Over 1,300 Empty Homes in Hounslow Borough
Mayor describes the amount of vacant housing in the borough as 'scandalous'
Hounslow House - the headquarters of the council
May 26, 2023
Hounslow has been identified as having over 1,300 empty homes in the borough despite a huge number of people on the council housing waiting list.
Sadiq Khan described the results of a survey conducted by the London Mayor’s office as “scandalous” which found £20bn worth of housing across the capital left vacant for long periods of time.
With 30,000 homes found to be long-term empty in London, the Mayor and Westminster Council have called on the Government to devolve the power to set higher rates of council tax on empty homes, to discourage owners from leaving them vacant.
Hounslow has 1,384 long-term empty homes with a combined a market value of £650m according to the research and the council says it is already taking action to raise council tax for empty homes.
Although not London’s worst offender, Hounslow had the tenth highest number of empty homes which was more than any of its neighbouring boroughs. In the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, 1,600 empty properties would collectively be worth more than £2.2bn.
Southwark had the highest number of empty properties by far with 2,422 found to be vacant while Newham came in second with 1,944. Barnet and Lambeth had 1,891 and 1,820 respectively while in fifth place was Croydon with 1,606. Harrow had by far the lowest number of long-term empty homes with just 61.
Councillor Tom Bruce, Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Development at Hounslow Council, says the council are already enforcing higher tax on vacant properties, “To tackle the shortfall in national housing, we are currently undertaking a review of empty Council Tax properties. Currently, any properties that have been unoccupied and unfurnished for more than two years are now subject to an additional 100% premium on their council tax.
“One of the council’s main priorities is to supply affordable homes for our residents and we are on track to deliver over 1,000 new council homes over the next four years. We are committed to creating thriving neighbourhoods where communities can connect and residents can belong.”
The report will dishearten many who are currently on the hunt for affordable homes and cheap rentals. Conor O’Shea, Policy and Public Affairs Manager at Generation Rent, said, “As long as people are moving house or refurbishing properties we’ll always have some empty homes, but it’s particularly concerning that the number of long term empty homes in London has increased by 10,000 since 2019, at a time when rents have been surging to historic highs.
“We need to make it more difficult for owners to leave properties empty and deprive locals of much needed homes. A healthier supply of homes will dampen rents which are forcing people on ordinary incomes further out of London.”
Sadiq Khan added: “It’s a scandal that so many much-needed homes across London lie vacant in the midst of a housing crisis. That’s why I’m working with Westminster City Council to call on the Government to implement a range of measures to crack down on long-term empty homes, including the devolution of powers so that local councils can set higher rates of council tax on vacant properties. This would not only deter absentee international investment, but would free up housing stock across the capital for Londoners.
“We are also urging ministers to make it easier to allow the temporary take-over of empty homes using Empty Dwelling Management Orders, which have been restricted in recent years.
“Over the last few years, we’ve started building a record number of homes for Londoners, but there’s still a long way to go to fix the housing crisis and it will require much greater national investment. But ministers should start by making it easier for councils to bring long-term empty homes back into use so we can continue building a fairer and more prosperous London for everyone.”
Full list of the number of empty homes
| Name of council | Number of long-term empty homes | Average house price | Combined value |
|---|---|---|---|
Barking and Dagenham |
368 |
£365,000 |
£134,320,000 |
Barnet |
1,891 |
£605,000 |
£1,144,055,000 |
Bexley |
572 |
£420,000 |
£240,240,000 |
Brent |
1,114 |
£555,000 |
£618,270,000 |
Bromley |
1,202 |
£510,000 |
£613,020,000 |
Camden |
1,355 |
£800,000 |
£1,084,000,000 |
City of London |
295 |
£725,000 |
£213,875,000 |
Croydon |
1,606 |
£417,000 |
£669,702,000 |
Ealing |
553 |
£550,000 |
£304,150,000 |
Enfield |
912 |
£458,000 |
£417,696,000 |
Greenwich |
962 |
£450,000 |
£432,900,000 |
Hackney |
1,194 |
£600,000 |
£716,400,000 |
Hammersmith and Fulham |
532 |
£785,000 |
£417,620,000 |
Haringey |
1,468 |
£587,000 |
£861,716,000 |
Harrow |
61 |
£550,000 |
£33,550,000 |
Havering |
657 |
£435,000 |
£285,795,000 |
Hillingdon |
388 |
£475,000 |
£184,300,000 |
Hounslow |
1,384 |
£470,000 |
£650,480,000 |
Islington |
733 |
£665,000 |
£487,445,000 |
Kensington and Chelsea |
1,564 |
£1,400,000 |
£2,189,600,000 |
Kingston upon Thames |
567 |
£555,000 |
£314,685,000 |
Lambeth |
1,820 |
£548,250 |
£997,815,000 |
Lewisham |
1,226 |
£465,000 |
£570,090,000 |
Merton |
1,187 |
£570,000 |
£676,590,000 |
Newham |
1,944 |
£430,000 |
£835,920,000 |
Redbridge |
879 |
£490,000 |
£430,710,000 |
Richmond upon Thames |
624 |
£768,000 |
£479,232,000 |
Southwark |
2,422 |
£542,500 |
£1,313,935,000 |
Sutton |
970 |
£442,500 |
£429,225,000 |
Tower Hamlets |
1,510 |
£525,000 |
£792,750,000 |
Waltham Forest |
1,004 |
£510,000 |
£512,040,000 |
Wandsworth |
191 |
£695,000 |
£132,745,000 |
Westminster |
1,172 |
£995,000 |
£1,166,140,000 |
TOTAL |
£20,351,011,000 |
rory Bennett - Local Democracy Reporter