£200,000 funding could soon be used to bring empty homes in North Ayrshire back into use.

The council’s cabinet has agreed to apply for the money from the Empty Homes Loan Fund.

Drawing on the Scottish government’s £4m cash pot set aside for improving empty homes, the decision by North Ayrshire Council could see the area’s 700 long-term unused dwellings given a new lease of life.

The money would be used to establish a fund for loans, capped at £15,000, for homeowners at a 0% interest rate for up to a maximum of four years.

The loan would only apply to homes that have been empty for more than six months and which clearly require work to bring them up to a suitable living standard.

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North Ayrshire Council Cabinet Member for Health and Social Care, Councillor Anthea Dickson, said: "There is an affordable housing shortfall in North Ayrshire and we have set targets for building Council houses to help address this.

"Not only would some of these homes be brought back into use, they would also be less likely to attract anti-social behaviour such as graffiti, flytipping and vandalism."

The news follows an empty homes survey carried out by North Ayrshire Council's Housing Services, which found that about two thirds of empty homes in the area have been vacant for a year or more.

Around a quarter of the empty homes identified are one-bedroom properties.

The Council says more than half of respondents said they would be interested in working to bring properties back to use, and a quarter said a grant or load would help.

This would ease the rise in demand expected to be caused by welfare reforms which will see housing benefits reduced.

Cabinet agreed to apply to the Scottish Government's fund at a meeting on 6 November 2012.

(IT)