The total number of empty homes in Scotland decreased by 0.6% in September 2010 compared with the 106,239 vacant homes in September 2009.
The number of empty homes accounts for 4.2% of all homes in Scotland.
Some 13.3% of all properties in the Western Isles were vacant, the highest proportion of vacant homes in Scotland.
North Lanarkshire and East Renfrewshire had the lowest proportion of vacant homes in Scotland at 1.8% and 1.9% respectively.
Nitesh Patel, housing economist at the Bank of Scotland, said: “Whilst it is encouraging that the number of empty homes in Scotland has declined over the past year, it is still at a high level, particularly in the context of the country's ongoing housing shortage.
“Locally the existence of empty homes remains a particular problem in a number of areas where the proportion of empty homes is well above the average for Scotland as a whole.”
A vacant property is defined as an empty home or a second home and includes both public and private dwellings.
