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05
Jul 2022
793 Harrogate district second-home owners face double council tax charge
About 800 second-home owners in the Harrogate district could be hit by double council tax charges under proposals to tackle the affordable housing crisis.
North Yorkshire County Council has proposed the 100% premium on council tax bills for all second homes in the county from April 2024.
Official figures show there were 793 second homes in Harrogate last year and the county council said these could generate an extra £1.5 million a year to fund services and affordable housing schemes.
Across North Yorkshire, the tax hike could create around £14 million annually, the county council added.
Cllr Carl Les, leader of the county council, described second homes as a “major issue” for areas across the country and said the proposals for North Yorkshire would depend on the government passing legislation in the coming months.
He said:
Read more:
- Harrogate district second home owners face extra council tax charge
- Second homes council tax premium plan gets mixed reception
The proposal has also been welcomed by councillor Pat Marsh, leader of Harrogate and Knaresborough’s Liberal Democrats, who said holiday hotspots were in danger of “becoming ghost towns” because of second homes.
She said:
The number of second homes in Harrogate has increased by more than 13% over the last decade and it has been argued the problem puts a strain on an already limited housing stock at a time when high house prices are driving low-income earners out of the district.
Yet the proposed tax hike has been met with opposition from some politicians who fear it could devalue homes and undermine businesses which depend on second home owners.
There are also concerns it could lead to second home owners transferring their properties to holiday lets to qualify for discounted business rates.
Cllr Stuart Parsons, leader of the Independent group on the county council, described the move as “one of the stupidest suggestions the Tories have ever come up with”.
He told the Local Democracy Reporting Service the proposals would cause more harm than good as there would be “so many loopholes people could dodge out of paying the premium as they wish”.
Other local politicians have also claimed some areas of the county are suffering more due to holiday lets than second homes.
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