Tens of thousands of Londoners with second homes are to be hit by higher council tax bills.
The Government is to let local authorities cut or scrap the discount of up to 50 per cent on offer to people who run two properties. Sir Steve Bullock, London Councils executive member for housing said: “More than 70,000 homes lie empty in the capital, and the owners often have discounts on council tax.
“One of a number of ways that local authorities can mitigate the impact is by encouraging landlords to rent out their empty or second homes. Obviously each local authority will make decisions based on the demands of its local area but by reducing the discount, it is hoped that people will be incentivised to rent out these empty homes.”
It will affect people who keep a flat in the City to save commuting during the week, as well as owners of weekend cottages in the countryside. The City of London contains more people with second addresses than any other area in the country, according to records, with 185 per 1,000 households.
The rest of the top 10 are rural areas and beautyspots — including Devon, Cornwall, Somerset and Dorset. Nearly 250,000 Britons own two properties.
