NEARLY 700,000 Scottish households live in housing hardship, according to a new study.

The report, compiled by researchers at the Diffley Partnership and estate agent Rettie & Co for Homes for Scotland (HFS), paints a picture of multiple housing hardships experienced.

Based on a survey of 13,690 people in Scotland, the housebuilders’ body concludes that as many as 28 per cent of Scottish households— 693,000 — are living in “unacceptable properties.”