Local occupancy controls: panacea or panic measure

1
Local occupancy controls panacea or panic
measure?

• Dr Madhu Satsangi
• February 2009

2
Outline

• Why might occupancy controls suit rural Scotland?
• Occupancy controls in principle
• Occupancy controls in practice internationally.
• Do occupancy controls suit rural Scotland?

3
Why might occupancy controls suit rural Scotland?

• Persistence of housing shortages.
• Reality of different market contexts and
  different causes
• buoyant areas population, economic activity and
  housing pressure increasing while supply is
  constrained
• pressured areas some experiencing high demand
  from external markets
• fragile areas limited economic growth and
  emigration of young families but pressure on
  housing supply
• regeneration areas low housing pressure and
  declining econ base.
• (i) and (ii) housing/planning solution (iii) and
  (iv) local econ key

4
Why might occupancy controls suit rural Scotland?

• Private sector supply rates generally lower in
  rural Scotland than in country as a whole.
• Reflects mainly turnover in second hand market
  and new build completions
• New build rates tend to be lower in rural than
  urban areas. (FF uplift? More likely urban.)
• Why?
• national planning antipathy, reflected at local
  level, tho recent revision to SPP3 a welcome
  shift
• land access and infrastructure issues

5
Occupancy controls in principle

• The case for
• Might favour low income locals over high income
  non-locals
• Outsiders have no serious grounds for being
  housed in villages
• Housing local people helps sustain local
  services
• Local needs a selling point for more affordable
  housing

6
Occupancy controls in principle

• The case against
• Legality and legitimacy?
• Definition of local problematic
• Counter-productive reduce development viability
  and stifle supply
• May lead to stagnation
• Can become instruments of exclusion
• Fit with prime Government objective of improving
  national and local economic growth rates

7
Occupancy controls in practice internationally

• Looked at experience in comparator countries
  Eng Wales (and Jersey), Eire, Norway Sweden.
• Context varying recognitions of rural housing
  as a problem at national or regional level and
  in existence of policy response
• Similar rates of rural home ownership dominance

8
Occupancy controls in practice internationally
9
Do occupancy controls suit rural Scotland?

• It must be questionable if the policy is
  appropriate to rural Scotland Alternatives?
• Create second/holiday home use class discourages
  their growth but definition implementation
  difficult
• Reduced second home council tax discount
  encourages permanent residence makes
  contribution to hsg dev budgets but not supply
  incentive per se easy to avoid
• Create affordable housing use class helps
  maintain affordable housing in perpetuity but
  definition implementation difficult
• Incentivise construction ind in rural areas
  improves supply but questions over long-term
  economic efficiency
• Incentivise self-build cost-effective but small
  numbers
• Discourage urban-rural migration through city
  planning counter to all long-term trends,
  regressive and damaging to rural economy, doesnt
  maximise social welfare
• Encourage use of rural exceptions policies can
  overcome nimbyism but small numbers
• Encourage more land release for rural housing
  improves supply but implementation difficult and
  long-term.