Empty promises

Like most councils, Westminster struggles to find enough homes to meet demand for prospective social tenants. ‘Demand for housing always outstrips supply here,’ says cabinet member for housing Philippa Roe.

The authority has responded by bringing more than 350 empty private sector homes back into use in the last 18 months, some of which have been put up for sale, and others used for social rent.

Ms Roe says: ‘Homes can be empty for a variety of reasons from lack of funds for refurbishment or an owner not being able to sell it…by bringing them back into use, we are providing accommodation for people in need of housing.’

How it works

Westminster uses a range of measures to incentivise, cajole, and – in some instances – force, landlords to get empty properties back on the market.

This includes awarding landlords grants to transform run down homes in return for the right to nominate tenants in need of affordable housing to live in the house or flat.

The council also brokers a leasing scheme with a housing association where the landlord gets a guaranteed rent and the day-to-day management is taken care of by the association.

If all else fails, there is always the threat of legal action. Ms Roe says: ‘The council offers assistance to encourage owners to bring properties back into use, however, when this approach fails the authority takes firm enforcement action.’

Results

The council spends a maximum of £11,000 in grant per home, which comes from the government through the Greater London Authority.

The investment has succeeded in reducing the number of empty homes, and a recent street survey estimated that only 500 of the borough’s 3,000 empty homes had been vacant for more than a year.

However Ms Roe warns that more that can be done. She says it is hard to gauge the scale of the problem as 90 per cent of private sector stock are flats ‘that are not obviously vacant from the street. Private sector owners may also not claim an empty dwelling discount.’