More than 300,000 homes across England have been empty for at least six months. The figures point to billions of pounds of property sitting outside the sales and rental markets.
For estate and letting agents, that represents a potentially significant source of untapped instructions and commission.
Research from House Buyer Bureau identified 754,264 vacant homes across England. Of these, 303,185 are classed as long-term vacant.
That means 40.2% of England’s vacant housing stock has stood empty for more than six months.
Using regional average house prices, House Buyer Bureau estimates these properties have a combined value of £88.6bn.
For sales agents, returning some of these homes to market could generate additional instructions and transaction fees. Letting agents could also benefit where owners decide to put vacant properties into the rental market.
Even a relatively small proportion returning to either market could create additional business for agents. It would also increase the supply of available homes.
London holds £25.8bn of empty property
The potential opportunity is particularly concentrated in London.
Some 47,287 homes in the capital have remained vacant for more than six months. They account for 45% of London’s vacant housing stock.
House Buyer Bureau puts their combined value at almost £25.8bn. That calculation is based on an average London property price of £544,814.
Meanwhile, the South East has 42,099 long-term vacant properties worth an estimated £16.1bn.
The East of England follows with 32,123 properties, valued at £10.9bn.
The North West has 42,606 long-term vacant homes worth an estimated £9.4bn. In the South West, 28,553 properties have a combined estimated value of £8.6bn.
At local authority level, Kensington and Chelsea has 2,030 long-term vacant homes. Their estimated value stands at £2.55bn.
Westminster has 2,279 such properties worth an estimated £1.91bn. Camden follows at £1.66bn, Southwark at £1.47bn and Lambeth at £1.24bn.
Outside London, Birmingham has 7,060 homes that have remained vacant for more than six months. Their estimated value stands at £1.64bn.
Chris Hodgkinson, managing director of House Buyer Bureau, said: “It’s quite remarkable that we’re constantly talking about the need to build hundreds of thousands of additional homes when more than 300,000 existing properties have already been sitting empty for over six months.
“Of course, there’s no single reason why a property remains vacant and not every empty home can simply be put back into use overnight. But anyone who works within the property market knows how easily a home can become stuck in limbo, whether it requires significant work, forms part of an estate, has legal complications or simply proves difficult to sell.
“Building more homes remains absolutely essential, but we also need to make better use of the housing stock we already have. Getting even a proportion of these long-term vacant properties back into circulation would provide additional homes without the need to build them from scratch.
“For owners, the longer a property sits empty, the more of a liability it can become, particularly once maintenance, security and ongoing ownership costs start to mount.
“Where the conventional sales market isn’t providing a solution, owners may need to take a more pragmatic approach. Accepting a lower price in return for the speed and certainty of a quick sale can sometimes be the difference between a property remaining empty indefinitely and getting it back into use.”
The key improvement is the opening: it now establishes the sales and lettings commission opportunity immediately, while adding several short sentences to offset the unavoidable length of Hodgkinson’s quotes.
