Agenda item

 

ORDERED that Executive:

 

1.    Approve the Empty Property Strategy – Domestic.

2.    Delegate any future minor revisions/modifications to

the Director of Finance and the Director of Regeneration following consultation with the Executive Member for Finance and the Executive Member for Development. The purpose of which was to maintain effective service delivery and reflect revisions brought about by regulatory and/or statutory guidance changes.

The Executive Member for Finance and the Executive Member for Development submitted a report for Executive’s consideration.

 

According to data extracted from council tax records for 7 October 2024, 2,695 homes were empty in Middlesbrough. Empty homes were monitored and tracked through a corporate dashboard which provided a comprehensive overview of the Council’s current position.

 

Council Tax charge details were provided in the table at paragraph 4.1 of the report.

 

Of the recorded empty homes in Middlesbrough, some were ‘transactional vacancies’ (for instance, properties empty following the death of the owner) and were necessary for the normal operation of the housing market and were therefore not the focus of the strategy.

 

The 514 homes that had been empty for two years or more were the cause of most concern as they were more likely to remain empty for longer without intervention and were also more likely to have a negative impact on both the social and physical regeneration of the area.

 

In addition to these empty homes, Middlesbrough had an as-yet unquantified number of problem properties, streets, and gardens in poor condition.

 

At present, the council tax database was the only verified method to evaluate and monitor the number of empty homes in Middlesbrough. This method did not provide a full and accurate view of the actual number of empty homes and did not include problematic occupied properties.

 

Between 2019-2024 the rented housing market had changed significantly. In the social rented sector, the turnover of properties had reduced from an average of 12% in 2019 to less than 5% in 2024. This directly impacted the availability of affordable properties to rent in the town.

 

Affordable options to move out of social rented, such as moving into private rented or securing a mortgage had become more limited and the strategy was intended to support reversing this trend.

 

Some high rise multi storey properties were in the process of being demolished following new Building Safety Regulations and this would reduce the number of reported empty properties.

 

Properties could become empty as they become unaffordable for residents in receipt of Housing Benefit/Universal Credit where rental inflation outstripped Housing Benefit. This left landlords, who provided low-cost housing, unable to find tenants who could afford to pay market rent. Consequentially, this had created an affordability gap for those on lower incomes being able to access or continue to live in the private rented sector. In short, the private rented sector had become unaffordable for many.

 

The Mayor and Executive Member for Finance thanked the Operations Manager for Investigations and Enforcement as well as the Head of Resident and Business Support for their work on the report.

 

The Chair of the Overview and Scrutiny Board asked if the Council would consider Compulsory Purchase Orders as part of this process. The Mayor clarified that while that was a possibility the emphasis would be on working with the owners of empty properties.

 

The Mayor thanked officers for their work on the report.

 

ORDERED that Executive:

 

1.    Approve the Empty Property Strategy – Domestic.

2.    Delegate any future minor revisions/modifications to

the Director of Finance and the Director of Regeneration following consultation with the Executive Member for Finance and the Executive Member for Development. The purpose of which was to maintain effective service delivery and reflect revisions brought about by regulatory and/or statutory guidance changes.

 

OPTIONS

 

The Council did have the option to not implement a strategy and do nothing. However, substantial areas of the town had high residential voids, low sale values and high population churn, creating potential market failure.

 

Doing nothing with empty and problem properties may have created further social consequences and implications for Council resources and service delivery. This would be unsustainable and could have resulted in the need for significant invention.

 

Clusters of empty homes could be problematic, putting pressure on Council and partner services.

 

REASONS

 

The Empty Property Strategy for Domestic properties impacted all wards and required Executive approval.

 

The strategy provided best practice guidance to support landlords and property owners to bring empty properties into use by working with the property owner or landlord where possible, providing advice, assistance, and guidance.

 

The Council would access certain powers, where appropriate, working with landlords and owners wherever possible to bring properties back into use.

 

There were many reasons why properties became empty and/or fell into disrepair, these could also be linked to specific circumstances, such as the death of the homeowner, lack of funds needed to bring properties back into use etc.

 

It was important to gain full understanding of each individual situation and ensure that information held by the Council on those properties was complete and accurate.

 

The strategy was intended to strengthen existing arrangements and with the introduction of measures linked to the cross-directorate, multi-agency action plan, would further enhance these arrangements. A joined-up corporate approach was necessary to ensure positive steps were taken to stabilise and then reduce the number of empty homes and problem properties across the town.

 

The approval of the proposed approach would aid with several financial benefits associated with empty homes and bring them back into use.

 

Tackling empty properties and problem properties would assist in meeting local housing needs, improve housing conditions, assist in reducing crime and anti-social behaviour and maximise both physical and social regeneration outcomes within the town. The strategy would complement the Housing Supply Report, which was also submitted for consideration at the meeting.

 

In addition to the Empty Property Strategy – Domestic, the Commercial Empty

Property Strategy was due to be considered by Executive in February 2025.