Council tax acts as a local taxation system that allows local government authorities to collect tax on domestic properties. The government uses this amount for funding local services, such as roads, education, planning, and police services.
Every homeowner requires paying this tax, whether they own that particular property or have rented it for living. Council tax applies to every type of property, including a house, bungalow, mobile home, and houseboats. However, properties repossessed by banks or mortgage lenders or occupied by students are exempted to pay this tax. Likewise, the owners of condemned or unoccupied houses do not need to pay council tax.
The appropriate councils set this tax after categorizing the house based on the criteria of the valuation band. As a homeowner, you have to pay the council tax through Direct Debit every month.
Some properties remain unoccupied for a specific duration. These are vacant or empty properties. According to the government, these vacant properties are the houses that are substantially unfinished and are not capable of occupation. These properties should have items like furniture and white goods, such as a fridge or freezer.
There may not be any tips on how to avoid paying council tax on an empty property. However, some empty houses are exempted to pay the tax in some conditions. These include:
- If the owner of the house is unhealthy or in the care of their relatives due to health risk, or if they have moved into a hospital.
- If you are the second owner of the property or cannot live in that house by law.
- If an empty house has been sold for demolishing for a purpose.
- You also may not need to pay council tax on an empty property if you owned it for charity purposes.
