Empty homes are on the increase. So why aren't they being used to resolve the housing scarcity?

In 1980, when Corina Poore, 36 years old and pregnant, first opened the door to a run-down home in New Cross Gate, south-east London, the estate representative declined to action in with her.

Inside were dead felines, pet excrement and filthy bed mattress. Pigeons flew in through holes in the roofing and there was no indoor toilet. The extreme rotting smell was frustrating.

Still, Corina chose this was her dream home. It was roomy, the ₤ 24,000 cost was budget-friendly and she made sure that whatever was fixable.

After getting a mortgage, she got a grant of ₤ 3,500 from Lewisham council, her regional authority, which spent for fixing the ceiling.

"At that point, ₤ 3,500 was rather a healthy amount, which I frantically required," recalls Corina.

Some 45 years on, her Victorian four-storey home deserves approximately ₤ 1m - something Corina, a semi-retired movie and TV critic who got in touch through Your Voice, Your BBC News, could never ever have actually paid for otherwise.

However, times have altered.

Lewisham Council has actually continued to offer grants to the owners of empty homes for enhancements - some for as much as ₤ 20,000 - but the uptake is low.

Just 22 grants were awarded in the district in the last 5 years - despite it having 2,253 empty homes. A spokesperson for Lewisham Council stated that, in addition to the grants, it is working "to ensure homes aren't permitted to remain empty or become derelict in our district".

At present, nevertheless, 775 have been empty for longer than 6 months. Meanwhile, there is a national housing shortage, with increasing homelessness and long social housing waiting lists.

Since October 2024, there were practically 720,000 empty homes in England, according to the federal government.

On the face of it, bringing these empty residential or commercial properties back into usage would comprise a considerable piece of the 1.5 m homes that the Labour federal government wishes to include to the nation's housing stock by the end of its term.

But up until now that isn't taking place enough. The concern is why, and offered it could, in theory, be a sensible solution to 2 growing issues, is this a case of a missed out on opportunity - or is the issue more complex still?

Rising long-lasting empty homes

Not all empty homes are in the dire state of repair work that Corina's as soon as was. But approximately 265,000 of them in England have actually been uninhabited for longer than 6 months and are categorized by the federal government as long-term empty (LTE). (Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have various housing policies, as housing is a devolved matter in the UK.)

Fixing these would likewise have a substantial result on the neighborhoods around them, as long-term empty residential or commercial properties can draw in anti-social behaviour and in many cases reduce an area's value.

Ann Devereaux, of St Werburgh's in Bristol, states that after the residential or commercial property next to her home fell vacant, it became a "magnet" for crime.

"It makes me feel afraid when I leave my home or come in during the night," she added.

The government has previously actioned in. The 2010-15 Coalition made financing offered via 2 schemes: the Empty Homes Programme, which offered owners grants to repair their long-term empty homes; and the New Homes Bonus scheme, which rewarded councils that brought such residential or commercial properties back into use.

They appeared to have made an impact. Between 2010 and 2016, the overall number of empty homes dropped by 20% to 590,000, and crucially, long-term empty homes dropped by 33% to 200,000.

However, in 2016 the federal government then ended the Empty Homes Programme and decreased the benefits from the New Homes Bonus scheme - after which the problem ended up being the sole obligation of councils.

By 2024, the number of empty homes had crept back up by 22% and the variety of LTEs had actually increased 32%.

A report by the charity Action on Empty Homes concluded it was "most likely" that the end of the Coalition's plan had been an element behind this increase, alongside altering housing market conditions and financial unpredictability.

And when it was left approximately local authorities to choose what to do about empty homes, the approach differed widely from place to location.

Councils got creative - but had a hard time to fix it

Currently there is no centralised info about the actions specific English councils have actually taken because 2016, so we called every one to ask about their approach.

In overall, 77 of the 245 councils who reacted to the BBC's liberty of info demands stated they continued supplying grants or loans. But in a lot of cases, take-up was so low that it didn't avoid the number of long-lasting empty homes from increasing.

A few councils even ended their financial assistance schemes because of this.

Corina Poore recommends that people may not understand such plans even exist.

But Benjamin Radstone, a residential or commercial property developer who partners with the public to recognize empty homes, says there is a variety of reasons owners don't use up offers and rewards around empty homes.

"People don't desire to be pressured," he says. "They'll do it when they're all set to do it."

Other councils have had some success with schemes of their own. In Kent, a No Use Empty plan offers interest-free loans for approximately 3 years to owners who will let or offer the residential or commercial property afterwards.

Though it was established 20 years ago with a relatively modest pot of ₤ 5m, today it is self-sufficient. Nearly 200 of these loans have actually been issued over the previous five years.

Now the council wishes to see the scheme expanded nationally. In 2015 a group of MPs, peers and housing campaigners wrote to housing minister Matthew Pennycook advising him to implement it across the country.

Elsewhere in England, some councils have actually attempted more imaginative options, such as connecting personal investors with empty house owners. Almost all councils charge premium council tax rates on long-lasting empty homes, which can be as much as 300% of basic council tax rates.

But Mr Radstone, who refurbishes empty homes through his business You Spot Residential or commercial property, argues, that this can "press people away from wishing to engage with the council".

Some likewise argue that this can disincentivise councils from attending to the root issue, as empty homes bring them more earnings through the exceptional tax rates.

"We're now in a position where councils are in fact saying, 'Well, we're being rewarded for homes being left empty longer,'" says Adam Cliff, policy lead at the Empty Homes Network.

Councils do likewise have the power to take legal action against owners of empty homes, however this can be dangerous, time-consuming and expensive.

And while loans and grants can be utilized to target about 10-20% of long-term empty homes, Mr Cliff approximates, you would require to use other processes to get the bulk of them back into usage, he states.

This was the experience of Kent County Council, which states just 18% of its LTEs that were brought back into usage did so after interest-free loans were provided. In fact 61% did so after recommendations was used to owners around the likes of tax and VAT, raising finance and planning.

"If a council has 2,000 empty homes," Mr Cliff states, "they require 2,000 various options."

A complicated quandary

Part of the conundrum about there being a quarter of a million long-lasting empty homes is that this comes at a time when a minimum of 354,000 individuals in England are thought to be homeless, and 1.33 m families are on social housing waiting lists.

This is likewise a time when tenants and purchasers alike talk about a housing crisis in which skyrocketing costs leave residential or commercial properties out of reach.

The Office for National Statistics' meaning of affordability is homes offering for less than 5 times regional profits - which has actually not been the case usually nationally considering that 2002.

More homes on the market would help tackle this, too. So why has more not been done to resolve, or a minimum of better address, this contradiction?

The obstacle is that there is no single reason for homes being empty.

One factor is the probate system, which can sometimes take a number of years, throughout which time the departed individual's home can not be sold. Katie Watson from probate research study company Finders International, believes increasing staff numbers might help resolve a court backlog.

Then there is the concern that sometimes, councils are not able to find the owners of empty homes. Jasmine Basran, head of policy and projects at homeless charity Crisis, believes there is a "lack of coherent data".

When the BBC approached English councils, the details we were provided about the condition and reason for homes being empty covered just around 13% of their LTE stock.

This indicates councils are "blind to their prospective", argues Ms Basran.

The argument around premium tax rates

The specialists we spoke with had their own view on the very best solutions. For Mr Radstone, it is through providing tax relief to buyers, as well as ensuring that everybody who takes out a mortgage keeps an updated will to prevent probate hold-ups.

Mr Grimshaw, on the other hand, argues that the funds collected from the exceptional tax rates could be utilized by councils to start their own loan plans.

But Mr Cliff argues councils without an empty homes strategy need to not be allowed to charge premiums.

Something the majority of those I spoke to were consentaneous on, nevertheless, was that the government needs to establish a statutory responsibility for councils to resolve long-term empty homes - and force them to investigate and act.

The former Conservative federal government didn't introduce this - although in March 2024 it did permit councils to double council tax on empty residential or commercial properties after 12 months rather than 2 years.

This became part of a "long-lasting prepare for housing" to "help provide local individuals the homes they need", then city government minister Simon Hoare stated at the time.

We are yet to see if the new Labour government has taken the tip of a statutory duty on board in its housing method, although Housing Secretary Angela Rayner has stated councils will be given more power to force property owners to lease empty homes.

Meanwhile a spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and City government stated: "We are figured out to repair the housing crisis we have actually acquired, and we understand that having a lot of empty homes in an area can have a considerable effect on regional neighborhoods.

"That's why councils have strong powers to increase council tax on LTEs, and we will strengthen councils' powers to take over the management of empty homes, with more updates to be provided in due course."

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Back in south-east London, Corina Poore does not totally comprehend why the scheme that worked so well for her - and permitted her to become the house owner of a ₤ 1m residential or commercial property - isn't doing the same today.

She thinks it could still be a way of getting youths to make empty homes habitable too.

"When you're young you can do these things," states Corina." [There are] individuals out there who would be prepared to do it.

"There are great deals of houses that are nowhere near as bad as mine that most likely simply require a cooking area and a restroom, and I think it must still be motivated extremely strongly."

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