diff --git a/functions-common b/functions-common
index 04f7c0f411..d7573c4d3e 100644
--- a/functions-common
+++ b/functions-common
@@ -76,9 +76,11 @@ function write_clouds_yaml {
     # The location is a variable to allow for easier refactoring later to make it
     # overridable. There is currently no usecase where doing so makes sense, so
     # it's not currently configurable.
-    CLOUDS_YAML=~/.config/openstack/clouds.yaml
 
-    mkdir -p $(dirname $CLOUDS_YAML)
+    CLOUDS_YAML=/etc/openstack/clouds.yaml
+
+    sudo mkdir -p $(dirname $CLOUDS_YAML)
+    sudo chown -R $STACK_USER /etc/openstack
 
     CA_CERT_ARG=''
     if [ -f "$SSL_BUNDLE_FILE" ]; then