40% of homes sold in county were for second homes:
CALLS FOR GREATER CONTROLS TO HELP LOCALS AS EX-CHAPEL SALE BRANDED ‘RUBBING SALT ON A WOUND’
ALMOST 40% of properties sold in Gwynedd from March 2019 to April 2020 were purchased as second homes, recent figures show.
Published by the Welsh Revenue Authority, the figures show how more second homes have been bought in Gwynedd than anywhere else in Wales over the past year.
Holiday home ownership has become an issue for residents in certain parts of North Wales as it inflates the price of homes in their area, often forcing them to move away from the towns or villages where they were born and raised.
Cllr Craig ab Iago, housing leader in Gwynedd Council, said 60% of Gwynedd’s residents cannot afford to buy a house in the county as a result.
He said: “The housing development and planning systems in Wales need to be overhauled.
“An example from my ward is of a converted chapel an estate agent based in England put on the market for £400,000 as a second house or holiday home.
“The average salary for a Gwynedd resident is £16,000 a year. Promoting this former chapel, in this insensitive manner, is doing nothing, bar rubbing salt on a wound.”
According to data from Gwynedd council’s housing department, an additional 811 houses are required each year to meet current local demand, but with 830 “lost” as second homes, this creates a shortfall of 1,641 houses each year.
There are currently several houses on sale in Abersoch with asking prices exceeding the £1m mark, with some listed on Rightmove for £3m.
The average house price in Gwynedd is £183,053, according to Zoopla.
Siân Gwenllian, MS for Arfon, said: “Rising volumes of second homes cause many problems for communities - in pushing up house prices, leading to depopulation and threatens sustainability of our communities for future generations.
“Introducing greater controls around the volume of houses that can transfer from being primary homes to second homes or buy-to-let holiday accommodation, and closing the council tax loophole, will help protect local communities and the income streams of local councils so they can help meet local needs.
On Tuesday, a letter signed by Gwynedd politicians was sent to First Minister Mark Drakeford expressing concerns over the overwhelming number of visitors to certain parts of the county. They said the numbers flocking to towns including Barmouth, Aberdyfi, Abersoch and Morfa Bychan the weekend before last were “unprecedented” and beyond control. There was illegal parking, a lack of social distancing and concerns a repeat of such scenes could lead to a spread of Covid-19, jeopardising people’s health, they said. The letter was signed by Helen Jones MS; Siân Gwenllian MS; Hywel Williams MP; Liz Saville-Roberts MP; Gwynedd Council leader Dyfrig Siencyn and deputy leader Dafydd Meurig, who urged the Welsh Government to take action.