Are councils profiteering from landlords struggling to sell empty properties?

Are councils profiteering from landlords struggling to sell empty properties?

0:02 AM, 10th December 2024, About A week ago 36

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I own a property in Dorset which has now been on the market for 5 years since my tenants had to move out due to bad mould and damp caused by a leak in the roof that was giving them health problems.

As I am not able to re-let the property, as it is F rated for energy efficiency, the house is vacant and unoccupied.

The amount it would cost to get the property up to an E rating is beyond my budget due to the amount of work involved and cost of renewing the roof and getting rid of deep rooted mould requiring all walls to be stripped back to bare brick and insulated.

To date, I owe the council £22,188 which I have agreed to pay once the house is sold through my solicitor. I have been through the Tribunal process but it seems as though the council are powerless to use their discrepancy in such cases (even if they wanted to). However is it fair and reasonable for councils to charge Long Term Empty Home Premium to landlords in my situation (currently 200% premium for homes empty for at least 5 years) or are they just profiteering from our misfortune?

Is it not time the government stepped in with a Bill to prevent this happening. An Empty Dwellings Bill to protect owners of homes that are genuinely on the market for rent or sale so that the premium is not used to penalise landlords who cannot re-let their properties? The nightmare for me is that the longer I cannot sell the property, the bigger the debt to the council for a house that I cannot use or live in.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Nigel


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Keith Wellburn

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9:42 AM, 14th December 2024, About 3 days ago

If the deed issue is a major stumbling block to a sale then that would seem to be a very strong case for the council tax aspect.

My experience is about half my sales had some issue with insufficient original documentation around covenants etc or lack of permissions from works done in the 1950s to add bathrooms etc. The remedy in all those cases was the requirement to buy an insurance policy at modest cost (to the seller),

When it comes to sales falling through after a very long period because the buyer can’t get finance then it begs the question whether that buyer was the right one in the first place and acknowledging that things can and do go wrong as I have experienced several times - it is necessary to pull the plug and start again (both these points reflecting on the quality of the selling agent if the buyer is being guided by them in my book).

I’d strongly suggest entering into any renovation arrangement in this case is prolonging the agony for the seller with further scope for things to go wrong.

A good auction house will advise on the legal side I would hope - they would arrange the preparation of the legal pack as part of an auction sale and I’d guess there’s no situation they haven’t dealt with before.

Tim Fenn

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10:21 AM, 14th December 2024, About 3 days ago

Hi,
Aside from the issue of being over priced. If the house isn’t capable of being lived in, it should be removed from the council tax list and therefore the council tax bill will be zero, there is a good chance that you do not owe the council anything.
Contact a specialist or the VOA yourself to get it delisted, you would need to meet the requirements of a delisting but the rules are available online.

Badger

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11:11 AM, 14th December 2024, About 3 days ago

Reply to the comment left by Tim Fenn at 14/12/2024 - 10:21
I can second that from direct personal experience.

The VOA can be very reasonable in these circumstances.

Londonlad

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9:41 AM, 15th December 2024, About 2 days ago

Reply to the comment left by Tim Fenn at 14/12/2024 - 10:21
That would necessitate removal of bathroom and kitchen, far simpler to register as a short term rental for business rates from which OP will be exempt - and zero council tax.

Keith Wellburn

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10:31 AM, 15th December 2024, About 2 days ago

Reply to the comment left by Londonlad at 15/12/2024 - 09:41
Have I just dreamt the rules around the number of days a property must be available and the evidence of the time actually let as short term accommodation limiting the duration of each stay for eligibility to business rates rather than CT?

Not to mention that this property was apparently uninhabitable five years ago and anyone with experience of empty property will know five years passing won’t have done it any favours. Wouldn’t some evidence of an inhabitable, furnished property being marketed for short let be required by the local authority as the very minimum?

GlanACC

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11:56 AM, 15th December 2024, About 2 days ago

Yup, updated in February 2024 I think. Was to protect local communities, and for once I sort of agree with them.

I would also block a lot of applications for HMOs, but these seem to getting through where it is obvious they are going to cause issues with the locals. - I have nothing in principle against HMOs, but you can't just stick one on a residential street that happens to be a simi detatched property and someone has converted it to 8 rooms. (as has happened near to where I live)

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