Midlothian Council
Letting agents across Midlothian
Midlothian is where we are from and where we work hardest. It is also a county with around twenty-five agents in it and, at the last count, only two that do lettings and nothing else — everyone else is a sales agency or a solicitor firm with lettings bolted on the side. Demand here is not speculative: the Royal Infirmary and the BioQuarter are a short drive from Danderhall, Easter Bush and Roslin run on research and veterinary staff who rent rather than buy, and the Borders Railway carries commuters who work in Edinburgh and decline to pay Edinburgh rents. We will tell you what your property will let for, and how long it should take.
Midlothian at a glance
- One bedroom
- £795
- Two bedrooms
- £1,050
- Three bedrooms
- £1,350
- Typical gross yield
- 5.9%
- Neighbourhoods covered
- 10
The local market
What drives demand in Midlothian
Four things drive rental demand in Midlothian, and none of them is fashion. The Borders Railway, reopened in 2015, gives Shawfair, Eskbank, Newtongrange and Gorebridge a direct run into Edinburgh Waverley. The Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh and the Edinburgh BioQuarter sit immediately over the boundary at Little France, drawing rotational NHS and research staff who want a short commute and a six to twelve month tenancy. The University of Edinburgh’s Easter Bush campus at Roslin — the vet school and the Roslin Institute — brings a steady international intake of postdoctoral researchers and technicians. And the new-build pipeline at Shawfair, Bonnyrigg and Danderhall produces accidental landlords at a higher rate than older stock, because owners move on and let rather than sell into a slow market. Landlord registration is with Midlothian Council, and the county has no HMO cluster of any size, so almost every let here is a straightforward single-family tenancy.
Midlothian is Edinburgh’s commuter belt and one of the fastest-growing council areas in Scotland. The Borders Railway put Shawfair, Eskbank, Newtongrange and Gorebridge within half an hour of Waverley, and rents across the county still sit well below the city for the same amount of space. Most of the stock is houses rather than flats, which is the reverse of central Edinburgh and changes what a landlord should expect of it.
What homes sell for in Midlothian
2023
- Median sale price
- £261,000
- Since 2018
- Up 42%
- Middle half of sales
- £182,000 to £375,000
- Homes sold in 2023
- 1,759
Sale prices for the whole of Midlothian, not just the neighbourhoods we cover, so treat them as the backdrop rather than a valuation. Source: Registers of Scotland, via statistics.gov.scot, Open Government Licence v3.0. 2023 is the most recent year published.
Council tax across Midlothian
2026-27
The year’s bill by band: Midlothian Council’s council tax with Scottish Water’s water and waste water charges, which arrive on the same bill.
- Band A
- £1,645.65
- Band B
- £1,919.93
- Band C
- £2,194.20
- Band D
- £2,468.48
- Band E
- £3,183.51
- Band F
- £3,893.50
- Band G
- £4,643.85
- Band H
- £5,754.23
Council tax up 9% on 2025-26, when band D was £1,666.20. Source: Council Tax charges 2026-27, Midlothian Council, checked 7 September 2026. All four councils side by side.
Areas we manage across Midlothian
EH22
The county town, and the busiest rental patch in Midlothian. A long High Street with the country park behind it, traditional flats above the shops, and interwar semis on the streets running off. Frequent buses into Edinburgh and a short hop to Eskbank station.
Property to rent in Dalkeith →EH19
Bonnyrigg and Lasswade together make the largest settlement in Midlothian, and the one that has grown fastest. Substantial new-build estates on the edges, older terraced and semi-detached stock through the middle, and family houses that rarely sit empty.
Property to rent in Bonnyrigg →EH22
The best address in the county: villas on tree-lined roads, Newbattle Abbey and the golf course, and a Borders Railway station that puts Waverley about twenty minutes away. Stock is limited, and tenants who get in tend to stay.
Property to rent in Eskbank →EH23
The furthest south of the railway towns and the cheapest entry price on the line. Former mining rows, postwar housing and a large tranche of newer estate building, with the station at the top of the village.
Property to rent in Gorebridge →EH22
A planned mining village — the National Mining Museum is the old Lady Victoria Colliery — with long rows of miners’ cottages and a Borders Railway station beside them. Small, well-proportioned houses that let quickly on price.
Property to rent in Newtongrange →EH22
Two joined former mining villages east of Dalkeith, with the highest concentration of ex-local-authority housing in the county. The strongest gross yields in Midlothian, and the stock that needs the most hands-on management.
Property to rent in Mayfield and Easthouses →EH22
The northern tip of Midlothian, over the city bypass from Craigmillar. Danderhall is the old village; Shawfair is the new town going up beside it, with its own railway station and thousands of homes still to build. The closest point in the county to the Royal Infirmary and the BioQuarter.
Property to rent in Danderhall and Shawfair →EH20
Between the city bypass and Straiton retail park, minutes from the Edinburgh boundary at Burdiehouse. Unglamorous and extremely convenient: terraced and semi-detached houses with parking, and a commute measured in minutes rather than stops.
Property to rent in Loanhead →EH25
The village of Roslin, its chapel, and the University of Edinburgh’s Easter Bush campus alongside — the vet school, the Roslin Institute and the research park at Bilston. A small rental market shaped almost entirely by one employer.
Property to rent in Roslin and Bilston →EH26
The largest town in the west of the county, under the Pentlands and off the railway line, so it runs on the A701 and the bus. More self-contained than the eastern towns, with its own high street, and family houses that let to people who intend to stay.
Property to rent in Penicuik →Questions
Letting property in Midlothian
- How much do letting agents charge in Midlothian?
- Letting agent fees in Midlothian are paid by the landlord, never the tenant. Charging tenants is unlawful throughout Scotland. We charge a fixed one-off fee for Let Only and a percentage of monthly rent for Full Management, with no set-up, renewal or exit fees. Full pricing is published on our fees page.
- Do I need to register as a landlord with Midlothian Council?
- Yes. Every private landlord must register with the local authority for the area where the property sits, in this case Midlothian Council. Registration lasts three years, and your registration number must appear in every advert for the property. Letting while unregistered risks a fine of up to £50,000.
- What rent should I expect in Midlothian?
- As a broad guide, one-bedroom property in Midlothian lets at around £795 pcm, two-bedroom at around £1,050 pcm and three-bedroom at around £1,350 pcm, at a typical gross yield near 5.9%. Individual streets vary considerably.
- Will rent controls apply in Midlothian?
- Not yet. The Housing (Scotland) Act 2025 framework commenced on 1 April 2026, but no rent control areas have been designated. Midlothian Council must report on local rent conditions to Scottish Ministers by 31 May 2027, and designation could follow from late 2027. In the meantime, you must supply rent data within 28 days if asked, or risk a fine of up to £1,000.
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Find out what your Midlothian property should be letting for.
A free, honest valuation based on what comparable properties across Midlothian Council are achieving. No obligation, and no pressure afterwards.