- cross-posted to:
- unitedkingdom@feddit.uk
- politics@sh.itjust.works
- cross-posted to:
- unitedkingdom@feddit.uk
- politics@sh.itjust.works
geteilt von: https://sh.itjust.works/post/38301389
To try to tackle this, the Welsh Labour government, alongside Plaid Cymru, introduced measures to curb second-home ownership. This included giving councils the ability to push council tax on second homes to 300% the usual rate. They also closed a loophole whereby second-home owners could register as a business in order to pay the much lower business rates.
Gwynedd council used these powers to hike council tax to 150% in April 2023. By the end of 2024, house prices had fallen by 12.4% as second-home owners tried to sell up. In Pembrokeshire, house prices fell by 8.9% after the council increased the council tax to 200% on second homes (though this was reduced to 150% recently).
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Good. Vacation homes should be taxed, and foreigners should get an even bigger tax. Local citizens and businesses should get preferable treatment, so that communities can be more closely knit together. The wealthy are corrosive to society, breaking down many humans for the sake of a few.
Note that the UK does not have a property tax, and is unusual in doing so; I recall reading that it is the only G7 member to not do so.
They do have a (mostly flat) council tax, and a transfer tax.
We have a few states in the US that don’t, but normally there is an annual percentage tax on the value of a house. That varies by state, but is typically on the order of 1%.
But I want a small cabin by a lake at some point when I’m older. Has that dream been taken away from me, too?
Not if you live there and this is only in Wales for now anyway.
As long as people can’t afford their first home, your cabin is not a priority. Plus, what’s the cost of that cabin? If it’s cheap, the tax increase won’t mean a huge increase in total numbers.
I have been advocating for triple the real estate taxes on ho.es that are not the primary residence for people. And that only people, not corporations, can own residential single family homes.
And look, it works.
Wow, look at that, turns out legislative action representing the people’s best interests has been proven infinitely more effective than empowering a dictator to execute everyone who initially refuses to redistribute.
Its as if the solution to capitalism isnt whitewashing regimes that have done some of the worst crimes against humanity possibly but rather government regulations brought upon by democratic action.
Tankies hate this one weird trick!
Wow, look at that, turns out legislative action representing the people’s best interests has been proven infinitely more effective than empowering a dictator to execute everyone who initially refuses to redistribute.
Er… I have to admit I’m not up to date on politics in Wales. To what is that referring?
I’m making a joke about self-proclaimed communists executing landlords.
I think they’re suggesting that it’s better to enact left-leaning legislation to curb unfettered capitalism, than it is to cheer on the free market and let pressure on the working class escalate to where we get a communist revolution, which in turn often results in a violent dictatorship. Probably.
Often? Try always. Revolutions are, by definition, change in leadership brought about by force of arms. Since violence was necessary to establish the regime, violence will be necessary to maintain it.
Beyond that, Marxism is predicated on the division of the people into the “proletariat” and “bourgeoisie”, with one of the key aims of any Marxist regime being the oppression of the bourgeoisie (as well as any member of the proletariat determined to be a “class-traitor”.) Violent, oppressive dictatorships aren’t just an unfortunate side-effect of socialist revolutions, they’re the only possible outcome.
Corporations hate this trick.
It’s 150% of the old tax rate, not 150% of the value of the home, in case anyone’s wondering.
Damn that is a misleading title. “Wales is increasing taxes by 50% for second homes, and…” would be better. Or more accurate, at least; probably not generate more clicks.
Why would it be 150% of the value of the home. In most places in America the property tax rate is around 1%. This would make it 2.5%. that’s still a lot for the average boomer with a second home possibly on a fixed income from pension and social security.
Boomer wants a second home he can put it in his grandkids name. Not like the kid is going to be able to afford his own place anyway till grampa dies and leaves everyone that boomer gold they got hoarded away
This is in Wales
I was excited for a second
Well, seemingly it still works!
I’ve been saying that for a while that secondary residences should lose all tax benefits and should also have additional tax penalties applied to them as long as there is a housing crisis.
Like a second house should cost you double, and if you get a third, then the second and third should cost you triple, and so on and so forth, so that having multiple homes would be a sign of wealth and not an investment practice.
You roll that out with a gradual phase in and you would solve the housing crisis in like 7 to 10 years.
The penalties should be higher for short term rental properties-if it’s listed on Airbnb or VRBO or similar, taxes double.
This should be tied to the multiple properties IMO. With home prices today you may have to AirBNB out the house and live in a shed in the yard for a few years just to afford the mortgage.
Yeah government needs to start ratcheting down on landlords. Tax rental properties as commercial businesses, as well as taxing rental income at a higher rate. If a landlord can’t afford that anymore, then they sell the property and get a real job.
A general wealth tax is much more effective.
I agree there needs to be some kind of exponentially growing tax rate for multiple houses. It might kick in after two houses since a single shared vacation home between a family should be fairly affordable.
That being said its basically impossible to get a vacation home now. No one should have 3+ homes without paying much much more.
I can’t wrap my head around why anyone needs or wants more than one house or flat.
Maybe because much of my life has been lived in areas with holiday homes, and the seasonal nature of life going from hardly anyone around to overrun with privileged assholes feels intensely unnatural and damaging to places where communities used to exist.
Overwhelmed with second homes / vacation homes are not sustainable. I guess my idea of a second home / cabin is much more upper Midwestern USA than what happens in the UK.
We can’t sustain everyone owning a holiday home in the UK, we are in a housing crisis.
Are the 1st second residences in places where people live (have jobs, etc)?
Because in most countries, is rather the 2nd, 3rd, etc second residences, which are a problem.
Yes, but people who live there have been priced out of the area as they can’t afford to rent or buy anymore. People whose families have lived there for generations. It’s actually causing a staffing crisis in some areas too, as some shops/cafes in the area I used to live couldn’t open as they couldn’t find anyone to work there. Everyone has had to move away to find a home and all the people came down to their holiday homes and complained that none of the shops were open. Serves them right.
Turning a place were people live into some kind of theme park for Tourists destroys it as a place to live in and to conduct any business other than Tourism.
You see it in places like Barcelona, Amsterdam and Lisbon, some of which have already started to crack down on it.
I think in my country the residential houses have different legistlation than vacation homes, like little cottages by the lake. Though the vacation home is required to not be suitable for year-around living, if you have a modern house by the lake it’s treated like a residential house.
In Scotland we have a thing on some homes - like trailers park sort of things - that requires them not to be used for living for at least one month out of the year. They’re cheap to buy (like £30k for a beachside home with a deck and shared facilities) but you’re not technically allowed to live there permanently.
Same here, vacation homes are not really usable as a full timelive in places in my country. They are relatively cheap as they’re in bears ass usually and often even lack a wc.
Blackrock didn’t like that.
This seems to target home owners that either rent or just park wealth in a second home as asset and then also try to evade the taxes by register their second home as a business to pay a lower tax rate.
This doesn’t target landlord / asset management companies at all. Not sure if they are a thing in Wales.
Tax aint the problem with property. Its that its valued too high because property is an asset of profit. Hope this helps with that issue, but it seems it just limits the trend instead of reversing it.
It is valued too high because houses are seen as an investment.
Taxing them higher makes them not profitable, so they get sold.
Meaning there is more supply, which lowers prices.
It doesn’t solve the problem of rising rent. People already owning their property are not affected by this and can profit off rent increase.
Far better than burning them…
I need to know if my uncle still has his cottage…
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