A CALL for Pembrokeshire councillors to back potential enforced sales of problem long-term empty properties in the county has been put on hold as the paperwork was not 100 per cent complete.
At Pembrokeshire County Council’s Policy and Pre-Decision Overview and Scrutiny Committee of June 10, members were asked to recommend the council’s Cabinet approve an Enforced Sales Policy and Procedure for Long Term Problematic Empty Properties.
In Pembrokeshire, long-term empty properties and second homes pay a premium on council tax rates.
Second homes in Pembrokeshire have a council tax premium of 150 per cent above the standard rate, while long-term empty properties are now charged at a 300 per cent premium for those empty over two years, replacing a more complicated sliding scale rate used previously.
A report for members at the June meeting said: “A principal motivation for producing this policy is to improve the ability to deal with empty properties and create new homes. An additional consideration, however, is that it will also have wider corporate benefits in relation to aiding in the regeneration of commercial empty properties, debt recovery for outstanding works and court costs which can be significant in relation to works that may need to be carried out.”
It said, as of April 2023, there were around 1,000 residential properties in Pembrokeshire which had been empty for six months or more, along with “numerous empty non-residential properties that also remain empty for significant periods of time thus contributing to potential detriment to the amenity and appearance of our communities”.
It added: “Long-term empty properties are considered a waste of a valuable resource which could be added to the pool of much-needed housing in the county. They can also frequently become blights to neighbourhoods by becoming targets for antisocial behaviour, trespass, vandalism and arson.
“Pembrokeshire County Council wishes to work with the owners of empty properties to encourage them to bring their properties back in to use, and to provide information and advice on the assistance schemes available to owners of long-term empty properties, both residential and commercial.
“There is opportunity also to bring empty commercial buildings back into use through conversion into residential or improvement for re-use for non-residential purposes.”
It went on to say that legislation available would be used to deal with problematic long-term empty properties, and to recover outstanding debts which have been placed as land charges in “circumstances where the present owner is either unwilling or unable to comply with legal notices issued by the council, or the ownership is unknown whereby works in default have had to be undertaken on properties and a legal charge lodged to reclaim this charge”.
“Pembrokeshire County Council will consider the appropriateness of pursuing an enforced sale as part of a wider consideration of all available options to achieve the goal of bringing long-term empty properties back into use. Each case will be treated on its merits.”
It said any enforced sales would be “essentially a debt recovery process which recoups debts owed to the council with a threshold of £1,000 placed to trigger the procedure, with any costs incurred by the council in the process also recoverable.
“At no time will the council take ownership or responsibility for the property,” it stressed, adding: “Should the owner repay the council debt before the enforced sale process is completed, then the process is stopped, and the property remains with its current owner.”
It finished: “The policy is only one of a range of tools for dealing with empty properties and utilising the policy would be a last resort. The work carried out by officers prior to considering using the enforced sales route will provide an opportunity to support owners and individuals to ensure they are dealt with in a fair and sympathetic manner.”
At the meeting itself members were told the item had been withdrawn from the agenda, to return to the September committee, with new vice-chair Cllr Aled Thomas expressing his disappointment.
“I was expecting to come here today to talk this over, we all agree it’s a big issue, could we have a flavour of why it was removed? It feels like it’s pushed back with little or no explanation.”
Chair Cllr Simon Hancock said a “cast iron assurance” had been made that the matter would be heard at the September meeting, an issue having arisen the previous day, with more work needed on the report for members.
He said it was “right and proper” that any report for members was “100 per cent” before any further discussions.
The agenda item was withdrawn from the meeting, earmarked to return to the September committee.
