COUNCILLORS have agreed to ramp up a charge on empty properties from next April in a bid to bring more homes into use.

In line with new Government rules, Cheshire East Council will increase its council tax premium for owners of properties that have stood empty for two years from 50 per cent to 100 per cent.

That effectively means owners of empty homes who meet the threshold will pay double the rate of council tax on the property.

At the full council meeting on Thursday where the plans were approved, Cllr David Marren, Conservative, said: “I very much support these recommendations because there are too many empty homes and too many people needing homes.

“Bringing empty homes back into use – and the premium charges will encourage that – will have some effect on the number of new homes that need to be built.”

The new rules will also see the existing council tax exemption on empty rental properties be reduced from eight weeks to six weeks.

But Cllr Sam Corcoran, leader of CEC’s Labour opposition, called on the local authority to reduce it further to four weeks.

“The additional reduction would raise an extra £195,000 a year,” he said.

“There is a strong argument for a short period of council tax exemption, because the council would not want to have to raise demands for very small amounts, but four weeks of council tax is not an insignificant sum.

“Furthermore, four weeks is a reasonable time to carry out minor repairs and redecorations to a property in between lets.”

Cllr Paul Bates, cabinet member for finance and communication, told members that the local authority had considered changing the exemption to four weeks.

He said: “The reason we decided on six weeks was firstly because we thought six weeks was a period of time where you could refurbish a rented property and give you a further two weeks to market that property, and therefore bringing empty properties back onto the market quickly.

“I still consider that to be the right period of time at this moment, however we can consider for future budgets moving it to four weeks or extending it beyond six weeks depending on market forces.”

Cllr Paul Findlow, cabinet member for corporate policy and legal services, added that the extra two weeks made it ‘fair’ for landlords whose properties needed substantial refurbishment between lets.

The council expects to make an additional £147,000 a year from the rental property exemption cut, Cllr Bates said.