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Empty houses to face tax bill rise (From Worcester News)
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Empty houses to face tax bill rise
11:00am Friday 14th September 2012 in News By Tom Edwards
LANDLORDS who fail to find tenants for their empty properties in Worcester could soon be facing a 150 per cent council tax bill.
The move, which is set to come into force next April, is aimed at encouraging owners of the city’s 476 ‘long-term’ empty homes to help address chronic housing problems.
The ruling, which is going out for public consultation this autumn, will apply to landlords with a house that has been empty for two years or longer.
Meanwhile, repossessed homes and properties which have been empty for between six months and two years are set to have their council tax discounts scrapped.
At the moment, banks and building societies pay no council tax on repossessed properties, and owners of long-term empty homes can apply for a 25 per cent reduction.
The changes will also affect people who designate a property a second home and in doing so get 25 per cent off their bills.
Under council proposals they will be ordered to pay the lot from next April.
The hard line changes by Worcester City Council is because bosses are being asked to come up with their own council tax benefit system by the Government.
The benefits system is administered by councils, all of which have been asked to come up with ideas to plug the shortfall.
The city council gets £6.7 million for administering the system across south Worcestershire, but the 10 per cent reduction leaves a £670,000 shortfall.
About 8,400 households in Worcester currently get help with their council tax, including students, pensioners, those on benefits or low incomes, and owners of empty homes.
But by law pensioners must be protected.
The Conservative-led cabinet says it will be seeking the views of as many residents as possible.
Councillor Andy Roberts , cabinet member for finance, said: “The consultation process is extremely important and an end decision will be made in November.”
Coun Richard Boorn, Labour’s finance spokesman, said: “A lot of the council’s income from grant funding and other revenue streams is drying up, which is starting to become a real problem.”
The authority will be consulting during September and October, and will take the decision to a vote at full council on November 27.
Comments(14)
More Tea Vicar
says...
11:59am Fri 14 Sep 12
Now if the Conservatives drop the SWDP, allowing brownfield development only, we might get somewhere.
Not holding my breath, though.
Jackie Barry
says...
12:46pm Fri 14 Sep 12
TDH123
says...
1:34pm Fri 14 Sep 12
Captain Thrap
says...
1:42pm Fri 14 Sep 12
Charginging more from those with empty property, whereas NOT CHARGING ANYTHING FROM BUSINESS-VENTURE TENEMENT LANDLORDS WHO TURN RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBOURHOODS INTO STUDENT ACCOMMODATION GHETTO'S. WITH MORE AND MORE HOUSES BEING REQUISITIONED ITS TIME TO TAX THE BUSINESSMAN !!
MrStJohns
says...
1:58pm Fri 14 Sep 12
Captain Thrap wrote:A quick Substitution of the T and H from your last name substituted with a C would be wholly appropriate for your comments.
HOW STUPID. Charginging more from those with empty property, whereas NOT CHARGING ANYTHING FROM BUSINESS-VENTURE TENEMENT LANDLORDS WHO TURN RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBOURHOODS INTO STUDENT ACCOMMODATION GHETTO'S. WITH MORE AND MORE HOUSES BEING REQUISITIONED ITS TIME TO TAX THE BUSINESSMAN !!
truth must out
says...
2:23pm Fri 14 Sep 12
MrStJohns wrote:Very juvenile MrStJohns...your only contribution to this article is to ridicule the name of another poster.
Captain Thrap wrote:A quick Substitution of the T and H from your last name substituted with a C would be wholly appropriate for your comments.
HOW STUPID. Charginging more from those with empty property, whereas NOT CHARGING ANYTHING FROM BUSINESS-VENTURE TENEMENT LANDLORDS WHO TURN RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBOURHOODS INTO STUDENT ACCOMMODATION GHETTO'S. WITH MORE AND MORE HOUSES BEING REQUISITIONED ITS TIME TO TAX THE BUSINESSMAN !!
Captain Thrap
says...
2:39pm Fri 14 Sep 12
HOW MANY HOUSES DO YOU RENT TO STUDENTS.
wooshman
says...
4:37pm Fri 14 Sep 12
mayall8808
says...
7:37pm Fri 14 Sep 12
landlords on the whole are the ones who get ripped off don't believe the stupid hype you get in the press put out by this dictatorship of a government.
Saturn V
says...
1:29am Sat 15 Sep 12
Ensuring landlords pay tax would help. I know mine doesn't.
mayall8808
says...
10:55am Sat 15 Sep 12
I do as a landlord and it's strictly watched by the tax man.
katiekins
says...
8:45am Tue 18 Sep 12
spider666
says...
8:23am Wed 19 Sep 12
katiekins wrote:While i agree with you that some rents are high people are having to pay them or be homeless so the prices will never come down.It would be interesting to know what the landlords overheads are i.e. Insurance,upkeep of properties,taxes,fir
Some landlords are just so GREEDY asking silly money may be if they dropped the price they would find tenants and help the housing problem in worcester!!!!!!!!!!!
e inspections etc etc
Hwicce says...
11:24am Fri 14 Sep 12