Owners of second homes in Wales are having to sell up. That’s no disaster: it’s a godsend | Will Hayward
www.theguardian.com
Council tax hikes on holiday homes aren’t ‘anti-English’ or detrimental to tourism. This is about preserving embattled communities, says Guardian columnist Will Hayward

geteilt von: https://sh.itjust.works/post/38301389

To try to tackle this, the Welsh Labour government, alongside Plaid Cymru, introduced measures to curb second-home ownership. This included giving councils the ability to push council tax on second homes to 300% the usual rate. They also closed a loophole whereby second-home owners could register as a business in order to pay the much lower business rates.

Gwynedd council used these powers to hike council tax to 150% in April 2023. By the end of 2024, house prices had fallen by 12.4% as second-home owners tried to sell up. In Pembrokeshire, house prices fell by 8.9% after the council increased the council tax to 200% on second homes (though this was reduced to 150% recently).

  • @tflyghtz@lemm.eeEnglish
    8•3 days ago

    Tax aint the problem with property. Its that its valued too high because property is an asset of profit. Hope this helps with that issue, but it seems it just limits the trend instead of reversing it.

    • @Honytawk@feddit.nlEnglish
      36•3 days ago

      It is valued too high because houses are seen as an investment.

      Taxing them higher makes them not profitable, so they get sold.

      Meaning there is more supply, which lowers prices.

      • @TheodorAlforno@feddit.orgEnglish
        1•2 days ago

        It doesn’t solve the problem of rising rent. People already owning their property are not affected by this and can profit off rent increase.

        • MaggiWuerzeEnglish
          3•2 days ago

          Most people renting out have more than one house, so this would affect them still, while not hurting the old couple that rents out parts of their house that got too big for them

          • @OhNoMoreLemmy@lemmy.mlEnglish
            2•2 days ago

            This actually doesn’t affect landlords because council tax is charged to people living in the house first, and only to the owner if no one is living there.

            This primarily affects second home owners and short term lets, but there’s other renting reform coming as well, and this has already dropped house prices, so it’s a start.