Council tax discounts for those who own empty properties or second homes in Bury are to be scrapped from April.
The move, which is set to generate around £750,000 per year in income for Bury Council comes after a recent public consultation on the matter.
The proposal brings the council in line with all Greater Manchester authorities that no longer provide discounts on empty properties or second homes after six months and four other neighbouring authorities who offer no initial discounts.
Bury Council currently applies a discount of 100 per cent in the first month if a property is empty and 25 per cent following the first month and up to two years.
Properties undergoing major works are eligible for 50 per cent discount for a period of a year.
In August 2021 Bury had 1,841 homes which were not only empty but were attracting a council tax discount of £784,368 per year.
At a cabinet meeting last week, leader of the council Eamonn O’Brien, said: “Back in November we launched a consultation on the removal of discounts on empty properties and second homes in the first six months of them being empty.
“We targeted those most likely to be impacted and received about 200 responses. A majority who responded were against the proposals. This is not an easy decision to make.
“in some cases there are genuine people and landlords who are trying to do the right thing. They find themselves owning an empty property and they are trying to do something with it. The discounts in Bury have been very generous when compared with other neighbouring authorities.
“I think we should return to the recommendations as set out. and remove the exemptions.”
Conservative opposition leader Coun Nick Jones responded with observations about the council’s own property holdings.
He said: “The feedback is overwhelmingly against.
“In recent years the council has been on what can only be described as a property spending spree, half a million on a restaurant in Prestwich, a car park in Huddersfield and a property in Lytham which has been empty for the best part of four years.
“Is now not the time for the council to look at its own property portfolio rather than punishing residents?”
Coun O’Brien, responded : “Your dynamic doesn’t work. What we’re proposing is a revenue saving to the council. Our property investment plans, bar the property in Lytham, actually contribute to our revenue.
“They actually help us supply and fund services that everybody in the borough benefits from. It’s a prudent way of investing capital to make a revenue return.
“The suggestion we would cash in for capital return and give up the revenue would somehow make our revenue situation better is a fundamental misunderstanding of how council finances work.
“If what you’re proposing is to use one-off savings to cover long term revenue pressures is not sustainable or the right way of operating.”
A council report into the consultation outlined the what they thought the benefits of scrapping the discounts were.
The report, said: “The proposal to remove the council tax discount would encourage landlords to bring properties back up to standard and into use of the community as quickly as possible.
“The removal of the existing discretionary discounts on empty properties would generate additional income for the council of £750,000 per annum which could then be used to support essential council services.”
