This dataset does not contain any directly identifiable personal information.

Estimates are compared with earlier years’ data to identify any potential issues. Household estimates and population estimates also go through their own quality assurance processes which are described in the ‘Estimates of Households and Dwellings in Scotland’ and ‘Mid-Year Population Estimates’ publications on the National Records of Scotland (NRS) website.

Figures have been rounded to the nearest two decimal places. From 2013 onwards, many councils have carried out re-classification exercises of vacant dwellings and second homes, alongside making changes to their systems to reflect new legislation surrounding such properties introduced in 2013. The definitions of a second home and a vacant property classed as ‘long-term empty’ were also changed with the introduction of the new legislation, leading to some dwellings switching between these categories. Users are advised to note these differences when analysing the figures. In particular, there has been an apparent increase in the rate of growth in household numbers from 2013 onwards which is not simply due to growth in the number of dwellings. This has largely been due to re-classification of properties as a result of the 2013 legislation, either following a review of such properties or simply because their definitions have changed. Because average household size is calculated by dividing the population by the number of households, an increase in households leads to a decrease in average household size, given the same population size. Therefore any apparent change in the growth in households will have influenced average household size.

The statistics are also provided in Excel, PDF and CSV formats on the NRS website. They are designed to be consistent, and incorporate comparable historical data where appropriate.

It is the policy of the NRS to make its website and products accessible according to published guidelines. More information is available in the Accessibility section of the NRS website.

The statistics are mainly used for informing Councils’ decisions about housing need and service provision.

Data is received from Council Tax billing systems on the first Monday of September each year and published the following summer.

When the 2018 data was uploaded a small revision was made to the 2017 value for Aberdeen City. This revision was to account for a more accurate household estimate that takes into account the increased number of student halls in the region

When the 2017 was uploaded a revision was made to values from 2012-2016 to reflect more accurate information about student accommodations. The change is small and only changes the values for City of Edinburgh, Glasgow City and Scotland

Revisions were made to the household estimates for Shetland Islands (2007-2014), City of Edinburgh (2014) and West Lothian (2013-2014). For full details see the ‘Estimates of households and dwellings in Scotland, 2015’ publication on the NRS website. Revisions were also made to the mid-year population estimates for 2012, 2013 and 2014. For full details see the ‘Mid-2015 population estimates Scotland and corrected population estimates for mid-2012, mid-2013 and mid-2014’ publication on the NRS website. Revisions and corrections to previously published estimates are dealt with in accordance with the Scottish Government Statistician Group corporate policy statement on revisions and corrections - a copy of which is available on the Scottish Government website.