The cost of an empty property to an owner
An empty property is a wasted home that costs you money. It should be lived in by someone who needs it. It should be an asset to you and the local community. Below is a breakdown of the costs of owning an empty property.
| Cost estimate | Detail |
|---|---|
| £4000 | Council Tax on a band D property in Hull is £2,000, plus an additional 100% empty premium charge for long-term empty properties gives a total Council Tax bill of over £4,000 |
| £6600 | Lost rental income - using the Local Housing Allowance rates, a 3-bed property in Hull gives a potential rental income of £6,600 per year |
| £1000 | The potential costs for work carried out for failing to comply with notices served by us, including refuse and securing the property, could mean a liability of £1000 |
| £500 | Leaving a property empty for more than 30 days poses more risk to insurers and therefore higher premiums. Building insurance costs around £300 a year, but the additional premium cost could be £500 per year. |
| £250 | Utilities charge for maintaining supplies even if there is no usage, giving an annual cost of £250 per year |
| £12,350 | Total yearly cost to an empty homeowner |
In addition there is the possibility of -
- damage caused through lack of maintenance
- risk of burst water pipes during winter
- garden maintenance and the potential removal of fly tipping
- risk of damage to windows or doors through vandalism
- risk of people gaining access to the property for various reasons e.g. drug use, squatting, theft
- mortgage arrears
- Repossession by the lender
- anti-social behaviour and arson
Council Tax costs
There are no longer any discounts or exemptions for empty properties.
Single Occupier Discounts cannot be awarded at any empty properties.
Uninhabitable properties
Unoccupied properties needing major work do not receive an exemption and the full council tax charge is payable.
Properties empty for over one year
An additional 100% applies to those properties empty for more than 1 year.
An additional 200% premium for those properties empty for 5 years or more.
An additional 300% for those empty for 10 years or more.
These premiums apply to the property and are not affected by changes in ownership or tenancy.
If you are living in a home and you think you may be paying too much Council Tax you can contact us through our Council Tax reduction page.
Second homes
There is no discount available for properties classed as second homes or empty but furnished homes and in addition a 100% Second Homes Premium is payable. Further information can be found on our Council Tax empty properties page.
Enforcement Actions
Our priority is to engage with owners and work with them to restore a property. We will try to help owners to bring their property back into use by selling or renting and taking any enforcement action is a last resort.
Enforcement actions can include -
- resolving an issue ourselves - If the property's causing community issues, we may fix it and charge the owner for the work we do, if you do not pay, you could lose your property
- empty Dwelling Management Order - If an owner isn’t working with us, we can apply to manage the property for seven years, renting it to tenants, the owner only gets an income from the rent after we recover our costs
- enforced sale - if the council does any work on a property or land, we can force its sale to recover the costs, under Section 103 of the Law of Property Act 1925
- compulsory Purchase Order - if there's a strong case and it's in the public interest, a CPO will let the council acquire an owner's property or land without consent, we would then bring it back into use as housing for local residents
- we can serve a legal notice on owners of empty properties that cause a nuisance such as -
- properties that become open to trespass
- water leaks
- leaking gutters
- cause dampness to adjoining properties
- pest control issues that can be hazardous to health