Empty, derelict and abandoned houses need to be brought back into use as there are so many homless people in need of a home. Houses left in a state of disrepair encourage vermin, anti social behaviour, cause damage to adjoining houses, reduce the value of houses in the area and affect people who live nearby and have to look at them every day, causing anxiety and feeling of dispair due to lack of care for the environment. Indeed, conditions outside the home as well as within the home affect peoples health (mentally and physically). There are so many houses and other properties which could be brought back into use by refurbishment or even just a bit of TLC. My vision is to make a change in my area by putting pressure initially on local government and ultimately change the law (if needed) to make landlords/owners keep houses from falling into disrepair in the first place. I would also like to see houses that have been in probate for a long time to be put to use even if the parties involved cannot agree. The law ought to state that houses/property that have been abandoned and in probate to be reclaimed by the council/government/housing agency and a set sum paid (as a kind of rental) to any person involved in the dispute until an agreement is reached. If you are in agreement please sign this petition. Thank you
This ePetition ran from 10/03/2023 to 31/08/2023 and has now finished.
10 people signed this ePetition.
Durham County Council has processes and procedures in place to deal with all empty residential properties working within the legislation available to the team. Empty properties are dealt with on a case by case basis, each having different levels of intervention to bring them back into occupation. Working with internal and external partners to ensure relevant action is taken, interventions range from advice, support, and assistance to using enforcement as a last option.
In 2022/2023 the target set of bringing 200 long term empty properties back into occupation was exceeded by eight, one of the properties being empty more than 30 years and another over 20 years. We are on course to achieve this year’s target set.
We have supported owners to bring empty properties back into use, using interest free loans, advice, support, and negotiation. Empty Properties are monitored and visited frequently until they become occupied. The team has a range of tools to encourage owners to work with them, using the most appropriate one to achieve a satisfactory result.
The following links provide information on how to apply for an empty homes interest free loan, how to report an empty property and what happens after the report is received.
https://www.durham.gov.uk/article/3800/Empty-homes-interest-free-loans
https://www.durham.gov.uk/emptyhomes