London's “ghost mansions”

21st February 2014

More than 700 “ghost mansions” worth a total of over £3bn lie empty and unused in London, an Evening Standard investigation reveals.

Research by Paul Palmer, London’s leading empty homes detective, claimed that there were at least 740 uninhabited properties in the capital worth £5m or more. In response to the findings, Mayor Boris Johnson said it made little sense for so much living space to be left unused and he called on councils to levy punitive levels of council tax on owners of long unoccupied homes. Mr Johnson said: “I would welcome boroughs following the lead of Camden Council, who charge 150% council tax to owners of property that has been empty for over two years. Perhaps even multiples of that could be levied to encourage owners to rent out or live in long-standing unoccupied homes.”

Evening Standard (14/02/2014)