for landlords
- Check the vacancy record: the council will normally use Council Tax data to confirm that the home has been empty for at least 12 months.
- Cost the full project: the £25,000 ceiling includes a limited range of costs, and owners must fund any gap needed to meet the Repairing Standard.
- Model the rent before applying: the proposed rent must pass the council’s affordability assessment, so a market-rent assumption alone is not enough.
- Plan the tenant search: landlords retain responsibility for finding a tenant and must give eligible essential workers priority for the first five years.
- Take advice on the security: the loan is secured on the property and the council recommends independent legal advice before the arrangement is completed.
Editor’s view
Repair finance can be useful where an empty home needs serious work, but this is not a conventional landlord loan. The rent and tenant conditions make the scheme best suited to owners who are comfortable trading some flexibility for a route back into use.
Author: Editorial Team – UK landlord & buy-to-let news, policy, and finance
Published: 24 September 2026
Sources: Orkney Islands Council
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