We charge a Council Tax premium of 100% on some empty and second homes. Update your details to make sure our records about your property and your bill are correct.

We will charge the premium on homes that have been empty and unfurnished for more than 12 months. We will also charge it on furnished second homes that are no-one’s sole or main residence.

For Council Tax purposes, a second home is a furnished property that is not used as a main residence. This includes empty rental homes, holiday homes, job-related properties, inherited properties, and properties that are on the market for sale.

Council Tax premium on empty and second homes

We charge a Council Tax premium of 100% on homes that have been empty and unfurnished for more than 12 months.

Premiums on empty and unfurnished properties have been in place since 2013. They previously only applied where a property had stood empty for more than two years. Since April 2025, this period has been reduced to one year.

We also charge the premium on furnished second homes that are no-one’s sole or main residence.

We are committed to bring empty and second homes back into use for much-needed permanent occupation. The Council Tax premium is one of several measures introduced by the government to encourage owners to use a dwelling as their main residence or allow others to do the same.

The premium will not change anything except the amount of your Council Tax bill. You can continue to pay it in the same way as you currently do, over 10 or 12 months.

We decided to charge the premium at our Strategy and Resources committee meeting on 25 March 2024. We published notice of this in April 2024, within the statutory 21-day period after making the decision.

If your property is now furnished or permanently occupied, update your Council Tax account to tell us about the change.