Millions of pounds is to be spent buying back former council houses in a bid to avert a housing crisis in Perth and Kinross.
Councillors are to be asked to invest £2 million competing for homes on the open market many of which were sold off at heavily discounted prices to tenants.
This would bring the level of funding devoted to buying back ex-council stock to £7m over the next five years.
With a waiting list of more than 4,500 people, the measure is seen as vital to provide urgently needed homes for desperate families throughout the district who rely on rented accommodation.
The council explained that the purchased houses would enable them to help those in greatest need.
“We try to offer accommodation to those in acute housing need within 12 months, but this greatly depends on the availability of housing within the applicant’s selected housing areas,” said a council spokesperson.
“The £7m will allow us to purchase up to approximately 70 ex-council properties across the area.”
Councillor Peter Barrett defended the expenditure and said it could be targeted to acquire types of property now missing from the council’s current stock.
“The council house buy-back scheme is a particularly useful tool to acquire specific types of houses to address hard-to-meet housing needs for people waiting on our housing list where demand outstrips supply,” he said.
“This can be ground floor accessible properties or family housing in areas which haven’t benefited from the new council house building programme.
“The additional £2m will enhance the council’s ability to provide a flexible and tailored response to meet the needs of local people, enabling them to remain close to their families support networks and schools.
“Buying back former council houses represents good value for money.
“It means that the newly reacquired houses are consistent and compatible with the existing council housing stock making them relatively easy to integrate with ongoing maintenance programmes.”
The measure, which will be debated at the housing and health committee today, is being implemented after a survey of tenants revealed their number one priority is increasing the amount of housing stock for rent.
The committee will also hear that a planned investment programme in council housing stock of £62m over the next five years will focus on central heating renewal (£8.5m), external fabric works (£5.8m), energy efficiency works (£4.6m) and double glazing (£4.6m).
Perhaps less palatable to tenants will be a suggested 3.2% rent increase for 2015/16.
The increase is in line with the approved rent strategy of inflation using the Consumer Price Index (CPI) from the previous September, plus 2%.
If approved this increase would mean an average weekly rent increase of £2 per week, giving an average weekly rent of £64.58.
The proposal would keep Perth and Kinross Council rents below the Scottish national average and, if other local authority landlords increase rents as expected, this would mean tenants continue to pay the ninth lowest rent levels in Scotland.
Housing and health committee convener Dave Doogan thanked the 800 plus tenants who had taken part in the survey on spending priorities.
“The feedback reflects that the concerns of tenants go beyond merely having wind and watertight homes, and includes increasing the availability of council housing for other potential tenants and supporting people who may find it difficult to meet the terms of their tenancy agreement to do so,” he said.