Estate agency sector backs HMO council tax reform
Propertymark says council tax reform that will ensure Houses in Multiple Occupation only pay the hated levy per property not per room as can be the case now.
Estate agents are backing calls for council tax reform that will ensure Houses in Multiple Occupation only pay the hated levy per property not per room as can be the case now.
The Neg revealed last month how a government consultation into the way Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO) are valued for council tax in England to attract a council tax band for each individual unit had been slammed by landlords as a way for “cash-starved councils to make money off the back of the poorest in society”.
The new proposals would require local authorities to band a HMO as one property, with the landlord liable for council tax.
INFLATING
And industry trade body Propertymark also says that taxing per room could result in artificially inflating the number of dwellings per borough without establishing any additional housing.
Sophie Lang, Propertymark’s Regional Executive who specialises in student lettings in the Cornwall area, says: “In Cornwall for example, the council does not adopt this stance, but two hours up the road in Somerset they do.
“Adopting a council tax room by room is not fair and will increase costs for landlord and tenants, leading to higher rents.
ARLA Propertymark President Elect Greg Tsuman and Lettings Director at London-based Martyn Gerrard Estate Agents, says: “We need to build more homes, not carve them up into smaller and smaller units.”
The pressure on landlords from multiple directions is well documented and has already resulted in a loss of 500,000 homes from the private rented market since 2018.
STRUGGLING
Tsuman adds: “The reality is that higher council tax costs will directly impact the tenants who are already struggling and having to share facilities as a result of rising rents.”
Agents and their landlords, tenants and local authorities will benefit from having one cumulated council tax band for an entire property.”
Timothy Douglas, Propertymark’s Head of Policy and Campaigns, adds: “We know from our member agents that there is currently a lack of consistency in banding assessments that doesn’t take into account current property valuations and modern adaptations taking place within the sector such as energy efficiency improvements.
“Agents and their landlords, tenants and local authorities will benefit from having one cumulated council tax band for an entire property.”
