Trade group demands government acts on "scourge of empty homes"

This is symptomatic of a much wider problem which is simply having a way to to hold wealth without loosing it through taxation. Paying rates on an empty house sounds excessive but if you put in a tenant then you take on a shed load of problems and legal obligations and that is going to get worse when the latest tranche of new property laws take root. I have had to work through this paradox recently. I just sold up since the property seemed to attract hopeless tenants and that is a very high risk if compulsory long tenancies become mandatory.

It is a difficult subject but letting councils appoint themselves as controllers of other peoples property is getting very close to communism. I saw enough of Eastern Europe back in the day to well know that central control of residential property is a disaster.

They want to crucified prs for letting out to tenants n self appointed councils use their self made power to manipulate the situation. So empty property is the answers for many not willing to be prosecuted by the council using criminal powers they created for their own usage. BUT property owners are being squeeze into a corner . Letting ? No! Empty property? NO! What are we to do?

It is very easy to game the system if needed to ensure that a property is not technically empty.
Just make up any old name you like.
Ensure the Council knows that a single person is occupying so as to benefit from SPD on Council Tax.
A tenancy agreement can be for £0 if the LL wants.
There is no law that requires a LL to charge rent.
Choose an East European name.
This means they won't have the right to vote.
No LL should ever need to disclose to the council that a property is unoccupied.
Obviously from the outside the property has to look like it is plausibly habitable.
If the Council asks for RTR documentation you've lost them.
Never known ever to be asked.
I have had numerous East Europeans staying at my various properties usually for very short periods.
Of course I will never know whether the Council has ever been successful in recovering C Tax arrears because the Council is not allowed to discuss with me any aspects of the C Tax account especially as I never obtained permission to discuss from the tenant.
If Councils wish to gouge LL for C Tax when empty then LL can simply game the system to reduce the C Tax liability even though it isn't that much.
But of course the Council then has the task of tracking down the East European tenant for C Tax arrears.
I doubt whether the Council has ever recovered C Tax arrears from my East European tenants!!
I have never been given a forwarding address by any of my former short term East European tenants.
I have NEVER paid the C Tax liability for any of my former East European tenants who by the way also defaulted on their rent!
Foolishly I never took a deposit from any of these tenants.
So I was ripped off by these East European tenants and so was the Council for Council Tax.
It really isn't easy being a LL.
Of course in the old days when C Tax wasn't paid on unoccupied properties there wasn't any problem in notifying a council of occupancy status.
Well now with Councils removing the zero C Tax for vacant properties LL need to have a property occupied at all times even if for only a few weeks before another tenant is sourced.
All my previous East European tenants sign a surrender letter and return the keys................very good tenants those E European tenants. Saves me having to evict the rent defaulting and C Tax defaulting so and so's!!!

unfortunately, the council will require a contract even from students in bath although the bath uni have their name and addresses on their system to tally with the council that the students live there. not only does that help to establish the tax exemption but that in fact would also be given by the council to the hmrc for taxation purposes. however, when i let my 17 year old child live in the flat above us, the council refused to grant student exemption despite having the school confirming her address and student status, they claimed its council tax avoidance and because she decided she wanted a new bathroom , hence bathroom cleared out ready to install new bathroom suites and kitchen was in very outdated state with only a larder table and chair, cooker, fridge and freezer, the council refused to grant exemption claimed that its one house hold. They even call the valuation department to change the 2 flats into one house which they called and i objected. It seems that the council can decide and dictate what you do with your property . any advice anyone

if you are going for student exemption then that is usually a long term circumstance.
You have to ensure if going for student exemption that everything is plausibly correct.
This essentially means the student has to be a genuine student and recognised as such by the authorities.
So if this cannot be proven then student exemption should NOT be claimed.
Also very difficult to see that 2 flats can be assessed as 1 house.
Depends on what the title deeds state.

• S l
• 14 March 2019 14:33 PM

this property was bought and already being council taxed as two flats with two addresses for the last 10-15 years under an english gentleman. unfortunately, when our name is not english, it does brings out the worst in some who works in the council. My child is a genuine student studying A level for 2 first. But the fact that they know my name and address as a landlord with a portfolio, it does not bode well for me and hence the refusal to give exemption or discount on single person. i even had difficulty gettting it tax at normal rate as it was empty before and being taxed 150% CT !!! The only difference is its a house divided into two flats which is the norm in this town. In fact, majority of the houses on the street been divided into 2-4 flats depending on their layout as i had discovered recently.

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