Empty homes can have a negative impact on neighbourhoods.
There are a small number of long term empty residential properties in South Ribble that are detrimental to the amenities and problematic to neighbours and the community.
We are committed to helping owners bring their long-term empty properties back into use.
Help for owners of empty properties
We will work with owners to identify suitable solutions to help bring their properties back into use, these can include:
- giving advice to the owner or landlord to help them return the empty property back into use and how this will benefit them
- using enforcement action where relevant, and only as a tool of last resort or where the property is unsafe or of such a state is causes distress to the local amenity
- advise if Council Tax can be reduced if the property is uninhabitable so this money can be used to do works at the property. View more information on empty property Council Tax discount.
View more information on our empty properties policy.
Probate
Probate is the process of officially proving the validity of a will. However, the following information applies equally when the deceased person died without leaving a will, in which case the grant is called 'letters of administration'.
These terms refer to a legal document that allows the person(s) named in it to collect and distribute the estate (property, money, possessions, etc.) of a deceased person.
The grant is proof that a person, or persons, named in it are entitled to collect and distribute the monies or other assets of the deceased, and may be produced to the organisations (banks, building societies, etc.) who hold those assets.
It may not be necessary to obtain a grant in the following cases:
- where a home is held in joint names and is passing by survivorship to the other joint owner
- where a joint bank or building society account is held, the production of a death certificate may be sufficient for the monies to be transferred to the joint holder
- certain institutions may release monies without a grant being produced if the amount held by the deceased is small (apply to the institution to see if they will release monies without a grant).
If the above circumstances do not apply, or if the institutions concerned inform you that a grant of probate is, or letters of administration are, required, you can choose to:
- contact a solicitor, who will arrange this for you (you can find local firms of solicitors listed in the Yellow Pages)
- do it yourself (if you take this path, please call the Probate and Inheritance Tax helpline on 0845 3020 900 or visit the GOV.UK website for information about applying for probate.
You can, for further information, also visit the GOV.UK website for information about making a will and the implications of passing away with having made a will.
If you have an empty property that you would like to discuss with us please contact us by email to info@southribble.gov.uk.