Latest news with #EmptyHomesWeek
BBC News
06-03-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Hundreds of empty Wolverhampton homes brought back into use
More than 300 private, long-term unoccupied properties in Wolverhampton have been turned into family homes to be sold or rented, the council of the homes, often in a poor state, have stood empty for many years, sometimes because there were no relatives to inherit them or they cannot be improvement officers worked with owners to encourage them to carry out any required work and get them occupied once again, the council to 312 houses have been brought back into use over the past five years. Through the council's Empty Property Strategy, the authority said it wanted to prevent the properties becoming "a blight on their neighbourhood" and make them available to be sold to new homeowners or rented out to figures have been highlighted during national Empty Homes Week, the council authority said it also offered up to £500 towards legal and marketing fees to encourage more owners of empty properties to sell their property on the open Steve Evans, deputy leader and cabinet member for city housing, said the work was providing more affordable housing to people in Wolverhampton."The properties we have become involved with have often stood empty for many years, sometimes because there are no relatives to inherit or they cannot be traced, and, as a result, the condition of the property has deteriorated dramatically."We are putting these houses back on the market – either to sell or rent – and this in turn is having a positive effect in the areas they are in." Follow BBC Wolverhampton & Black Country on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
Yahoo
04-03-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Report empty homes and we'll revamp them
People are being urged to report empty houses so they can be brought back into use. Hull City Council has launched the appeal as part of national Empty Homes Week. Councillor Paul Drake-Davis, who leads on housing at the authority, said the city had "a high level of housing need". But there were 4,767 private homes known to be empty, with 1,963 of them out of use for six months or more. "Empty – usually dilapidated – properties deprive people of much-needed homes," Drake-Davis said. "They also have a negative effect on neighbourhoods, making them look uncared for and can encourage anti-social behaviour and rodent infestations." He said the council would do "everything within our power" to bring homes back into use and called on residents to help by offering their "local knowledge". According to the council, an empty home can be reported on the authority's website. It will then be checked and boarded up, with rubbish cleared and any water leaks stopped. The owner will be contacted to discuss the next steps, which could include a sale to a private landlord, an agreement allowing the council to rent it out, or acquisition by the council. A spokesperson for the authority said it was "retrofitting" empty properties to be "more energy efficient and healthier". One example of this work was in De Grey Street, where a row of flats and houses was being brought back into use by contractor Kingston Works Limited. Listen to highlights from Hull and East Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here. Hull City Council Views sought on plan for new homes in Hull Housebuilding plan approved by city council More than 200 homes approved for Hull
