The owners of second homes in North Yorkshire have been warned a strict policy will be enforced to ensure that they pay a new council tax premium.

We were one of the first authorities in the country to announce plans to introduce a 100 per cent premium for council tax bills on second homes, which will now come into effect from 1 April.

The new scheme will effectively double council tax bills for second homeowners and is due to raise more than £10 million annually with hundreds of new affordable homes set to be built over the next four years.

Members of our executive have now approved a programme of housing initiatives that would be funded through the revenue generated by the premium.

An affordable housing delivery fund and a rural housing delivery fund are among the initiatives which have been backed by our executive members.

Our deputy leader, Cllr Gareth Dadd, whose responsibilities include finance, said: “The county is such a wonderful place to live and visit, but this creates very significant pressures on the availability of housing, especially affordable homes.

“We will work closely with the Government, whose Valuation Office Agency is responsible for assessing if a property is a second home, to keep a close check on properties that are second homes and therefore qualify for the council tax premium.

“This is a new policy, but it is one we are totally committed to, and we will be making sure that those homeowners who have to pay the premium actually do so.”

Rural and coastal communities in North Yorkshire are particularly vulnerable to a lack of affordable housing as second home ownership and holiday lets drive up private rent and house prices.

The delivery of new affordable homes in countryside areas is also challenging as construction costs are exacerbated with limited access to local skills, labour and the supply chain.

While about 800 new affordable homes have been developed each year across North Yorkshire over the past decade, there is still a lack of properties to meet demand.

Image

According to figures from the National Housing Federation, there are more than 8,000 second homes in North Yorkshire - the highest number in the Yorkshire and Humber region.

The introduction of the council tax premium is ultimately aimed at bringing second homes back into use for local communities after many people have been priced out of the housing market in some of North Yorkshire’s most desirable locations.

The premium will provide a multi-million pound boost to finance our priorities, including a central aim to use the funding to help introduce more housing in areas particularly affected by the affordability crisis.

Council leader, Cllr Carl Les, said: “One of the biggest challenges we face in the county is a lack of affordable housing, and we are committed to doing all we can to allow people to live in the places that they wish to.

“This is a vital means of raising much-needed funding that will allow us to develop hundreds of new affordable homes, targeting the areas of North Yorkshire where the properties are needed the most.”

We will also work alongside the Government’s housing agency, Homes England, and the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority to maximise the use of available grants and to deliver shared objectives to introduce more affordable housing.