Nobody's home: Hundreds of Bassetlaw homes sitting empty for more than six months

Hundreds of homes in Bassetlaw have been sitting empty for more than six months, amid a housing crisis which has left scores of people across England trapped in temporary accommodation.
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Campaign group Action on Empty Homes called the latest figures “shocking”, after it revealed long-term empties across the country have risen to the highest level in a decade outside of the coronavirus pandemic.

Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities data shows at least 683 homes liable for council tax in Bassetlaw had been unoccupied for at least six months at the most recent count in October.

It meant the number of homes gathering dust for at least half a year has increased 13 per cent from 603 in 2021, but fallen 13 per cent compared with 786 in 2012.

Across England, there were 676,500 vacant properties at the latest count.Across England, there were 676,500 vacant properties at the latest count.
Across England, there were 676,500 vacant properties at the latest count.

The properties deemed long-term empty were among a total of 1,902 vacant homes in Bassetlaw in October.

Owners of properties which have lain empty for two years or more can be charged an extra 100 per cent council tax on top of their bill, rising to as much as 300 per cent if the home has been empty for a decade or longer.

Across England, there were 676,500 vacant properties at the latest count.

Some 248,600, 37 per cent, of these had been lying empty for six months or more – the highest number since 2012, excluding 2020, when the pandemic caused a temporary shutdown in the housing market.

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Chris Bailey, AEH national campaign manager, said: “After more than a decade of intense housing crisis, it is shocking to see long-term empty homes in England rise to 250,000 – another 11,000 more wasted empties.

“A new national empty homes programme is long overdue. The Government needs to step up to the plate and offer funding and incentives to get these homes back into use.”

A DLUHC spokesman said the Government is "taking action to get empty homes back into use" and added that the number of long-term empty homes is lower than when records began in 2004.

They said: "The Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill gives councils power to apply the 100 per cent council tax premium on properties left empty after a year, rather than the current two years. This will provide local leaders with additional flexibility to address the impact of empty homes."