Suffolk second home owners could face Airbnb ban under crackdown
Second home owners in places such as Southwold could soon be banned from renting out properties on Airbnb - Credit: Archant
Second home owners in Suffolk could be banned from renting out their properties on websites such as Airbnb under new government plans, it has been revealed.
Housing secretary Michael Gove's proposals would stop second home owners renting out properties as holiday lets as the government looks to crack down on landlords driving up house prices in tourist hotspots.
In Suffolk, desirable coastal towns such as Southwold and Aldeburgh both have a high volume of second homes.
The changes to the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill being devised by Mr Gove would give powers to regional mayors to restrict people renting out second homes for fewer than 90 days.
This would mean landlords would instead have to apply for planning permission for a change of use.
David Beavan, Southwold town councillor, welcomed the news - Credit: SARAH LUCY BROWN
David Beavan, Southwold town councillor, said he was pleased to hear the news.
"It's what I've been calling for for four years," he said. "That you have to have planning to change to a holiday let from a residential home.
"If it happens, it will be great because that's the only way we're going to stop the spread of holiday lets. It's a little bit late for us here, but it will stop it getting worse.
Most Read
- 1 Firefighters tackling fire near popular Suffolk hotel and spa
- 2 85 school children under 4 suspended in Suffolk
- 3 'Ipswich will be my club for the rest of my days' - Chambers on Town return
- 4 Popular family-run butchers announces closure
- 5 Two arrests as man suffers serious injuries in pub brawl in seaside village
- 6 'Incredible' firefighters spend nearly 12 hours tackling forest blaze
- 7 Range Rover stolen from home in east Suffolk
- 8 'Childhood dream' as opening date nears for Suffolk costal restaurant
- 9 Sir Cliff Richard sends best wishes to Summer Holiday cast
- 10 Travellers set up 'unauthorised' camp in popular park
"Then we can say, 'we want 50% of the houses in Southwold actually lived in', and that's not too much to ask, and we can control it through the planning system."
Councils in England will soon be able to charge second homeowners double council tax on unoccupied properties, and Mr Beavan added that he is pushing for money raised through those changes to go a Community Land Trust (CLT).
Southwold has a high number of second homes - Credit: Charlotte Bond
"The other thing we're really thinking about is the double council tax on second homes," he said.
"I'm drafting a motion for the next East Suffolk Council meeting saying all the money raised from extra council tax should go towards affordable housing in the areas affected by second homes.
"I think it's unfair to tax second home owners, who are here for fewer than 70 days a year, for bin collection, transport, roads, and police because they don't use very much.
"But it is fair to tax them to maintain the local community as a living community, and I think most of them would be happy with that."
