More than 1.1m homes sitting empty across England as thousands left at risk of homelessness

17 February 2025, 14:51

An investigation by LBC can reveal there are more than 1.1m homes sitting empty across England - the equivalent of one in every 23.

Figures obtained by LBC show more than a quarter of a million homes have been empty for more than six months.

Meanwhile, more than 123,000 households live in temporary accommodation across England including more than 159,000 children.

Latest figures show 324,990 families in England were assessed as homeless in 2023-24. This is up 12.3% from 2022-23. A further 146,430 households were assessed as being at risk of homelessness.

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Adam Cliff, from the Empty Homes Network, told LBC: "Supply isn't meeting demand. When there is a big disparity between supply and demand, we have to start looking for solutions to bridge that gap.

"A lot has been made recently about the need to build more houses. We see properties already built and ready to go as a huge part of the solution to fix that supply and demand gap.

"There's a million reasons why properties are empty. Properties going through probate, people don't have the money or knowledge to refurbish a property, people might buy them as speculative investments but then realise the cost is higher and so they sit on the property and hope the value of the asset will rise. Some people are very emotionally attached to a property, so they will leave it in perpetuity.

"We believe the councils, because they know where these properties are, are best placed to go to the owners and work with them to bring them back into use. Councils do have enforcement powers, but for the councils to be able to act on those powers and really use them effectively, a property has to have been empty for a period of time; they have to be in such a state of deterioration that they are starting to affect communities and neighbourhoods, and we also believe working with an owner to agree is favourable.

"There isn't a national loan fund that empty home owners can tap into, but that's something we would campaign for. We need to see empty homes as a solution not a problem. Whether we need to be more aggressive and bring down time limits, that could be something we look at, but at the moment it's not illegal to own an empty home."

For families living in temporary accommodation, it is hard for them to accept that there are so many homes sitting empty.

Figures obtained by LBC show there are 123,100 families living in temporary housing across England, there are 78,420 families with children living in temporary accommodation and there are 159,380 children living in temporary accommodation.

In many cases this means staying in a hotel or hostel, while others may be forced to live in cramped houses that are too small for their needs.

Anne-Marie has two children with disabilities and was initially placed in a studio apartment next to a strip club in Liverpool with her children being forced to walk past drug addicts overdosing in their doorway on a weekly basis. She told LBC: "My landlord gave me a S21 on the basis he was selling the home, so we were evicted, I was initially told to go to Manchester to a hostel there but refused, and then was sent to a home in Liverpool City Centre.

"It's been the worst thing ever. Two disabled children who don't sleep, stuck on the strip, I don't know how they're putting families where there are 24hr pubs, clubs and shops, how are kids supposed to sleep and get to school?

"It's where all the addicted homeless people are, and it's not something kids need to be seeing. On a Friday it was the same guy overdosing being put into an ambulance, like it was routine. I had to keep them in.

"We would leave at 6.45am every day to go to school so we didn't see anything, and coming back from school, my son would ask me to meet him because he couldn't walk up there on his own. It's definitely not a place for families.

"My entitlement is four bedrooms and I've got a two bedroom because they said I'm 15 years away from a four bedroom and ten years away from a three bedroom - we cannot give you what we haven't got. I cried for four weeks after taking this flat, it was heart-breaking. It sent my mental health up the wall, I turned to drink and I haven't drunk for years. I'm not drinking now, but I was. The kids don't need to see that."

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Another mum told LBC: "I've been given an S21 and put into a council temporary home. It hasn't been the best, but it's better than most. I'm not waiting in a hotel for years to get a property.

"Temporary Accommodation is horrible, to be honest. You've got none of your own stuff, and you have to move there, or you don't get the help. You never know when you'll get sorted, and when you've got kids especially, it's difficult.

"You get put into a bidding war for your human rights to get a house against 100 other people.

"I'd been in my property for five years, I'd done it up, next minute they sent me a text saying you've been served a S21 due to damp and mould, you're overcrowded ... I cried, what am I going to do?

"They say we've got plenty of families like you in the same situation... my daughter (7) has autism, ADHD, PTSD and sleep disorders, so when we moved in it affected us really badly.

On the issue of Empty Homes, she said: "I feel like it would be perfect to get them houses up and running. The council say they haven't got many properties for families who are growing and who are four or five max people, and they haven't got properties out there. They have, but the money is put towards other things. If they could do them houses up ... it's like new builds; they're building lots of new builds, but it's whether the council will buy them off the developers.

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"They're there; why aren't they doing them up and making money off them?? They asked me to move out of the area but I can't because of the children. There are always challenges and reasons why you can't move.

On an emotional level: "I'd say desperately... there's only so long you can live in a situation like this without seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. Your mental health goes downhill... I haven't got an oven... just the basics of their couch and not furniture that's mine... not having your own comforts in this situation is draining. Even if you bid on property pool plus there might be a month wait to see if you've been successful. The situation is horrible and I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy. You're just in limbo."

The Deputy Prime Minister, Angela Rayner, told LBC: "We don't want to see empty properties when we have homeless people on the street. We want

landlords to give people opportunities, that's why we've reviewed the renters rights, we're bringing forward legislation to decent homes, but also to protect landlords as well, so they're clear on what the rules are and then they can invest for the long term.

"There's always some empty dwellings. Obviously some are private sector and you can't just go around taking other homes, but there are mechanisms that councils should be able to take that will help them address that problem. For example you don't pay council tax on an empty home, so if it's left empty for a long period of time for no reason, we're consulting how councils can use their powers to bring those homes back into operation.

"We are looking at that, speaking to local authorities around those homes that have not been brought back to occupying after six months and asking local authorities what extra powers do you need?”