From the coastal shores of Morar to Fort William’s town centre, Lochaber’s housing shortage is proving challenging for first-time buyers.
Mia Berwick is an aspiring first-time buyer who is looking to find a forever home for her partner and three-year-old daughter.
At the moment, she and her family are staying with her partner’s parents.
Mia started her search for a house in Lochaber in January.
She said: “I am in every Facebook group possible, I have search alerts on Rightmove, and we’re on the council house waiting list.”
Despite her dedicated efforts, Mia has yet to come close to buying a house in Lochaber.
And Mia is not alone.
According to the Registers of Scotland, the average house price in the Lochaber area is now £268,409.
This is a 15% increase since 2019.
‘I’m going to have to move away from a good job’
The search hasn’t become any easier for Mia despite looking in a large catchment.
“I’m looking in Acharacle, Arisaig, Mallaig, Lochailort and Glenfinnan through to Fort William,” she said.
According to the Lochaber Business Housing Needs Survey, 80% of local businesses believe the housing shortage is impacting their ability to recruit staff.
Results also showed 66% of Lochaber-based businesses have experienced problems in recruiting or retaining existing staff.
“I work in the area,” she said. “But it’s come to the point now where I’m going to have to move away from a good job because I’ll be homeless otherwise.”
Sitting at the foot of Ben Nevis, Fort William is a town that hosts some of the UK’s most breath-taking scenery.
However, Fort William is also home to some of Lochaber’s biggest jumps in house prices.
While some will have jumped after significant investment from the owners, others have increased as a result of rising demand.
Another first-time buyer, Craig, accounts that it took he and his family ‘years’ to buy their house in Lochaber.
Almost 1 in 10 Fort William homes are Airbnbs
Craig said: “I’ve recently just bought a house in Mallaig after years of trying and getting way out-priced, and having problems with the recent mortgage rates.”
Craig is one of many who have struggled to combat serial home buyers.
“They are buying ideal first-time homes from people like me for ridiculous money,” he said. “They out-bid anyone that puts an offer in.”
Research in 2019 uncovered the number of Airbnbs relative to the number of dwellings in areas throughout Scotland.
According to the People, Communities and Places report, the national average for Scotland was 1.2% of homes being Airbnbs.
But this number was not reflected in Lochaber, where Fort William’s rate clocked in at 9.7% – almost one in ten homes.
Craig said he had expressed an interest in a particular flat in Mallaig in October 2022, but the seller pulled it off the market on the closing date.
“He said he was going to rent it out for £900pcm, when a flat in the same block is currently being rented at £400pcm.”
The People, Communities and Places report also showed that more than a third of residents felt there were “too many” short-term lets in Fort William.
Furthermore, 83% of Fort William respondents shared they felt the number of short term lets in the area had increased in recent years.
The negative effects respondents identified were associated with:
- traffic congestion
- people congestion
- litter and waste
- noise
- lack of amenities for locals including local shops
- higher demand for and impact on local public services
‘I just want to know who I’m living next to’
Many first-time buyers are voicing their concerns that they are not only combating rising house costs, but also a shortage on the market.
Some are citing that what was once a seasonal problem is now “all year round”.
One Fort William respondent in the People, Communities and Places report said: “I used to live in a neighbourhood where I knew my neighbours.
“But now as people are dying all the properties are becoming Airbnb.
“I just want to know who I’m living next to and who I’m sharing my drive with.”
Mia says that she thinks it will be at least another year before she will be able to secure a house for her family.
“I see this mirrored across the Highlands and Islands,” she said.
“Why rent, when you can holiday let for three times the price?”