OWNERS of furnished second homes in the district will once again see their council tax double.
The Council Tax Second Homes Premium charge will come into effect from April 1.
Warwick District Council will charge an additional 100 per cent premium on the council tax of applicable furnished second homes in the district. These are essentially homes not occupied but kept furnished as ‘second homes’ by their owners. They are not rented out but just used for short stays.
WDC’s new policy also details where discretionary relief may be applied under exceptional circumstances.
This is WDC’s second attempt to introduce a Second Homes Premium.
Local authorities were given the power to amend Empty Property Premium charges and introduce a premium for furnished second homes last year.
WDC gave the go-ahead for the premium to come into effect in April 2025. But they were ordered to refund second home owners in December after it emerged that, in the view of the monitoring officer, the council had acted outside the law by introducing the 100 per cent council tax without proper consultation.
The issue was identified following a question from a member of the public about the second homes council tax premium charge, and as a result the monitoring officer sought legal advice.
Councillors decided they still wished to charge a second homes council tax premium in the future and delegated authority to the Head of Finance to undertake the required consultation.
Members of WDC’s Cabinet gave approval to the Second Homes Premium at a meeting last week.
Coun Andrew Day said: “Homes are about community. If it is your second home you are not making the normal contribution to your community. That is a really important part of what makes this a great place to live – it is the strength of our community. So if you are enjoying visiting or using a second home in Warwick district you should pay a premium to benefit from the community the rest of us have helped build.”
This premium charge will impact approximately 400 properties and result in council tax received by WDC increasing by around £700,000.
