Council Tax levy to tackle empty homes
19th October 2011
1345 empty homes targeted in the Highlands
Local authorities are to receive new powers to tax empty homes that could help raise millions to build new affordable housing.
The Council Tax on Empty Homes and Housing Support Grant Bill proposals could apply to the 1345 properties that have currently been empty for more than six months and are liable to pay Council Tax in the Highlands.
If all local authorities in Scotland decide to use the maximum powers, they could raise up to �30million per year to spend on much-needed affordable homes.
The bill will also abolish the Housing Support Grant , which was originally established to subsidise local authorities' housing budgets by helping pay interest on housing debts.
Launching a consultation on the proposals, Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure and Capital Investment Alex Neil said:
"Although the public purse is under huge financial strain the Scottish Government is doing all it can to increase the supply of affordable housing across the country.
"One way to do this is to tackle the problem of empty homes, which are a wasted resource and often also a blight on local communities as they attract vandalism.
"We are proposing to bring forward legislation to allow Councils to charge a Council Tax levy on homes which have been empty for more than six months.
"It will be up to each Council to decide if they want to use the new powers, which could encourage more owners to rent or sell their empty homes."
Graeme Brown, Director of Shelter Scotland who facilitates the government-funded Scottish Empty Homes Partnership, comments on the Scottish Government's new scheme to target empty homes.
"We welcome the proposals to give councils powers to tax the owners of empty homes. With 25,000 long-term private empty homes across Scotland, this is a step in the right direction.
"The ultimate measure of success will be the number of empty homes brought back in to use and the number of new affordable homes built using that income. This is not a quick win. The levy will provide several million in income for councils as part of a long term strategy.
"With 156,000 households on the waiting list, bringing empty homes back in to use can be part of the solution to addressing Scotland's housing needs. We urge councils to make the most of these new powers and to do all they can to utilise the houses they already have in their communities."
Since launching, 22 of Scotland's 32 local authorities have signed up to the www.reportemptyhomes.com website, where members of the public are encouraged to report empty homes in their communities.
More information about the Council Tax on Empty Homes and Housing Support Grant Bill is available at the following link: www.scotland.gov.uk/emptyhomes
Related Businesses
Related Articles
Wick Business Park has welcomed wind energy technology company ENERCON as the first occupant of one of four new units completed last year. ENERCON specialises in designing, producing, installing and servicing onshore wind turbines and has been operating in the Caithness area since 2013.
Additional empty homes officers are being recruited to bring more privately owned houses back into use. The new posts are being supported as part of a £2 million investment through the Scottish Empty Homes Partnership in 2025-26 which will see staff take a more proactive and targeted approach to tackling local housing issues.
The Highland Strategic Local Action Group (LAG) met in June 2025 and considered and agreed funding for 28 projects submitted to the Community-Led Local Development fund (CLLD), which makes up part of The Highland Council Community Regeneration Fund (CRF) programme. CRF is an umbrella term used to cover multiple external funding programmes administered by The Highland Council.
Highland Council has provided 12 ‘Talking Tub' resources for use in primary schools across the Highlands, in partnership with Union Technical who deliver community benefits as part of the Energy Efficient Scotland: Area Based Scheme programme. Chair of Highland Council's Education Committee, Councillor John Finlayson, said: "This is a fantastic initiative being rolled out across Highland primary schools which brings innovation and inspiration to early years children.
Visitors will find it easier to dispose of their litter at several popular spots across Highland after the rollout of additional bins. The rollout has been planned to support the tourism season as part of the Council's ongoing commitment to improve and support sustainable tourism in the area.
Members of the meeting of The Highland Council (26 June 2025) have considered and agreed the Accounts Commission's Best Value report, which was published in April 2025 and highlights organisational improvements across leadership, performance management and community engagement. In April’s report, the Accounts Commission recognised and welcomed significant progress within the organisation since the 2020 Best Value Assurance Report (BVAR) and commended the embedded culture of transformation.
A new generation of community facilities is being planned for the Highlands. At a meeting of The Highland Council (Thursday 26 June), elected members approved the work to date in progressing the Highland Investment Plan workstreams - masterplan for Thurso and agreed to nominate the current Thurso High School site as the preferred location for the new Thurso Community Point of Delivery (POD).
At a meeting of The Highland Council (Thursday 26 June 2025), Members received a progress report on the partnership approach and important successes since declaring a Highland Housing Challenge in November 2023. Since establishing the ambitious Highland Housing Challenge, important successes included: A call for sites delivered 250 sites, with a potential 25,000 housing units which will support delivery against the target of an additional 12,000 houses over the next 10 years.
The Highland Council will deliver a transformative programme of energy efficiency upgrades across Council housing supported by a £9.2 million Energy Company Obligation (ECO) funding proposal secured by Union Technical. The funding proposal will deliver approximately 1,000 individual energy efficiency measures to Council owned properties across the Highlands.
As part of the Highland Council's celebration of Refugee Week - 16 to 22 June - we are delighted to announce that a sharing of photographs, taken by separated young people seeking asylum living within the Highlands, is to be shown at Eden Court Arts Centre, Inverness. Look to See, which ties in with the theme for this year’s Refugee Week - Community as a Superpower - emerges out of a collaboration between multiple agencies working alongside separated young people seeking asylum, embodying the importance of community and connection, when looking to support all young people in the Highlands.