PLANS to make use of unoccupied housing in Waverley are slowly becoming a reality, according to new statistics.

Last year, the Herald reported on the empty homes scandal, which saw 677 homes in Waverley left unoccupied for at least six months.

Research conducted a year later shows that number has decreased to 615, an improvement on last year’s figures.

Statistics from 2019 also show that in Waverley, 22 homes sat empty for ten years or more, compared to the 29 recorded in 2018.

However, the value of homes left unoccuppied for two years is worth £31 million alone.

Comments made by Waverley Borough Council in 2018 stated they were working to “bring these properties into use and using council tax to deter owners from leaving properties empty”. The changes made by the government saw council’s being able to charge 50 per cent extra council tax to homes empty over two years and it seems these changes are paying off.

A Waverley Borough Council spokesman said: “Our private sector housing team works very hard to encourage owners to bring vacant homes back into use, so it is good to see the number of empty properties in the borough falling.”

The spokesman attributed the decrease in the number of empty homes to the changes in council tax premiums, with homes empty for more than ten years being charged 300 per cent council tax.

He added: “The council is also working very hard to increase the amount of affordable housing in the borough, as we currently have 1046 households on our Housing Register.

“We carefully manage our housing and land assets to enable us to invest in high-quality new homes for affordable rent, building 45 in 2018.

“We are also investing in new shared ownership properties and continuously working with developers in order to maximise the number of affordable housing in new developments across the borough.”