The Hidden Crisis of Empty Private Properties in Amber Valley
Did you know that in Amber Valley, there's an astonishing surplus of vacant properties while individuals patiently wait for council housing? This overlooked reality has far-reaching consequences, impacting both local homeowners and landlords. Read on to discover how this disparity affects local house prices and monthly rents...
We all know that there aren't enough homes to go around. That applies both to our local Amber Valley area and the rest of the UK.
The answer is clearly to build more property in the Amber Valley area - but that, unfortunately for those badly seeking to buy or rent a home, takes a lot of time, a massive amounts of money and a total change in new build attitudes from the powers that be. So, what other solutions are there?
We have just listed a property with a local seller and during our discussions, the subject of the housing crisis was mentioned. They suggested that all the empty properties in Alfreton could be the solution to this problem. On the face of it, it seems so obvious.
I decided to look into this in more detail and so did some digging. The results were quite astonishing!
The most recent set of figures from 2022 state there were 1,940 empty homes in the Amber Valley Council area. So it begs the question, why not put these homes back into the housing system and help ease the Alfreton housing crisis?
Whilst they stand empty, 1,948 Amber Valley families are on the Council House Waiting List for council houses. Nationally, the picture is very similar with 1,206,376 families on council house waiting lists with 676,304 homes empty.
Surely, we can all agree that property left empty for many years isn’t morally right?
However, a different story emerges when you look deeper into the numbers.
Every October on one specific day, each local authority must report every property that is empty, even if it’s only been so for a week.
So many of these Amber Valley properties are either awaiting new homeowners or, in the case of rental properties, new tenants. Also most certainly, some properties are being refurbished and renovated, some are deceased estates, while other properties have homeowners that have moved out and are in the process of being sold, for example, a part exchange property on a new build purchase.
Of those 1,940 Amber Valley homes lying empty, only 778 properties were empty for more than six months.
The fact is that the number of genuinely long-term empty properties is only a tiny drop in the ocean of the 56,277 properties in the area covered by Amber Valley Borough Council and, even if every one of those empty homes were filled with tenants tomorrow, it would only meet a small fraction of local housing needs.
So, what does this mean for all the homeowners and landlords in the Amber Valley area?
This scarcity of available homes contributes to the maintenance of high rents, which presents a favourable situation for Alfreton landlords who are investing in buy-to-let properties.
Simultaneously, it also serves to keep local house prices at a relatively elevated level.
The implications of this situation are particularly evident in the context of the rental market, where the demand for properties is exceptionally high.
Due to the challenges faced by young individuals in affording homeownership and the financial constraints limiting the construction of new council houses by local authorities, the growth of the rental market becomes an undeniable reality.
Consequently, landlords predominantly focus their investments on the lower end of the housing market, such as starter homes, further fortifying property prices.
This cyclical pattern sustains the entire market as sellers, propelled by the increasing demand, progress up the property ladder, thereby enabling others to purchase homes and continuing the process in a chain-like manner.
These are indeed interesting times in the Alfreton property market! What are your thoughts?
