Edinburgh council suspends 300% council tax rise on second homes
A controversial plan to charge second home owners in Edinburgh four times the normal rate of council tax has been suspended for six months following legal advice.
Owners of second homes in the Capital have been charged double council tax on their properties since 2024. But when councillors set the budget for 2026/27 in February they approved an increase in the second home supplement which meant owners would pay four times the normal amount.
But the new rate has now been suspended for six months, which the council says will allow it to "engage on the impact of the rise" and "consider any amendments or exemptions to the policy".
In the meantime, the charge to second home owners will revert to double the normal council tax.
Councillors have been told that the council received "a number of representations in relation to the practical implementation of this policy" and that "having examined this in more detail and having taken legal advice, it is clear the implementation of the decision will require further work and the development of an agreed policy".
They were also told that the Scottish Government had published relevant guidance after the council's budget meeting.
It is understood the council now plans to carry out an impact assessment and review the guidance, as well as analysing what impact the increase would have on affected groups.
The policy of charging a 300 per cent supplement on top of the council tax - meaning a bill of four times the normal charge - was part of a Liberal Democrat amendment to the council budget. The Labour administration had originally proposed a 200 per cent supplement.
Tory group leader Iain Whyte said: "I think the council has realised that just putting this through without any consultation might leave them open to judicial review.
"It shows that this was rather ill thought out, bringing it forward late in a budget process. They really should have considered it more.
"It's the politics of envy because people have empty or second homes for all sorts of reasons, not just because they're super wealthy. People with empty homes is often because of a family bereavement or a long-term refurbishment. And second homes might legitimately be people who have had to move away for a job and want to come back to Edinburgh quite soon.
"So it's really just tweaking at people's pet hates and virtue signalling rather than a properly thought-through policy. If that means those affected are considering legal action, I'm not surprised.
"Council tax is meant, at least in part, relate to the services you use and a second home isn't really using any services, yet they want to charge them four times.”
Edinburgh-born Morag Campbell and her husband Gordon, who now live in Berkshire, bought a flat in Edinburgh in 2003 when their parents began to go into care homes. They said their council tax bill had gone up from £2,136 two years ago to £4,273 last year and £8,500.46 this year.
Mrs Campbell said she had been shocked when they received the bill and the suspension of the latest increase was "the best thing I've heard for a while".
But Mr Campbell said the first monthly payment had already gone out of their account. "I'll be interested to see how they reverse it," he said.
And he criticised the implementation of the new rate. "Undoubtedly the impact on people is significant and if people wanted to take action, either to sell or to let, they haven't given them enough time, which is a pretty cavalier approach.
"When we bought, our objective was to use it as a home for visiting family and friends. We just get the feeling now that we're not welcome in Edinburgh."
The council says the aim of the supplement is to increase housing availability by encouraging more homes to be used for living in.
Finance convener Mandy Watt said: “We’ve written to all affected homeowners to advise that we’ve suspended the rise in council tax for second homes.
“This will allow us to engage on the impact of the rise and consider any amendments or exemptions to the policy. The rate will remain at last year’s level while we do this. We’re sorry for any uncertainty this has caused.”
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