The Scottish House Condition Survey (SHCS) 2024 Key Findings, published by the Scottish Government in February 2026, records that levels of disrepair to critical elements increased from 45 per cent in 2023 to 48 per cent in 20241. The survey covers occupied housing across Scotland, based on 2,902 surveyed properties, with household interviews carried out between January 2024 and February 2025 and physical surveys between January 2024 and March 20251.
The same report estimates that 28.7 per cent of all households, around 732,000, were in fuel poverty in 2024, down from 33.9 per cent in 20231. The median fuel poverty gap in 2024 was £1,0301. The report attributes part of the change to heating costs, stating that the weighted average index price of heating fuels fell by approximately 23.3 per cent compared with 2023, and that mean running costs decreased by around 16.3 per cent, from £3,150 in 2023 to £2,640 in 20241.
On insulation, the report gives a mixed picture. The share of dwellings with no loft insulation has fallen from 6 per cent in 2003/4 to around 1 per cent in 2024, and 95 per cent of applicable dwellings were insulated to the stated degree in 20241. In 2024, 67 per cent of dwellings with lofts had insulation of 200 mm or more, against 27 per cent in 2009, while 35 per cent of lofts were insulated to 300 mm or more, up from 32 per cent in 20231. By tenure, 94 per cent of private housing lofts were insulated to 100 mm or more and 65 per cent to 200 mm or more, with 34 per cent of private sector dwellings at 300 mm or more; in the social sector, around 99 per cent of dwellings had lofts insulated to 100 mm or more1.
The report also notes that the sharp increase in the proportion of below tolerable standard dwellings, from 2 per cent in 2019 to 29 per cent in 2022, is due to two new below tolerable standard criteria introduced in 2022 covering the presence, type and condition of smoke, heat and carbon monoxide alarms1.
"Levels of disrepair to critical elements increased from 45% in 2023 to 48% in 2024."
| Measure | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Disrepair to critical elements | 45% | 48% |
| Fuel poverty rate | 33.9% | 28.7% |
| Lofts insulated to 300 mm or more | 32% | 35% |
Why it matters for households
Disrepair to critical elements covers the parts of a dwelling whose failure has the greatest effect on the home: the structure, the roof, the walls and the services that keep a house wind and watertight and safe to live in. A rise of three percentage points means a larger share of Scottish households are living with a defect in one of those elements, which bears directly on how well a home holds its condition over time and on the cost of putting it right.
The fuel poverty figures move in the opposite direction, and the report ties that movement to heating prices rather than to the fabric of the homes themselves. A household's energy independence rests on both: the price it pays for heat and how much heat the building loses. The insulation figures show gradual improvement in loft insulation depth, but the report does not present a measure of overall energy efficiency in the quoted findings, and no figure for wall insulation, glazing or heating system efficiency is given here.
The Scottish housing stock data sit alongside the survey's energy efficiency and fuel poverty chapters, and the official energy statistics publications carry the price series that the report cites as a driver of the fuel poverty change.
What happens next
A Local Authority level analysis will follow this report, using a three-year pooled data set for 2022 to 2024. The report states that these estimates are expected to be published in mid 20261.
Sources1 cited
- Key+Findings+2024+-+Complete+report.pdf, gov.scot