Airbnb-style lets control zone 'may be justified' in Skye and Raasay
Skye and Raasay are home to about 10,500 people
- Published
A short-term lets control area "may be justified" for the isles of Skye and Raasay, according to a new Highland Council report.
If the zone was introduced people would need planning permission if they wanted to turn a home into Airbnb-type holiday accommodation.
The report to councillors, external, who are due to meet next week, said new-build housing completions on the islands were transferring to short-term letting at a higher rate - 15.5% - than the Highlands as a whole.
Skye and Raasay are home to about 10,500 people and tourism is a major industry with almost 800,000 visitors spending about £119m in the area, according to a recent Highland Community Planning Partnership report, external.
In the report, Highland Council officers said: "Relative to other areas of Highland, and to Highland as a whole, there is a high rate of potential dwellings being used as short-term lets in Skye and Raasay, particularly in the most western areas."
The officials said an assessment of the local housing market had indicated that there were less affordable properties than other areas of Highland, and higher proportions of sales to buyers outside the area.
"On balance, the evidence at this time indicates that the establishment of a short-term lets control areas may be justified in Skye and Raasay," the officers said.
Councillors agreed in September that individual areas of Highland Council should be left to make decisions on whether to limit holiday lets.
Officials were asked to investigate the potential of a Highland-wide control zone on short-term lets as a way of tackling a shortage of homes across the region.
But officers said their research suggested there would not be region-wide support for such a scheme.
Instead they recommended a more "tailored approach" where area committees decided on any measures.
Earlier this year, Highland councillors agreed work should be done to develop plans for a short-term lets control area in Lochaber but ruled out a similar more for Caithness.
Councillors also agreed that a control area should be considered to cover all or parts of Wester Ross, Strathpeffer and Lochalsh.