31st
Oct 2022
An apparent leading Tory theorist has written that English councils must seriously and be obliged to sell off a guesstimated of 31,000 council homes and flat that have remained empty long term.
In his piece featured on the Conservative Home website Harry Phibbs claims that selling these properties will have a twofold advantage of reducing the National debt as well as increasing the housing supply with more development opportunities.
He names he names Labour councils being most culpable of keeping residential properties empty stating that: “In London, we have Southwark topping the league of shame with 1,211 empty council homes. Next comes Ealing with 1,039. Camden is on 691. Newham on 617. Outside London, we have Sheffield on 1,205. Leeds on 728. Newcastle on 681. Gateshead on 625, Leicester on 418.”
He estimates a ball park figure after Right to Buy purchase discounts in the country, on top of around a £50,000 cost per property for repairs etc, that each residential home may be worth an average £125,000 handing authorities over £3.8 billion if all of them were sold.
Phibbs finishes the article by saying: “Local authorities should cease being allowed to hoard those assets. They should be put up for sale. Some of the proceeds could be retained by the councils for new homes and improving the existing stock. Some could be retained by central Government to reduce borrowing.
“Incentives and ‘good practice guidance’ are evidently not enough. Forced auction sales are needed to end the scandal of council housing being allowed to remain vacant for long periods.”
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