Second Homes & Short-Term Lets

Second homes – local authorities to be given powers to apply up to 100% premium on Council Tax

Secondary legislation is to be delivered which will enable local authorities to apply up to a 100% premium on council tax rates for second homes with effect from April 2024.

Short-term lets

1^st October 2023 was a key date for those operating short-term lets. Local authorities had been given powers to impose a short-term let licensing regime aimed at ensuring consistent safety standards in short-term accommodation and protecting residential communities.

New hosts starting short-term lets on or after 1^st October 2022 must have a licence from their local authority before they start operating. Transitional provisions allow those hosts who were already providing short-term lets before 1^st October 2022 to continue to operate provided they had applied to their local authority for a licence before 1^st October 2023.

A separate licence is needed for each premises operating as a short-term let. Those applying for a licence must be “fit and proper” and comply with various mandatory conditions, largely relating to safety of the premises. These include gas and electrical safety checks, an energy performance certificate and a requirement that the premises meet the repairing standard. Local authorities can set their own further standard conditions (which could be used to address specific local concerns such as noise or rubbish) and/or impose specific conditions on individual licences.

Local authorities have (in the case of a licence application for a new short-term let) nine months and (in the case of a licence application for an existing short-term let) twelve months within which to make a decision.

This note is intended as a brief summary of short-term lets. No responsibility can be accepted for any action taken in relative on this note and specialist advice should be taken in every case. Turcan Connell would be happy to provide such advice.