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Gateshead Council

  

How can the Council help?

Failure to take any of these options could result in the Council taking Enforcement Action:

1. Living in it yourself

What are the benefits of living there yourself?

• It becomes a capital asset that could make money and increase in value.
• It gives you somewhere to live.
• You have rescued a empty property and made it a home.
• If you are refurbishing it for yourself remember:
• Make sure you are allowed to do what you want to the property.
• If there are legal restrictions, you may not be allowed to redesign the way you want.
• Don't bank on being able to get a grant, but do your research to see what is available.

Make the most of tax breaks: if you are doing up a house that has been empty for a long time, there are reduced rates of VAT for refurbishment costs. For properties that have been empty for between two and 10 years, the VAT rate is 5 per cent; for properties empty for more than 10 years there is no VAT. 

Make sure you work out a proper budget before you start refurbishing an empty property. Budget for a contingency sum of at least 10 per cent, and if the property is very dilapidated, make it nearer 25 per cent.

Further information is available on financing the cost of the works in the Council’s Home Maintenance Series Leaflet “How To Pay For Works Of Repair Or Improvement|” available on the right of this page.

2. Letting

What are the benefits of letting your empty property? 

• No responsibility for council tax or utilities payments.
• Receive rental income.
• It becomes a capital asset that could make money and increase in value.
• It provides someone with a home.

The Housing Act 1996 has introduced such changes that has made tenancies much more flexible and has given landlords increased powers to gain possession of the property, making it easier to control and manage. Assured shorthold tenancies now allow landlords to determine the length of the lease period and guarantee possession at the end of the tenancy. Hence problems associated with long term sitting tenants are now a thing of the past.

What benefits would I get from joining the Gateshead Private Landlord Association?
The GPLA aims to raise the standard of housing across Gateshead by providing a support network for landlords.

Further information is available from Leaflet 4 in this series “Letting your Empty Property|” available on the right of this page.

3. Sale

What are the benefits of selling my empty property?

• No further responsibility for council tax or utility payment. 
• No further responsibility for problems at the premises.
• It is a capital asset that will realise you money.

How do I sell my empty property?
You may wish to sell through an estate agent on the open market. Alternatively, the empty property officer may be able to advise you who might be interested in buying your property.

If you are selling your property you will need to provide a Home Information Pack (also known as the HIP). This is compulsory for all homes on the market in England and Wales. It is a set of documents that provides the buyer with key information on the property and must be provided by the seller or the seller's estate agent.

Who compiles the Home Information Pack?
You can compile it yourself or you can hire an estate agent, solicitor or HIP provider to do it for you. Always make sure that your HIP provider is signed up to a code of practice, such as the HIP Code.

The seller is responsible for the cost of a HIP.

4. Maintaining an empty property

DO SOMETHING ABOUT YOUR EMPTY PROPERTY NOW! If you are the owner of a property standing empty contact us for advice and assistance via the contact us on the right of this page.