Landlords with vacant High Street property beware… A ‘High Street Rental Auctions’ policy is in the pipeline

Posted on 02 August 2023

If you are a landlord with an empty high street property then watch out as the local authorities may have an eye on your property!

The Government has proposed a ‘High Street Rental Auction’ policy as part of the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill, which will tackle the ongoing issue of vacant commercial properties on the high street. The initial consultation on the Bill has now closed but the Government invited input on its proposed high street lease arrangements and rental auctions.

The proposal is to enable local authorities to arrange an auction to sell off, by way of lease, private commercial high street property that has been vacant for longer than 12 months in a 24 month period.

The policy will provide new controls for local authorities to require landlords to rent out persistently vacant commercial properties. Local authorities are expected to make reasonable efforts to contact the landlord to discuss the property before beginning the auction process. However, if landlords are unwilling to cooperate, this may not be possible.

Under the proposals, landlords will be granted an eight-week grace period to find a tenant following notification that a local authority is intending to undertake an auction for their property. If the landlord is unable to let the property within this period, the local authority can arrange a rental auction. The use of auctions will be at the discretion of the local authority and is not intended to apply to properties whose landlords are actively seeking to fill their premises – rather where vacancy rates are a significant issue and landlord cooperation is low.

The Government has proposed a ‘High Street Rental Auction’ policy as part of the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill, which will tackle the ongoing issue of vacant commercial properties on the high street. The initial consultation on the Bill has now closed but the Government invited input on its proposed high street lease arrangements and rental auctions.

The proposal is to enable local authorities to arrange an auction to sell off, by way of lease, private commercial high street property that has been vacant for longer than 12 months in a 24 month period.

The policy will provide new controls for local authorities to require landlords to rent out persistently vacant commercial properties. Local authorities are expected to make reasonable efforts to contact the landlord to discuss the property before beginning the auction process. However, if landlords are unwilling to cooperate, this may not be possible.

Under the proposals, landlords will be granted an eight-week grace period to find a tenant following notification that a local authority is intending to undertake an auction for their property. If the landlord is unable to let the property within this period, the local authority can arrange a rental auction. The use of auctions will be at the discretion of the local authority and is not intended to apply to properties whose landlords are actively seeking to fill their premises – rather where vacancy rates are a significant issue and landlord cooperation is low.