Short-term and holiday lets have experienced rapid growth in recent years as the popularity of sites such as AirBnB has exploded, and more people enjoy UK-based ‘staycations’.

In response to concerns that the concentration of holiday homes and short-term lets in coastal towns, national parks and some cities may be preventing local people from owning or renting a home, the Government has launched a consultation on the future of this section of the market.

We run through some of the key changes proposed.

What is the Government proposing regarding planning permission for short-term lets?

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities is proposing changes to planning laws in England that would give councils greater power to manage levels of short-term lets to reduce housing pressures in popular tourist areas.

Under the planned changes, a short-term let use class would be created, which would introduce planning permission for an existing home (planning use class C3) to start to be used as a short-term let (a new C5 planning use clause).

The Government has proposed the definition of a short-term let that would fall under the class use change as:

“Use of a dwelling house that is not a sole or main residence for temporary sleeping accommodation for the purpose of holiday, leisure, recreation, business or other travel.”

The Government’s intention is to introduce new national permitted development rights to use a dwelling house as a short-term let and planning permission would only be required where those new permitted development rights are removed by the local authority.

This would provide flexibility where short-term lets are not a local issue, and areas would only see a change where the rights have been removed by making an Article 4 direction.

This model will provide local areas with tools that they can apply, or not, depending on local circumstances. Consequently, people will not see a change unless an Article 4 direction is in place to remove one or more of the permitted development rights.

What about existing holiday lets – would owners of these need to apply for planning permission?

No, this would be considered a reclassification of the property and the operator would not need to apply for planning permission if they have an existing holiday or short-term let.

Under the proposals, planning permission for change of use would only need to be sought where the owner wants to implement a new holiday or short-term let.

What about owners of established or new holiday lets with planning permission who want to return the property to use as dwelling house?

A right is also being proposed that could allow the change of use from a short term let to a C3 dwellinghouse. This would permit those premises that fall into the short term let use class when the changes are introduced to return to use as dwelling house for rent or to buy without the need for a planning application. 

Does this mean that homeowners would need permission to let out their homes for a short period of time?

The Government doesn’t want to capture homeowners that may wish to temporarily let their property for a short period of time, such as when they go on holiday or if they work away. It also recognises that many homeowners choose to do this to boost income during a period of high inflation.

Under the proposals, homeowners would be allowed to let a property for a period of between 30 and 90 days per year before they would need to apply for planning permission for a change in use.

What about people that let out a room in a property?

Some homeowners let out a room within their house to boost their income and for some to help with rising costs. The proposed structure of the new use class means the letting out of a room or rooms, for example to a lodger, within a ‘sole or main’ dwelling will be unaffected by the introduction of the new class. 

Would this apply to all areas of the country?

Potentially not.

The Government has proposed new permitted development rights, which will mean that the new planning rules would not be implemented in areas where local authorities choose not to use the planning controls.

It wants to give Local Authorities the flexibility to make decisions to best suit their local housing requirements.

Will there be a register of short-term lets?

A separate consultation has been launched on the introduction of a register of short-term lets, which will be introduced through the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill. The Government is concerned about a lack of credible data on the size of the market, and believes the register will give local authorities the information they require to make informed decisions on local housing need.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport, which is running the consultation, has proposed three options for the register:

• An opt-in scheme for local authorities, with the framework set nationally
• An opt-in scheme for local authorities with the framework set nationally, and a review point to determine whether to expand the scheme to mandatory
• A mandatory national scheme, administered by one of: the English Tourist Board (VisitEngland), local authorities, or another competent authority

You can respond to this consultation here.

What are the main Government concerns about short-term lets?

In addition to concerns about the provision of homes to buy or rent in areas of high tourist demand, the Government is concerned about the impact of a lack of permanent populations in terms of the viability of local shops, schools and other local services.

There are concerns that areas with a high concentration of holiday homes or short-term lets become ‘ghost towns’ in periods of lower demand, whilst noise, traffic and anti-social behaviour has also been raised as issues.

How can you respond to the Government’s proposals?

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities consultation is live until 7 June. You can access it here.

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport consultation on the registration scheme is also live until 7 June and can be found here.