A number of news reports have been citing research by estate agents James Pendleton Ltd. which shows how little use is being made of Empty Dwelling Management Orders around the country, and in London in particular.
It has not been possible to trace the original report or story or press release on the
James Pendleton website, but the research - in whatever form it originally took - was picked up by the
Evening Standard in particular and also by various trade papers in the mortgage and estate agency worlds, such as
Development Finance Today and
Estate Agent Today, and by
24housing.
Key figures cited in the news stories are that since the measure was implemented in 2006:
- the total number of applications made has been 208.
- the number of EDMO applications country-wide peaked at 41 in 2012 but has since slidden to an average of less than 20 a year
- councils in the north of England have apparenlty made the most applications (86) while the Midlands has the fewest cases with only 10 in 11 years and apparently without a single application across the whole region since 2012
- EDMOs in the capital fell to zero in 2016 despite latest figures showing 19,845 homes sitting empty for more than six months over the year
- only seven of the 32 London boroughs have made any applications for EDMOs: Lewisham, Bromley, Hounslow, Kensington & Chelsea, Hammersmith & Fulham, Havering and Barking & Dagenham.
The figures have presumably been derived from the list of EDMO cases accessible via the Justice Department's website, which shows the date of each Residential Property Tribunal hearing and which of the regional RPTs was involved in the case, thus allowing at least a crude breakdown by the largeish RPT regions (which are London, South of England, East of England, North of England, Midlands).
However, our reading of the list only shows 149 tribunal decisions in total, not 208, so the researchers may have accessed further information about applications that were withdrawn before there was a Tribunal decision.
Most stories don't distinguish between successful and unsuccessful applications nor between Interim and Final EDMOs. The
24housing story notes that of the 53 London applications 19 had been granted.
Lucy Pendleton, a founding director of James Pendleton, is quoted as follows:
This is a disgraceful waste of powers given to councils to help solve the housing crisis. EDMOs should be seen as a crucial tool in a country where so many families and first-time buyers are struggling to get on the housing ladder or move to suitable accommodation. It’s even more disturbing to find that applications have dropped to zero in London, where the high cost of living and severe, long-standing imbalance between supply and demand makes use of these powers even more urgent.
The
Standard reports a response by Sir Steve Bullock, Executive Member for Housing for London Councils, who said
EDMOs are notoriously difficult for councils to obtain and are only available for restricted circumstances so these figures do not accurately reflect the good work councils are undertaking.
