Sir,

In response to the community news article - Tenby councillors back ‘second home tax’ letter -

I couldn’t agree more with Mr. Stephens’s letter to the TTC and PCC concerning the Premium Council Tax on second homes, and I applaud TTC for backing him.

I may not have had a second home for as many years as Mr. Stephens, but similarly my family and I love Tenby, the surrounding area and try to get to there as often as possible.

I think second home owners and locals alike want to see Tenby thrive throughout the year, not just in the summer. My family and I are always filling our calendars with events in Tenby and supporting as many of the good causes in the area as possible.

For those who think second homes don’t bring any money in, I for one, and I suspect many other second home owners, spend a lot of money in and around Tenby. In fact, I suspect I spend more locally in Tenby with local suppliers and tradesman than I would as a local resident as I would attend to DIY tasks myself if I was living there. Also, when at my home town, I rarely eat out; this is the opposite when in Tenby.

The government initiated this plan to a) Bring long term empty properties into use and b) Discourage second home ownership as there was a shortfall in ‘Affordable Housing’ and they wanted this Premium Tax to stop property price increases by outsiders outbidding locals.

I couldn’t agree more with the first point. However, on the second point, looking around Tenby and the surrounding area there are many properties on the market at what many would consider ‘affordable prices’. The problem is locals don’t have the income to purchase as there is a lack of employment.

And let’s face it... if local young people could afford a property, it is unlikely they will spend much of their disposable cash out and about in the shops of Tenby.

The high house price issue isn’t just a Tenby thing, it’s happening across the country. I have two grown-up children, in full-time employment, living at home because they simply can’t afford a property of their own.

The council should spend more time and effort in getting business into the area and making it easier for local businesses to survive. One such area that has long been the topic of conversation is Business Tax, driving small businesses and shops to closure.

When PCC sent me the recent survey, the covering letter was indicating the problem was the lack of affordable housing and that any money raised from this Premium Tax would be spent on providing more affordable housing, yet the recent press is reporting that PCC is intending to spend 50 per cent on affordable housing and 50 per cent on local services. Seems to me PCC was basically lying about its intentions and therefore making a farce of the survey, as respondents may have given different answers had they known the true destination of funds raised by the Premium Tax.

This whole process is unlikely to drive prices down, but if it did, then it would affect all property prices in the area, not just the second home sales. Careful what you wish for! I for one can recall the problems caused by the property price crash and the ensuing negative equity problem not so many years ago.

It is more likely that second home owners will just take it on the chin and pay the Premium Tax, and by setting the level at 50 per cent they aren’t really driving the second home owners out, PCC are just raising more cash to fill the hole in council budget.

I don’t doubt there is a problem, but a Premium Council Tax is not the right answer.

If PCC want to reduce the number of second homes, then perhaps they should consider some sort of incentive, rather than penalising owners.

A better solution might be to encourage sellers of second homes to include some sort of limited use clause into the property deeds whereby it has to be lived in as a main household.

Or the reduction/removal of Stamp Duty on the purchase of a property that was previously a second home.

This is not a simple problem to solve and may require several approaches to achieve the right balance. One thing is for sure, this conversation will continue for some time yet and I just hope PCC will reconsider this knee-jerk reaction in an attempt to fix a problem that has been in existence for some time.

A second home

owner in Tenby,

(Name and

address supplied).