Report advises Government against vacant property tax

The Government has been advised not to introduce a vacant property tax but to instead roll out a programme of compulsory purchase orders against a backdrop of growing pressure to ease the housing crisis.

Report advises Government against vacant property tax

By Juno McEnroe and Catherine Shanahan

The Government has been advised not to introduce a vacant property tax but to instead roll out a programme of compulsory purchase orders against a backdrop of growing pressure to ease the housing crisis.

A report by consultants Indecon goes against recommending the tax “at this time as we do not believe it would be an effective response to deal with the housing shortage”.

It says the “very low vacancy rates in the areas of greatest demand... indicate that the potential for a vacant property tax to increase housing supply is very limited and could represent a distraction from the need to significantly accelerate the building of social housing”.

It says the option should be “kept under review”.

The report says a programme of compulsory orders should be “urgently activated on suitable vacant residential properties”, with local authorities re-selling them on the open market and with the Government covering conveyancing costs.

Separately, Revenue is planning a crackdown on homeowners renting out property on Airbnb.

Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy is set to bring proposals to Government to clamp down on Airbnb lettings.

Revenue is writing to 12,000 homeowners to “remind” them to include rental income in their tax returns, and warning it will follow-up with compliance checks.

The move follows Airbnb providing details of payments made to customers in 2014, 2015, and 2016.

Revenue said it is “alert to the risks posed by online business in all its forms, including the provision of short-term accommodation”.

Some 640,000 people used Airbnb properties in Ireland this summer alone. Opposition parties have expressed concern that short-term lets are exacerbating the housing and rental crisis.

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