Squatting is on the rise again in Britain – because the government wants it?
It’s bad for business, you know.
If rents or house prices are too high, they go empty, meaning their owners make no money from them.
Left empty, they become prey to squatters – people who can’t afford to rent or buy houses – who move in by whatever means they can.
They’re not always the best of occupiers – often causing damage. And who pays to correct that?
On the other hand, squatting is illegal and anyone convicted of it may be imprisoned for six months – which of course puts a roof over their head.
So it’s a lose-lose situation. Homeowners and landlords lose because their properties are not making money and because they have to foot the bill for any repairs; and squatters may be imprisoned.
There is a solution, if we could only work out what it might be. Let’s look at some facts, courtesy of The Guardian:
There are now 1.5m vacant properties lying idle across England and Wales. At the same time at least 271,000 people are recorded as homeless in England alone, from those sleeping on streets or sofa-surfing to others living in unsuitable and even dangerous temporary accommodation.
So there are more than five times as many empty properties as there are people looking for homes. Why is there a push to build more?
The article suggests
A 2022 opinion poll found 65% of respondents supported councils being given the powers to acquire long-term empty properties at below-market value for use as social housing. Such a policy has been implemented in Barcelona.
The real obstacle to freeing up empty properties in the UK seems to be government inaction.
Why is the government doing nothing? Why is it deliberately creating conditions that will criminalise many thousands of people? Why does it want to imprison people who simply want a place to live?
Is there money for politicians if they support house-building rather than the acquisition of existing homes to be turned into cheaper dwellings? Is that it?
A little cash is better than no cash. Home owners and landlords would be better-off taking council money. Councils would benefit from renting out renovated homes.
But the government is deliberately sitting on its hands. Why?
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