Sir, – November 1st was the deadline for all property owners to declare the value for Local Property Tax (LPT).
This will give Revenue a database of all habitable residential properties and their value. The Central Statistics Office has found we have 183,000 vacant properties, 4 per cent of those would end homelessness at a stroke.
The Government, through Revenue, should in the next few weeks send a demand for a Vacant Property Tax to every household registered for LPT, advising that if your property is occupied you must make a declaration to this effect.
A false declaration would entail severe financial and criminal consequences. Exemptions can be made for homes of those in nursing homes or away for work reasons.
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The stick – impose an annual tax of 5 per cent, rising by 1 per cent each year; now the carrot – allow an exemption for anyone who makes a legally-binding, irrevocable offer to sell to the State at the LPT valuation, or who gets an arms’ length legitimate tenant, or who actually sells the property within 12 months.
Either way this is a win-win. The State collects hundreds of millions in tax, to be used for housing or tens of thousands of properties come on to the rental and sales market relieving the pent up demand.
It’s also a very green solution, using existing stock instead of building new.
– Yours, etc,
CHARLES McLAUGHLIN,
AITI, Chartered
Tax Advisor.
Portobello, Dublin 8.