Council tax alert: City set to hit second home owners with 200% charge – ‘We need this money!’

The council of one of Britain’s most famous cities is drawing up plans to charge residents a 200 per cent council tax bill in effort to generate more revenue for the local authority.

Oxford City Council has approved plans to double council tax charges on second homes in a move aimed at making the city “a fairer place to live” in a move than will impact hundreds of households.

An estimated 668 properties within the city council’s boundary will be affected by the new premium charge of 100 per cent.

The measure, which will require second homeowners to pay twice their standard council tax rate, is set to take effect from April 2025.

Earlier this week, the decision was finalised following approval from the authority’s audit and governance committee.

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The council had initially planned to implement the charge from April 2024, following its initial approval in February 2023.

However, these plans faced a setback in late December 2023 when council officers received guidance from the Government.

This delay came after officials were informed they needed to provide affected homeowners with 12 months’ notice following the legislation’s royal assent.

As a result, this requirement pushed the implementation date back to April 2025, as the legislation did not receive royal assent until October 2023.

Speaking after the committee’s approval, Oxford City Council’s deputy leader Ed Turner emphasised the fairness aspect of the new measure.

“We really want to make Oxford a fairer place to live,” he said. Turner added: “If people have a second home in Oxford, it’s only right that they make an appropriate contribution for local services.”

The deputy leader also highlighted the council’s eagerness to implement the charges, stating: “We need this money, and I think we will be charging from the first moment that we legally can.”

Oxford is not the only local authority floating raising council taxes on specific types of property owners.

Wandsworth Borough Council, where residents are known for paying the lowest council tax in the country, are preparing to target foreign investors who are buying London properties and leaving them vacant.

As of April 1, the Labour-run council will charge a 100 per cent council tax premium on homes which have not been lived in for 12 months.

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Property owners who do not reside in the property for five years will have to pay 200 per cent more, while those who not live in the home for five years will be charged a 300 per cent penalty.

Those who are second home owners, who have furnished their property despite it not being their primary residence, will be hit with a double council tax bill.

Under previous tax rules, a property in Wandsworth needed to be empty for two years before being hit with a 100 per cent council tax rate.

GB News has contacted Oxford City Council for comment.