12,000 Empty Homes Hidden From Official Figures

Up to 12,000 empty homes are concealed from official registers because they are labelled for demolition, according to the Empty Homes Agency (EHA). Figures from 20 local authorities with known housing shortages released to the EHA under the Freedom of Information Act revealed that 12,000 properties were sitting empty while being officially labelled as awaiting demolition. There are now approximately 700,000 empty homes in the public and private sectors. The government has provided £100 million in grant funding to the Homes and Communities Agency to help tackle the problem.