The delivery of Build to Rent (BtR) homes across Scotland continues to decline, with the latest analysis from the Scottish Property Federation (SPF) and Savills revealing a 15% drop in units under construction in Q2 2025 compared to the same period last year. This brings the total number of BtR homes under construction down to 2,101 from 2,472 previously.

This decline comes despite recent Scottish Government statements encouraging residential investment, highlighting the detrimental impact of potential rent control proposals on investor sentiment. Evidence suggests that 11,103 BtR homes in Scotland remain stalled in planning stages, failing to translate into new construction activity.


The number of BtR completions continues to significantly outpace new construction, with a 16% increase in finished developments in Q2 2025 compared to Q2 2024. While welcome, this further signals a looming pipeline exhaustion for the Scottish BtR sector.

David Melhuish, Director of the Scottish Property Federation, stated: "The continued decline in the number of BtR schemes starting on site, reflect that persistent policy uncertainty, especially around rent controls, continues to have a damaging impact upon investor confidence in Scottish BtR. On this trajectory Scotland will soon exhaust the pipeline of new BtR developments, as completions continue to exceed commencements."

In response, the SPF, in its submission to the Housing (Scotland) Bill consultation, is urging for a blanket exemption from rent controls for the Build to Rent and Mid-Market Rent sectors. This measure, they argue, is crucial to restore investor confidence and stimulate new supply of rental homes across Scotland.