How long should a void take?

One to three weeks for a standard flat where trades are booked in advance. Longer where flooring, heating or damp work is involved.

When should marketing start?

As soon as the finished condition can be photographed honestly — usually the day after the deep clean.

Void property clearance

Void timeline and budget

Every extra day is rent, council tax and standing charges

The short answer

A standard flat turnaround — clearance, repairs, decoration, flooring, clean, photographs, marketing — takes one to three weeks if trades are booked before the tenant leaves. The costs that run throughout are lost rent, council tax, utility standing charges and insurance. The most effective saving is sequencing: book contractors on the notice date, not the day the keys come back.

What the work involves

Building a dated plan from notice to new tenancy, booking trades in sequence, and tracking the actual spend against a per-property void budget.

Rules and responsibilities in Scotland

Council tax and utility liability sit with the owner during the void, and unoccupied insurance conditions may begin after a set number of days.

What commonly goes wrong

Waiting until check-out to get quotes, so a two-week turnaround becomes six, and treating lost rent as invisible because no invoice arrives for it.

What it usually costs

Indicative ranges only, to help you judge a quote. They are not an estimate for your property — only the business doing the work can give you that.

Lost rent is almost always the largest component of a void, larger than the works.
Council tax without a discount and utility standing charges continue throughout.
Overlapping trades — decorator immediately after the plumber — shortens the void more than choosing the cheapest quote.

What to do, in order

1Start planning on the notice date, not the check-out date.
2Do a pre-check-out inspection to scope the work early.
3Book trades in sequence with dates, not open-ended.
4Book photography and marketing for the day after the clean.
5Record the actual void cost per property so the next one is better planned.

Local detail for the Lothians

Edinburgh's student market concentrates changeovers in late June and July, when trades and cleaners are hardest to book.
City centre parking permits for contractors add both cost and planning time.
Tenement access for large deliveries such as flooring or appliances needs to be scheduled.

Read the Edinburgh page for void timeline and budget

When you need a professional

A managing agent or a single contractor co-ordinating the trades usually shortens a void more than managing each trade separately.

Common questions

How long should a void take?: One to three weeks for a standard flat where trades are booked in advance. Longer where flooring, heating or damp work is involved.
When should marketing start?: As soon as the finished condition can be photographed honestly — usually the day after the deep clean.

Lothian Property is a property information and professional-introduction service operated by Maybury Scotland Limited. Lothian Property is not an estate agency. Where requested, we may connect homeowners with independent estate agents and other property professionals. How we work.

Void decoration and repairs
The quick, high-return repairs and repainting that make a property let or sell faster.
Council tax on an empty home
Exemptions, discounts and the empty homes premium across the Lothian councils.
Preparing a void for photography
The last two hours before the camera arrives, and what they are worth.

Last reviewed 4 September 2026.