Introduction
With little land to build on and many people currently in urgent
housing need it makes sense for the community and the Council to
take measures to bring empty homes back into use. Empty properties
are a blight on the community, they rapidly attract vandals, they
can be a focus for anti-social behaviour and can affect
neighbouring properties by causing dampness and other
problems.
Empty properties are a financial loss to the owner, both in terms
of income lost and money spent. Council tax must be paid,
maintenance is required and problems can be caused by squatters and
vandals. The Council has an Empty
Property Strategy 
(2.85MB) which aims to deal with this problem.
The strategy includes measures to assist owners in bringing their
empty properties back into use.
How do I inform the Council or contact them for advice?
You can complete our
empty properties online form to notify us of vacant properties.
Alternatively please contact the Housing Section via Worcestershire
Hub on 01562 732928.
What information does the Council need?
In order to respond to your enquiry or complaint regarding an
empty property, we would benefit from the following
information:
- Is it a Community Housing property? (ex-Council Houses) If yes,
please contact the Community
Housing Group direct.
- Approximately how long has the property been empty?
- Is the property currently secure or is it open to
vandalism/squatters? - see Houses
(Unoccupied and insecure) Are there concerns over
condition of property/garden?
- What are the owner’s name and contact details, if known.
- Please provide your name, address and contact details and
whether you are the owner or a concerned member of the public or
other.
- If you are the owner, we would appreciate knowing why the
property is empty and what plans you may have for bringing it back
into use in the near future?
What will the Council do?
The Private Sector Housing Team will try to contact the owners
of vacant properties. Assistance will be given to help them decide
what to do with their property. This may be as simple as guidance
on how to rent out a property, or it can extend to providing
financial assistance to refurbish the property and rent it
out.
If the property is causing problems to neighbouring properties or
the community and the owner does not undertake their
responsibilities, then the Council will look to a range of
enforcement options and take formal action.
Unoccupied and insecure houses will
be secured either by the owner or the Council.
Ultimately the Council has powers to force a property back into use
or force the sale of problem empty properties. Obviously these
measures are a last resort but will be used if there is no
reasonable excuse for the property being empty or progress is not
made towards bringing it back into use.
The Council has produced an Empty
Properties Leaflet (181K) explaining our approach.
