Second homes in Oxford need controlling, say city council

A council spokesman said the number of second homes and properties rented out as short lets "deprive Oxford of much needed homes for our residents."

It follows the release of census data by the Office for National Statistics which revealed there were 3,885 unoccupied homes in Oxford on census day in March 2021.

READ MORE: Oxfordshire fears over new homes being pushed into rural areas

This represents 6.6 per cent of the 58,980 properties in the city – up from 3.9 per cent in 2011, when the last census was undertaken.

This proportion is greater than in the Southeast (5.5 per cent) and across England (6.1 per cent).

As well as including empty homes - privately owned homes unoccupied for more than six months – the census data also includes second homes.

The council spokesman said there were just 636 empty homes in Oxford, and that the significantly larger census figure showed the prevalence of second homes in the city.

He said: “The census was carried out during the pandemic and some people, for example students or those privately renting, may have moved back in with family members, leaving more unoccupied homes.

“However, census figures clearly demonstrate the much wider impact of second homes and entire properties rented out as short lets, which deprive Oxford of much needed homes for our residents.

“As a tourist destination there have been an increasing number of homes being used as short let accommodation which is why we have repeatedly called on the government to give us powers to regulate short lets in Oxford over the last five years.

“England should also follow the lead of the Welsh government and introduce controls on second homes.”

The council has also worked to tackle the number of empty homes in the city.

Between 2022 and 2023, it brought 41 empty homes back into use as a result of its work with owners and executors.

Ahead of Empty Homes Week in February, cabinet member for housing councillor Linda Smith said: “We simply can’t afford empty homes given the scarcity and cost of housing in Oxford – it’s vitally important that any empty home is brought back into use as quickly as possible.”

Councillor Linda Smith

Across Oxfordshire, there are almost 5,000 empty homes, according to data from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC).

Oxfordshire Homeless Movement has called for councils, voluntary organisations, and owners to work together to find creative solutions for the issue.

Chairwoman Jane Cranston said: “Everyone can do their bit. Thanks to proper transparency from DLUHC, we gain visibility on what is otherwise an invisible problem.

“The published figures surely give us all a call to action to do all we can to put existing housing stock to good use for all concerned, including the most marginalised in society.”