Join our fight against empty homes

It is appalling, at a time of rising unemployment (see page 26), record house building lows and lengthening council waiting lists (see news, page 7), that the number of empty homes is set to top 1 million by the end of this year. As an industry we should be ashamed at such profligacy.

This is before raising the more practical issue of the impact empty homes can have on a community. As our report shows (see page 22), empty homes can rapidly cause unpleasant problems for neighbours. In the longer term, they can impact on the value of properties and attract squatters.

Under pressure from charity the Empty Homes Agency, the government has already recognised the problems presented by the scourge of empty homes. Previous legislation in this area led to the 2006 creation of Empty Dwelling Management Orders, for use by local authorities. But barely a handful have been used due to the complexities of the process.

Then there is the downturn, which has led not only to more people needing social housing, but fewer new units being provided. The Homes and Communities Agency has £3.9 billion to spend on building new affordable housing in the next financial year alone and with the new build market severely constrained, why not encourage people to bid for grant to bring long-term empty homes back into use?

More clearly needs to be done and here are three steps we think will help:

• VAT – a cut in VAT on repairs and maintenance to 5 per cent. This would make it more attractive for owners to invest in an empty home to make it habitable, or for a potential buyer to make an offer.
• Grant – use cash from the existing HCA budget for social landlords to buy and repair long-term empty properties.
• Guidance – clearer advice from the government to help councils use EDMOs.

To find out how you can get involved in supporting the Empty Promise campaign, see our report on page 22 or sign our online petition at www.insidehousing.co.uk/ emptypromise. We will present our list of demands and our supporters to the HCA, the chancellor and the prime minister ahead of the Budget in April. It’s not too late to make a difference, so let us know what you think.

For more information about Empty Promise see our campaign page. You can express your support by signing our petition or emailingemptypromise@insidehousing.co.uk