The Empty Homes Agency estimates that there are now one million homes empty in the UK. However actions taken by Swale Borough Council see it in the top quartile in the Country in terms of bringing empty properties back into use.
A long term empty property is classed as being empty for longer than six months.
Swale Borough Council has used a number of ways to bring back long-term empty properties back into use, such as the successful Empty Dwelling Management Order (EDMO), which requires the local authority to carry out necessary repairs to the property with the owner’s consent. This is done by serving an interim order on the property. The legal decision is arrived at by presenting a case before a Residential Property Tribunal (RPT) who can accept the local authority’s proposals or reject them similar to a court.
Also, the Council has used an Enforced Sales Procedure using the Law of Property Act.This procedure requires the local authority to serve a legal notice using the Housing
Act 2004 on a property if repairs equating to a category one hazard are required using the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS), asking the owner to carry out repairs, if the notice is not complied with works are carried out in default, a legal charge is then put on the property enabling the property to be sold at auction, thus the property does not come into ownership of the local authority.
Swale Borough Council as also made several direct purchases, after negotiation with the owners. These properties are then sold on at auction.
Swale is also part of the ‘No Use Empty’ initiative being co-ordinated by Kent County Council tackling empty properties Kent wide.
Sharon Russell, Swale Borough Council’s Housing Technical Officer, echoes the intentions of the scheme. “This scheme provides us with an extra incentive to encourage owners to bring their properties back into use. Empty houses blight our local community, devalue neighbouring properties, discourage inward investment and can attract antisocial behaviour such as flytipping and vandalism. We are always seeking to improve our performance but the schemes that the Council has developed and employed have enabled us to keep largely on top of the situation and make us one of the best performing Council’s in England on this issue.”
Every month, working on reports of properties that have been empty for over six months, the Council’s officers go out into the borough, to actively seek information as to why properties have been left, locating owners, and advising them on the potential revenues for their properties.