The Letting Centre

Council tax - unfurnished or furnished

Question: 37
I understand that there is an exemption available to landlords from council tax for empty property but the amount of the exemption depends on whether the property is furnished or unfurnished. Our landlord's property contains some furniture (i.e. some tables and chairs etc.) but no beds. The council tax inspector says that this is to be classified as furnished and will only allow us a 50% rebate for the empty period. Is this correct ?
Answer:
You are correct that full exemption from council tax is available for unfurnished property for empty periods of up to six months but councils are generally quite strict in their definition of "furnished". If there is any moveable furniture in the property, it is likely to be classified as furnished. We called our local council tax office and spoke to an inspector. There appears to be no strict definition of 'furnished' in the Regulations. According to East Devon District Council (EDDC), carpets, curtains and fixed units are permitted under the 'unfurnished' category. If there is any extra unfitted furniture (chairs, settee etc. i.e. furniture which can be moved) then the inspector would normally deem the property to be furnished and council tax is then payable for the property during the empty period (albeit at a reduced rate).
References:	Pages:	Hyperlinks:
Letting Handbook	Chapter 14	letting-handbook-and-factsheets.html

For more information, discuss on the Forum