Council Tax Premium in North Yorkshire (Scarborough): Second Homes and Empty Properties
Written by Scott Jones, founder of PropertyKiln · Last updated
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North Yorkshire (including Scarborough) is now double council tax on second homes, and up to 400% total on long-term empties, with that policy locked in for 2026-27.
Second homes - rate, definition, history
- Rate: From 1 April 2025, a 100% premium is added on second homes, so you pay 200% of the normal bill.
- Definition: Applies where the dwelling is furnished and not occupied as anyone's sole or main residence.
- Decision history: Full council agreed the premium in early 2024 (23 January / 21 February meetings) to meet the 12-month notice rule under the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023.
The 2026-27 policy paper says these criteria "will remain the same within the 2026-2027 policy".
If your North Yorkshire property in Scarborough is furnished and not genuinely someone's main home, you will be billed at double council tax from April 2025 onwards.
Long-term empty property premiums - current bands
North Yorkshire uses the full stepped regime, already in force by April 2024.
Current structure for unoccupied and substantially unfurnished dwellings:
| Duration empty and unfurnished | Premium | Total council tax |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 1 year | No premium | 100% (standard) |
| Over 1 year (up to 5 years) | +100% premium | 200% total |
| Over 5 years (up to 10 years) | +200% premium | 300% total |
| Over 10 years | +300% premium | 400% total |
This applies across the county, including Scarborough and other coastal towns.
Exceptions and exemptions
Second-home premium exceptions
North Yorkshire applies the statutory national exceptions from the 2024 regulations.
Headline points from the 2026-27 policy impact assessment:
"Mandatory statutory exceptions apply as set out in regulations and Government guidance (1 November 2024)."
These follow sections 11B-11D LGFA 1992 and the Council Tax (Prescribed Classes of Dwellings) (England) Regulations 2024.
In practical terms, exceptions include:
- Some armed forces cases where the property is only a second home because the owner must live in MoD accommodation.
- Certain job-related dwellings.
- Some annex situations forming part of the main dwelling.
If an exception applies, you pay the normal 100% bill, not the premium.
Empty-home premium exceptions
National exceptions also apply to the empty-home premium. Examples:
- Recently inherited properties within the Class F (probate) window.
- Certain job-related dwellings.
- Armed forces accommodation cases.
Owners have to tell the council and provide evidence; premiums are not removed automatically without information.
Appeals and challenges
North Yorkshire uses the standard England route:
- Contact the council tax team (in writing is best) to challenge the classification (second home vs main residence, or long-term empty) or ask for an exception to be applied.
- Provide evidence: tenancy agreement, utility bills, sales or letting marketing, electoral registration, probate documents, employment / forces contracts, etc.
- If you still disagree once the council has responded, you can appeal to the Valuation Tribunal for England.
Challenge it in writing with evidence. If they refuse to change it, you can appeal to the Valuation Tribunal.
Contact details
The main Council Tax hub page signposts "Council Tax on second homes" and "premiums on long-term empty properties". The council uses webforms and standard customer-service contacts for council tax queries rather than listing a separate premium-only number on the second-homes page.
Contact North Yorkshire Council's council tax team via the online forms on the council's website or using the phone number on your bill.
Numbers and revenue - Scarborough and North Yorkshire
Revenue from the second-home premium
- The Executive paper on second homes says the Second Homes Council Tax premium will generate circa GBP 10.6 million per annum once fully up and running.
- A BBC report in January 2026 says the 100% surcharge "is anticipated to generate over GBP 10 million annually", funding affordable housing initiatives along the Yorkshire coast.
- Another BBC piece in February 2026 notes the council has decided to continue the 100% premium and that it has generated around GBP 10 million to date, all ring-fenced for housing developments.
North Yorkshire expects to raise around GBP 10-10.6 million a year from double council tax on second homes, and has committed to ring-fence that money for housing projects, including in Scarborough.
Number of second homes
The impact-assessment and press lines emphasise that North Yorkshire has a "high proportion of both empty dwellings and second homes", especially on the coast, but they do not quote a single Scarborough-only count in the 2026-27 policy paper.
Local coverage about the first affordable homes funded by the premium calls out the Yorkshire coast as a key focus, with Scarborough, Whitby and similar resorts highlighted as having high concentrations of second homes.
North Yorkshire has one of the highest concentrations of second homes on the English coast, and the new double-council-tax premium is explicitly aimed at places like Scarborough and Whitby.
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