Empty Home Grants in West Midlands: What's Available, Where & How Much

The West Midlands faces a significant housing challenge with over 29,000 long-term empty homes sitting vacant across the region, representing approximately 1.11% of all housing stock - slightly higher than the national average of 1.06% for empty home numbers in England.

Rugby has the region's highest concentration with 944 empty properties (1.83% of local housing), while Birmingham leads in total numbers with 5,406 vacant homes (1.16% of city housing).

Article updated: August 2026

Beyond Rugby, the highest vacancy rates run through smaller districts: Malvern Hills (1.72%) and Stratford-on-Avon (1.70%). The largest city totals after Birmingham are Stoke-on-Trent (1,644 empty homes), Coventry (1,624), Wolverhampton (1,485) and Sandwell (1,312).

Only 5 out of 28 West Midlands councils currently offer dedicated empty homes grants or loans, with maximum funding ranging from £2,000 in Staffordshire Moorlands to £15,000 in Wychavon.

These valuable but limited funding schemes represent crucial opportunities for property owners and landlords looking to bring derelict buildings back into use across Birmingham, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, Worcestershire, and Shropshire.

Council grant inventory checked: February 2025. Closed-scheme and tax corrections checked: August 2026.

Abandoned and boarded up old house with missing roof tiles.

A List of Councils in the West Midlands and Their Empty Home Grants

Note: if you're a local council and would like to add your details here to this resource then please contact us with your details and we will be happy to add them for you.

Birmingham City Council

Location: Birmingham City Council ward map

Birmingham City Council empty homes grants: ❌ Unfortunately, there are currently no empty homes grants available in Birmingham through any local grant, funding, or lease schemes.

They do have an empty homes strategy 2019 - 2024 although no funding is available for property owners.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants:  Birmingham City Council provide some landlord incentives with deposits, insurance schemes and a 5 year lease scheme, per the council's accommodation finding page.

They also signpost residents to energy-efficiency support on the council's energy-bills page. The Great British Insulation Scheme ended on 31 March 2026 and should not be treated as open to new applications; check the council page for currently available help.

Learn more about Birmingham's property market, rental yields and best buy-to-let areas in our detailed location review.

Bromsgrove District Council

Location: Bromsgrove District Council ward map

Bromsgrove District Council empty homes grants: ✅ Yes, empty homes grants do look to be available in Bromsgrove. It is not clear the exact amount from their website, however on their empty homes page they say:

Own an empty home?

We're committed to help you and we can advise on:

  • Property inspections, work schedules and contractors
  • Grant assistance
  • Renting your property
  • Entering the Step Up Private Tenancy Scheme to help rent your property
  • Selling your property.

Full details are available on the Bromsgrove Council empty homes page.

They do also provide a 100% discount to council tax for 12 months for properties undergoing major structural and repair works, per the council's discounts and exemptions page.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants: Bromsgrove District Council is providing support for the Green Homes Grant to help residents improve their heating and reduce their energy bills. This is in collaboration with a Worcestershire Consortium lead by Wychavon District Council.

Cannock Chase Council

Location: Cannock Chase council ward map

Cannock Chase Council empty homes grants: ❌ Unfortunately, there may not be any empty homes grants available in Cannock Chase through any local grant, funding, or lease schemes.

In 2018 they did provide up to £10,000 with an empty homes loan, although it is not clear if this is still available.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants:  Cannock Chase Council in partnership with Staffordshire County Council are providing funding for green heating solutions and have signed up to provide support to residents for ECO grants.

Whittle Arch in Coventry on a bright day.
Whittle Arch in Coventry

Coventry City Council

Location: Coventry City Council ward map

Coventry City Council empty homes grants: ❌ Unfortunately, there are currently no empty homes grants available in Coventry through any local grant, funding, or lease schemes.

They do have a detailed empty dwellings strategy 2021 - 2026, which focuses on signposting owners to services to help them bring the property back in to use or sell it.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants: Coventry City Council's ECO page explains local energy-efficiency support. The Great British Insulation Scheme ended on 31 March 2026, so residents should check which schemes are currently accepting applications.

Coventry City Council also provide a guaranteed rent lease scheme for a period of 1-2 year for landlords looking for certainty, with their Lets Rent+ strategy.

Learn more about Coventry's property market, rental yields and best buy-to-let areas in our detailed location review.

Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council

Location: Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council ward map

Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council empty homes grants: ✅ Yes, empty homes grants are available in Dudley. The council website mentions a grant scheme with specific terms and conditions that the property must be owner-occupied on completion of works, or tenanted to council nominated tenants, although no specific detail is given to the grant value.

Dudley council have a specific empty homes strategy 2020 - 2024.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants: To help support vulnerable residents, Dudley Council provide a home repair grant to repair key items like boilers and roofs.

For properties and residents that do not have a mains gas boiler, they also provide support for the Home Upgrade Grant which can include moving to more energy efficient heating like solar panels.

East Staffordshire Borough Council

Location: East Staffordshire Borough Council ward map

East Staffordshire Borough Council empty homes grants: ❌ Unfortunately, there are currently no empty homes grants available in East Staffordshire through any local grant, funding, or lease schemes.

They do have information about vacant homes on the council's empty properties page and they have partnered with Grafton Empty Homes to provide solutions for owners to bring run-down homes back in to use.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants: East Staffordshire Council provide a landlord support package, detailed in their landlord support package PDF, to encourage renting to local residents and this includes rent guarantee insurance and a grant to cover eviction costs in the first 2 years of the tenancy.

The council are part of the Staffordshire Warmer Homes scheme, aiming to reduce carbon emissions and improve local housing stock. This is a fully funded programme that covers items like solar panels, home insulation, air source heat pumps and more. This is aimed at properties that are off the gas grid and are hard to heat homes.

Front view of the Cathedral at the end of King Street, Hereford.
King Street in Hereford

Herefordshire Council

Location: Herefordshire Council ward map

Herefordshire Council empty homes grants: ❌ Unfortunately, it doesn't look like there are any empty homes grants available in Herefordshire through any local grant, funding, or lease schemes.

However they do have an empty homes strategy 2021 - 2024 and on their empty homes page they say:

The council says it can:

  • Provide information on what work would be needed to make the property habitable
  • Advise on the likely cost of work needed
  • Provide contact details of local contractors
  • Advise whether you may be eligible for any financial assistance

So it maybe that some financial support and assistance is available and it is worthwhile contacting Herefordshire council if you are an owner of a run-down property.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants: Herefordshire Council have a couple of schemes in place to help improve local housing stock and energy efficiency, including:

  • Warm Homes Local Grant
  • ECO4
  • Great British Insulation Scheme: ended 31 March 2026; check the council for replacement support

Learn more about Hereford's property market, rental yields and best buy-to-let areas in our detailed location review.

Lichfield District Council

Location: Lichfield District Council ward map

Lichfield District Council empty homes grants: ❌ Unfortunately, it doesn't look like there are any empty homes grants available in Lichfield through any local grant, funding or lease schemes.

They do have an empty homes policy although this is from 2016. The Lichfield housing strategy 2019 to 2024 also briefly mentions their approach to vacant homes.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants:  To help combat fuel poverty Lichfield Council help provide support with:

  • Warmer Homes, Greener District scheme
  • Great British Insulation Scheme: ended 31 March 2026; check the council for replacement support

They are also in partnership with Staffordshire Warmer Homes to help improve energy performance of local housing.

Learn more about Lichfield's property market, rental yields and best buy-to-let areas in our detailed location review.

Malvern Hills District Council

Location: Malvern Hills Council ward map

Malvern Hills District Council empty homes grants: ❌ Unfortunately, there may not be any empty homes grants available in Malvern Hills through any local grant, funding, or lease schemes.

In 2018 they did provide up to £15,000 with an empty homes loan, per the council's 2018 leaflet, although it is not clear if this is still available, so it is worth contacting the council if you are the owner of a run-down empty home and looking for assistance to bring it back in to use.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants: The council provides signposting to energy grants provided by Worcestershire County Council for the Home Upgrade Grant (HUG), which is suitable for hard-to-heat homes that aren't on the mains gas grid and to Act on Energy website for the ECO Grants. More information on these energy grants is on the council's energy efficiency page.

Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council

Location: Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council ward map

Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council empty homes grants: ❌ Unfortunately, there are currently no empty homes grants available in Newcastle-under-Lyme through any local grant, funding, or lease schemes.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants: There are no additional grants listed for Newcastle-under-Lyme, although for hard-to-heat homes the council provides information about ECO4 support.

North Warwickshire Borough Council

Location: North Warwickshire Borough Council ward map

North Warwickshire Borough Council empty homes grants: ❌ Unfortunately, there are currently no empty homes grants available across North Warwickshire through any local grant, funding, or lease schemes.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants: If you have a property that is not on mains gas, maybe it is an oil central heating boiler, then you could qualify for a Home Upgrade Grant. For landlords this is up to £5,000 and covers improving heating systems to solar panels or air source heat pumps and also improving insulation.

Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council

Location: Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council ward map

Nuneaton and Bedworth Borough Council empty homes grants: ✅ Yes, empty homes loans are available in Nuneaton and Bedworth up to £10,000, per the council's empty home loan page.

There is some criteria including the property must have been empty for 6 months or more and the loan is repayable over a maximum of 5 years from the full funding being released.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants:  Similar to nearby councils, Nuneaton and Bedworth provides support with the ECO4 Grant, per the council's energy matters page.

Redditch Borough Council

Location: Redditch Borough Council ward map

Redditch Borough Council empty homes grants: ❌ Unfortunately, there are currently no empty homes grants available in Redditch through any local grant, funding, or lease schemes.

Redditch Council's Empty Homes Strategy is mentioned on their empty homes page, but it dates back to 2009-2012.

On this page they say:

Own an empty home?

We're committed to help you and we can advise on:

  • Property inspections, work schedules and contractors
  • Grant assistance
  • Renting your property
  • Entering the Step Up Private Tenancy Scheme to help rent your property
  • Selling your property.

So they may still provide grant assistance, but this isn't clear if it is updated so it is worth speaking with the council if you do have an empty property that you wish to bring back in to us and require financial support.

They do also provide a 100% discount for council tax for up to 12 months on properties undergoing structural works or major repair works, per the council's discounts and exemptions page.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants:  For landlords looking to improve a house of multiple occupation (HMO), Redditch Council provide an interest free loan up to half of the cost of the works. This could be quiet appealing for landlords to improve the property with new Fensa installed windows, new roofing with thermal insulation and a new modern boiler.

Full details on Redditch Council loans for work to Houses in Multiple Occupation are on the council's landlord funding page.

Rugby Borough Council

Location: Rugby Borough Council ward map

Rugby Borough Council empty homes grants: ❌ Unfortunately, there are currently no empty homes grants available in Rugby through any local grant, funding, or lease schemes.

There is little detail on their empty homes page about funding, although they do say they can offer advice on renovation works and letting the property.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants:  For vulnerable residents they have a Home Environment Assessment and Response Team (HEART), per the council's repairs and loans page; they can help with grants, loans and arranging works for adaptations, repairs or safety matters.

Homeowners in Rugby can also apply for a grant up to £18,000 to help with improving heating and insulation if they are off mains gas.

Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council

Location: Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council ward map

Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council empty homes grants: ❌ Unfortunately, there are currently no empty homes grants available in Sandwell through any local grant, funding, or lease schemes.

They do have an empty homes strategy 2023 - 2028 with a plan to bring back 200 homes in to use.

In this plan on page 8 they mention financing for loans is part of their strategy, but nothing else is confirmed on their website. So it maybe that funding is now available or coming available, and if you own an empty home in Sandwell it is worth speaking. with the council to see if any financial assistance can be provided.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants: Sandwell Council are looking for more properties to rent and are providing incentives to landlords to work with them. The details on exactly what this includes seems to be on a case by case basis depending on how long you can provide the property to the council. Full details for landlords wishing to work with Sandwell Council are on the council's landlord page.

For residents living in hard to heat homes that are off the mains gas grid you can apply for a Home Upgrade Grant.

 

Shropshire Council

Location: Shropshire Council ward map

Shropshire Council empty homes grants: ✅ Yes, empty homes grants are available in Shropshire.

The council provide a grant up to £10,000 and have an advice to grant applicants sheet here and a seperate faq section.

The Shropshire empty homes strategy is from 2022 - 2025.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants: Shropshire Council's home energy efficiency guidance sets out its Affordable Warmth and Energy Efficiency advice and the current Warm Homes Local Grant for eligible low-income households in EPC D to G homes.

Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council

Location: Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council ward map

Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council empty homes grants: ❌ Unfortunately, there are currently no empty homes grants available in Solihull through any local grant, funding, or lease schemes.

They do have an empty homes strategy although dated 2019.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants:  Solihull community housing do provide a lease scheme to landlords with a guaranteed rent. They are looking for more 2 -3 bedroom homes and full details are on the private sector leasing page.

Although not funding, they do also provide a landlord advice service to try and meditate in situations with tenants, called Solihome assist.

The Great British Insulation Scheme ended on 31 March 2026. Solihull residents should use the council's energy-efficiency grants page to check which insulation or heating schemes are now open.

Learn more about Solihull's property market, rental yields and best buy-to-let areas in our detailed location review.

South Staffordshire Council

Location: South Staffordshire Council ward map

South Staffordshire Council empty homes grants: ❌ Unfortunately, there are currently no empty homes grants available in South Staffordshire through any local grant, funding, or lease schemes, per the council's empty properties page.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants:  South Staffordshire's warmer homes page lists support for low-income and vulnerable households. The Great British Insulation Scheme ended on 31 March 2026, so use the council page to confirm which current programmes remain open.

Stafford Council

Location: Stafford Council ward map

Stafford Council empty homes grants: ✅ Yes, empty homes loans are available in Stafford.

These are provided up to £10,000 and terms and conditions apply.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants: For low-income households in Stafford looking to improve their heating, they can apply to the Staffordshire warmer homes programme for improvements like air source heat pumps, solar electricity panels and insulation.

Staffordshire Moorlands District Council

Location: Staffordshire Moorlands District Council ward map

Staffordshire Moorlands District Council empty homes grants: ✅ Yes, empty homes loans are available in Staffordshire Moorlands.

They are targeted to help vulnerable people carry out repairs and remedial works and have a maximum limit of £2,000 per property over a 2 year period. Although they can be used by owner-occupiers and landlords to bring a vacant run down home back in to use.

Staffordshire Moorlands council do have a specific empty homes strategy although this is dated 2017.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants: The Great British Insulation Scheme, which previously supported qualifying homes including some in council tax bands A to D, ended on 31 March 2026. Check the council for current insulation support.

Aerial view of the bottle kilns at Gladstone Pottery Museum in Longford, Stoke on Trent
Longton, Stoke on Trent, Staffordshire

Stoke-on-Trent City Council

Location: Stoke-on-Trent Council ward map

Stoke-on-Trent District Council empty homes grants: ❌ Unfortunately, there are currently no empty homes grants available in Stoke through any local grant, funding, or lease schemes.

Stoke do have an empty homes strategy 2021 to 2026 and since the last empty homes strategy in 2014 they have bought back in to use 1,173 empty homes (page 2 of their strategy report).

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants: Stoke Council provides a safe and warm home grant, which can be used for boilers, insulation, windows and other items and is available as a grant up to £10,000. Private tenants and landlords can help help to with a grant of up to £5,000 if the landlord will provide match funding. This is means-tested based on certain income and health requirements. Full details on the Stoke Council warm home grant are on the council's fuel poverty page.

Learn more about Stoke-on-Trent's property market, rental yields and best buy-to-let areas in our detailed location review.

Stratford-on-Avon Council

Location: Stratford-on-Avon Council ward map

Stratford-on-Avon District Council empty homes grants: ❌ Unfortunately, there are currently no empty homes grants available in Stratford-on-Avon.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants: They do provide support with an energy improvement grant, Home Upgrade Grant (HUG2), which is designed to help hard to heat homes that are off the mains gas grid.

Tamworth Borough Council

Location: Tamworth Borough Council ward map

Tamworth Borough Council empty homes grants: ❌ Unfortunately, there are currently no empty homes grants available in Tamworth through any local grant, funding, or lease schemes.

The council is taking action on empty homes through council tax instead. From 1 April 2026, homes left empty for a year or more are charged an extra 100% council tax, rising to an extra 200% after five years and an extra 300% after ten. The council expects 162 properties in the borough to qualify for the premium.

source: Tamworth Borough Council

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants: Tamworth Council's statement of intent covers ECO4 and the former Great British Insulation Scheme. GBIS ended on 31 March 2026; check current eligibility before applying for energy support.

Telford and Wrekin Council

Location: Telford and Wrekin Council ward map

Telford and Wrekin Council empty homes grants: ❌ Unfortunately, there are currently no empty homes grants available in Telford & Wrekin through any local grant, funding, or lease schemes.

Telford and Wrekin do have an empty homes strategy 2021 to 2026.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants: Telford and Wrekin provide a Warm and Well Grant for local residents. This is means-tested, but if applicable, the property owner can improve the property with energy-efficient doors, windows and TRV smart radiator valves.

Residential flats sit alongside the Walsall Canal.
The Walsall Canal

Walsall Council

Location: Walsall Council ward map

Walsall Council empty homes grants: ❌ Unfortunately, there are currently no empty homes grants available in Walsall through any local grant, funding, or lease schemes.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants: Walsall council have a number of approved contractors that can hello local residents with the ECO4 grant. Details on how to apply here.

Learn more about Walsall's property market, rental yields and best buy-to-let areas in our detailed location review.

Warwick District Council

Location: Warwick District Council ward map

Warwick District Council empty homes grants: ❌ Unfortunately, there are currently no empty homes grants available in Warwick through any local grant, funding, or lease schemes.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants:  They do provide support for applying for central government Green Home Grants, to improve the heating for properties that are not on mains gas. This includes new heating, controls and insulation.

City of Wolverhampton Council

Location: City of Wolverhampton Council ward map

City of Wolverhampton Council empty homes grants: ❌ Unfortunately, there are currently no empty homes grants available in Wolverhampton through any local grant, funding, or lease schemes.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants:  The City of Wolverhampton Council provides a healthy homes grant. This is means-tested and is for owner-occupiers. It includes repairs to the home, electrical work, roofing work and UPVc windows and doors. The grants are up to £10,000.

Learn more about Wolverhampton's property market, rental yields and best buy-to-let areas in our detailed location review.

Worcester City Council

Location: Worcester City Council ward map

Worcester City Council empty homes grants: ❌ Unfortunately, there are currently no empty homes grants available in Worcester through any local grant, funding, or lease schemes.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants: Worcester Council provide a home repair assitancegrant. This is means tested and is for owner-occupiers. It includes repairs to the home for category 1 and category 2 hazards. The grants are up to £10,000.

Learn more about Worcester's property market, rental yields and best buy-to-let areas in our detailed location review.

Wychavon District Council

Location: Wychavon District Council ward map

Wychavon District Council empty homes grants: ✅ Yes empty home grants are available in Wychavon.

Up to £15,000 if the property qualifies for essential works as deemed by the council.

Additional homeowner, tenant and landlord grants: There are no direct grants available by the council for other housing needs, however the Wychavon Council do signpost to some central government grants including energy efficiency improvements for houses, per the council's cost of living page.

Empty & Derelict Homes Additional Support

There are some additional schemes that are worth looking at for both homeowners and developers working with run-down, derelict or simply long-term empty homes.

This includes.

Reduced VAT

Most work to an existing dwelling is normally charged at the standard VAT rate. A contractor may be able to charge 5% on qualifying renovation or alteration services where residential premises have not been lived in for at least two years immediately before the work starts.

The reduced rate is conditional rather than automatic. The property, vacancy evidence, services and materials must meet HMRC's rules, and some costs remain standard-rated. See section 8 of VAT Notice 708 and ask the contractor or a VAT adviser to confirm the treatment before work begins.

Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT)

This is a common cost for people buying properties. It can be significant and can be the difference between a buyer being able to purchase a particular home or not.

There is no SDLT relief or lower rate simply because a property is described as derelict or uninhabitable. HMRC says only a very limited number of buildings will have deteriorated so far that they are no longer suitable for use as a dwelling; ordinary disrepair, missing facilities and repairable structural defects generally do not meet that threshold. Read HMRC's current SDLT manual on uninhabitable property and obtain transaction-specific advice before filing an SDLT return.

The aim here is to help provide solutions to help encourage empty, derelict and run-down homes back into use.

For more straightforward SDLT calculations, you can see what the costs could be with our calculators

The Future (and History) of Empty Homes Grants

In September 2013 the Government provided funding via the Empty Homes Loan Fund, where loans were provided to homeowners to bring their properties back to a liveable standard. Yet, in August 2014, this was abolished due to a low take-up. Ever since then, the approach to empty homes seems to have changed from a carrot to a stick approach.

With newer government initiatives like doubling council tax on properties that have been empty for more than 12 months. This may seem like an easy win for councils, but the reality is homes stay empty not often out of choice but out of circumstances, personal and financial.

This isn't solved by increasing the burden on homeowners with extra costs.

In 2024, the number of long-term empty homes in England is reported as 265,061 by Action on Empty Homes, this is staggering.

When there are so many families and individuals in need of homes across the country, this is grim reading.

We all know of a building or development that looks awful or has become a burden to the community. In the UK, in the major cities and towns, we have a chronic shortage of housing, and the only way to tackle this successfully is in part by building new homes but also by turning derelict, vacant, run-down buildings back into habitable housing.

This is a win for everyone. It provides homes for local communities, creates work for local trades and ultimately improves the area.

Now you know which councils in the West Midlands may be able to assist with funding support, there are different property tools you can use to identify run-down homes, and techniques to use property portals like Rightmove, to specifically find houses that need renovation.

Before taking on the work, compare the full cost with other investment properties, current buy-to-let property for sale and any genuinely below-market-value properties.

We hope this guide can help you on your way to bringing vacant empty run-down homes in your community back in to use.

Please share it with others to help raise awareness for the available support councils and government can provide to property owners and communities.

Other Regions

For an insight into the solutions at local authority level across the country, below are reviews on what grants, funding and lease schemes are available in other regions to help owners bring these homes back into use for residents.

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