Empty Homes Grants: What Councils Actually Pay For

There is no national empty homes grant in England. If you have read otherwise, the page was probably describing a scheme that ran years ago, or a single council's offer written up as though it applied everywhere. What exists instead is a patchwork: each council decides for itself whether to help owners bring empty properties back into use, and what that help looks like.

So the question worth asking is not "what is the empty homes grant?" but "what does my council do?" The answer varies a lot, sometimes between neighbouring authorities.

What councils actually offer

Broadly, you will find one of four situations.

• A grant. Money that does not have to be repaid, usually towards specific repair or conversion work. These tend to be the rarest and the smallest, and where they exist they are discretionary: meeting the criteria does not mean you will be awarded anything.
• An interest free or low interest loan. Common where a council offers anything at all. It lends towards the cost of works and recovers the money later, often secured as a charge on the property so it is repaid when you sell or after an agreed number of years.
• Help that is not money. Advice on what work is needed, a contractor list, help finding a tenant, a lettings or management service run by or for the council, or a hand with planning and building control.
• Nothing. Plenty of councils have no empty homes fund, or had one and closed it. Some have a part time empty homes officer covering the whole district and little else.

Funding also comes and goes. A council may open a scheme when money arrives from a particular pot and close it without much notice when that runs out, so a scheme written up online last year may not be live now.

Empty Property Grant Finder

Find out what funding, loans and VAT relief might be available for bringing an empty or derelict property back into use.

Try our Empty Property Grant Finder free, here on this site →

The conditions attached

Almost nothing is given freely. Councils fund this work because they want housing supply, usually housing they can point people towards, so the money comes with strings.

Nomination rights are a common condition: for an agreed period, often several years, you let the property to tenants the council puts forward, usually people on its housing register. Alongside that you will typically be expected to let at an affordable or local housing allowance level rent rather than open market rent, and to keep the property to a defined standard for the duration. Selling or moving in yourself within the agreed period normally triggers repayment.

Other conditions turn up regularly. The property must have been empty for a minimum period. There may be a cap on how many properties one owner can apply for. The work usually has to be approved before it starts, and money spent before an application is agreed is rarely covered afterwards.

None of this makes the support bad value. A long term empty property costs money every month and earns nothing. But do the arithmetic on a below market rent over several years before you sign, because that is the real price of the loan or grant. Factor in the parts nobody advertises too: renovations of long empty houses routinely uncover damp, wiring or roof problems that were not in the quote, and once the property is let you are a landlord, with the repairing obligations and occasional disputes that go with it.

Your situation may be slightly different. ask a question below ↓ and our editorial team will reply with our advice.

How to find out what is available where you are

Start with your council's website and search for "empty homes" or "empty property". If that turns up little, ask for the empty homes officer. Most councils in England have one, sometimes shared with a neighbouring authority, and they are usually the only person who knows what is genuinely running.

Worth asking:

• Is any grant or loan funding open at the moment, and is it discretionary?
• How long does the property need to have been empty to qualify?
• What conditions come with it: nomination rights, rent level, how many years?
• What happens if I sell, or want to move in, before the period ends?
• Is the money paid up front or reimbursed after the work?
• Is there a waiting list, and how long does a decision take?
• If there is no funding, is there anything else: a lettings scheme, a contractor list, VAT advice?

Get the terms in writing before you commit to anything or instruct a builder.

Two things that affect the cost either way

For many owners the council tax bill is the main pressure. Councils can charge a premium on top of the normal bill once a home has stood empty and substantially unfurnished for a set period, and the premium rises the longer it stays that way. The rules and the qualifying periods have changed in recent years, and whether to apply a premium is a decision for each council, so check your council's council tax pages for what applies to your property. Some exceptions exist, including for properties being actively marketed or undergoing major repair, but they are time limited.

On the other side, renovation work on a home that has been empty for two years or more can qualify for a reduced rate of VAT, and a home empty for ten years or more may be treated differently again. The builder applies the rate on their invoice rather than you claiming anything back, but it is on you to check the conditions are met and to evidence how long the property has been empty. Council tax records or a letter from the empty homes officer are the usual proof. The rules sit in HMRC's guidance on GOV.UK, and they do change, so look there rather than relying on a contractor's assumption.

The Next Step

Now that you have read through the advice above, you might want to put it into practice. Our Empty Property Grant Finder lets you find out what funding, loans and VAT relief might be available for bringing an empty or derelict property back into use. Try it now →