The Impact of Empty, Second and Holiday
Homes on the Sustainability of Rural
Communities :
A SYSTEMATIC LITERATURE REVIEW
Alison Wallace, Mark Bevan, Karen Croucher, Karen
Jackson, Lisa O’Malley, Vickie Orton
Centre for Housing Policy
ESRC EVIDENCE NETWORK:
SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS IN
SOCIAL POLICY AND SOCIAL CARE
The Impact of Empty, Second and Holiday Homes
on the Sustainability of Rural Communities –
A Systematic Literature Review
Alison Wallace, Mark Bevan, Karen Croucher,
Karen Jackson , Lisa O’Malley, Vickie Orton
The Centre for Housing Policy
June 2005
ii
©
2005 Centre for Housing Policy
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in any retrieval
system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the owner
Published by:
The Centre for Housing Policy
University of York
YORK YO10 5DD
ISBN
1 874797 56 0
Telephone: 01904 321480
Fax: 01904 321481
Website: http://www.york.ac.uk/chp
iii
Acknowledgements
We wish to acknowledge the support of the ESRC for funding the University of York
to conduct the project Systematic Reviews in Social Policy and Social Care (Award
No. H14125106) in order to empirically test and develop the methodology of
systematic reviewing.
We would also like to thank all those people who responded to our requests for
information and reports.
iv
v
Contents
Acknowledgements.....................................................................................................iii
Contents
........................................................................................................... v
List of Tables and Figures.......................................................................................... vi
Executive Summary ...................................................................................................vii
Chapter One Introduction............................................................................................ 1
Chapter Two: Methods................................................................................................ 7
Chapter Three: Researching empty and irregularly occupied dwellings:
definitions, methods, timing and location......................................... 23
Chapter Four: The impact of empty or irregularly occupied property on
sustainability of rural communities................................................... 35
Chapter Five: Reviewing policy options and recommendations ............................... 67
Chapter Six: Issues for review methods ................................................................... 81
Chapter Seven: Conclusions .................................................................................... 91
References
......................................................................................................... 95
Appendix One: Databases searched ...................................................................... 101
Appendix Two: Search strategies ........................................................................... 103
Appendix Three: Websites searched ...................................................................... 117
Appendix Four:Journals handsearched .................................................................. 119
Appendix Five: Local Authority contacts ................................................................. 121
Appendix Six: Studies identified but not retrieved................................................... 123
Appendix Seven: Data extraction form ................................................................... 129
Appendix Eight: Studies not passing quality criteria ............................................... 133
Appendix Nine: Summaries of the studies included in the review .......................... 135
vi
List of Tables and Figures
Table 2.2: Dimensions of sustainability ..................................................................... 10
Table 2.3: Study selection criteria ............................................................................. 12
Table 2.4: Study selection: quality criteria................................................................. 14
Table 2.5: Identifying research .................................................................................. 15
Table 2.6: Sources of references at each stage of the review .................................. 18
Table 2.7: Studies included in the review.................................................................. 19
Table 6.1: Comparison of UK reports cited in Gallent and Tewdwr-Jones
(1996) to this systematic review .............................................................. 83
Database checklist .................................................................................................. 101
Figure 3.1 Distribution of areas used as case studies in research included
in the review. ............................................................................................................26
vii
Executive Summary
In response to the increasing requirement for public policy to be evidence-based,
the Economic and Social Science Research Council (ESRC) has funded a
programme of research projects to examine how evidence can be generated in a
number of social policy areas. Beyond developing the evidence base in a number of
topic areas, the programme aims to develop the methods of systematic reviewing.
Systematic reviews are considered to be a key tool for the identification,
comprehensive assessment and synthesis of research evidence.
A systematic review aims to provide a comprehensive and unbiased summary of
available evidence on a given topic. This is achieved by the use of a clearly defined
search strategy to ensure that an extensive range of potential sources of evidence is
explored. In addition the use of explicit criteria to appraise the quality of the
evidence retrieved ensures that only robust evidence is synthesised in the
production of the final review.
This review addresses two questions:
•
What are the impacts of privately owned empty or irregularly occupied
properties on the sustainability of rural communities?
•
To what extent have the policy interventions addressed the effects of empty
of irregularly occupied properties on the sustainability of rural communities?
These questions address key national and local policy concerns, notably sustainable
communities and housing demand. Furthermore the social and economic impacts
of second homes in particular on rural communities are contested, and have been
the focus of considerable and often emotive debate over the last three decades.
Methods
An essential first step was to ensure there was no ambiguity around the questions
being addressed by the review. The review was concerned with vacant property,
second homes and holiday homes (i.e. properties rented out on a series of short
term lets) in the private sector located in settlements with populations of less than
10,000. We adopted the ten dimensions of sustainability proposed by Long (2001)
as a framework for organising the evidence.
viii
A review protocol was drawn up at the outset of the review, detailing a priori
decisions about the selection and appraisal of studies, the search strategy, and data
synthesis methods. Ten electronic databases and many internet sites were
searched (see Appendices 1 & 2). The process produced 1060 references. Of
these 273 were relevant to the review. Once the specified inclusion criteria were
applied, 30 references remained. Of these, 23 met our quality criteria and finally
entered the review. Information was extracted from each study in a uniform manner
(see Appendix Seven), and data synthesised to provide a narrative account of the
findings.
Evidence-base
Seventeen of the review studies addressed second home ownership. The studies
included in the review were undertaken in various locations across the UK over a
period of more than 30 years, using a variety of methods, and various definitions of
second or empty homes. The definition of what constitutes a second home has
been a perennial problem. Another fundamental difficulty has been the accurate
identification of the number of properties that are empty or used as second homes.
Different studies have focused on different aspects of empty and irregularly
occupied properties. The political problematisation of second homes has led much
of the research to have a relatively narrow focus, and second homes have (with
some notable exceptions) been studied in isolation from other expressions of
external housing demand in local areas, such as retirement and commuting.
The impacts of privately owned empty or irregularly occupied
properties on the sustainability of rural communities: key findings
The evidence was organised thematically around four of the ten dimensions of
sustainability proposed by Long (2001). The evidence only addressed the impact of
empty or irregularly occupied properties on one of these dimensions – demand for
housing/access to affordable housing – in any great depth. There was a smaller
literature that addressed impacts of second homes on community cohesion and
viability, and the built environment. There is as yet no evidence that addresses the
impact of empty or irregularly occupied property on a number of dimensions of
community sustainability, notably: reputation or image of the community; crime and
anti-social behaviour; social exclusion and poverty; and accessibility of facilities,
services and employment.
Rural housing markets
•
The issue of empty or irregularly occupied properties cannot be considered
in isolation from the other processes of change within rural housing,
including the undersupply of alternative forms of housing, changes to local
economies, loss of industries and transport.
ix
•
Although it is widely believed that rural depopulation is a consequence of
local residents’ inability to compete with incomers in rural housing markets,
many studies conclude that outward migration is more closely allied to a
lack of employment, education, and leisure opportunities than to a lack of
housing.
•
Low wage economies, restrictions on the supply of new housing and
external demands combine to raise house prices and disadvantage many
local people in rural housing markets.
•
Second homes remain a localised phenomenon. Certainly their national
significance in Wales, at least, has declined over the last decade.
•
Second homes are not the sole source of external demand; however they
have been subjected to more attention than other external demands such as
commuting and retirement.
•
Ageing and retirement are the key factors likely to impact on housing
markets in the next 25 years.
Community cohesion
•
Early studies indicate that second home ownership was seen by host
communities to be part of a wider process of social change rather than a
cause of outward migration.
•
Attitudes towards second home ownership vary between locations; areas
where tourism and recreation have been dominant appear to be more
tolerant of second home ownership.
•
There is little evidence of conflict between second homeowners and local
residents.
•
Profiles of second home owners indicate that they are generally middle
aged or retired, and wealthier than the national average, however much of
the profile data is more than 20 years old.
•
It is difficult to compare ‘incomers’ with ‘locals’ as few studies profile host
communities.
•
More recent studies report concerns that the age profile of rural
communities is unbalanced, as younger people migrate away and are
replaced by older incomers.
•
Demand for housing from commuters, the retired and second home owners
has changed the profile of rural communities.
x
Community viability
•
Second home ownership was seen to make a useful contribution to local
economies as part of the tourist industry, but differences in levels of
contribution between different localities make generalisations regarding the
impact of second home ownership problematic.
•
Spending on renovation and modernisation of second homes has in the past
bought new income into local economies, however these are one-off
spends.
•
Through payment of local taxes, second home owners support public
services in their host communities without creating additional demands.
•
There is little evidence regarding the contemporary spending of second
home owners on local services such as retail and leisure.
•
Early studies suggested that employment related to renovation was created
by second home ownership; however, more recent evidence suggests that
any additional jobs are low skilled and seasonal.
Built environment
•
Early studies suggested that second home ownership had a positive impact
on the built environment particularly with regard to conservation and
renovation of previously derelict properties.
•
No studies address broader environmental concerns.
The impact and effectiveness of policy interventions
We identified few studies that had evaluated policy interventions, and these were
mainly concerned with empty properties as opposed to second homes. There was,
however, a larger literature that investigated the type of local policies that were in
place to control second home ownership, and various policy recommendations were
presented.
Second homes – policies, policy evaluations, and policy recommendations
•
Only a minority of local authorities and National Parks in England and Wales
report having a specific policy towards second homes. Where these
policies do exist, they usually relate to occupancy controls on new
dwellings.
•
Recent research in England suggests strong support from authorities for
greater powers in respect of second homes, although fiscal measures are
preferred over planning controls.
xi
•
Evaluations of specific policy interventions towards second homes have
been very limited and have focused upon the use of restrictions on
occupancy on new development.
•
Very little work has been undertaken to assess the impact of local
occupancy on rural housing markets; instead research has focused on
mechanisms for delivering affordable housing in the countryside.
•
Authors’ policy recommendations reflected the period in which their
research was conducted. Most recently authors suggest planning and
policy tools should be used in a focused way and targeted on those
communities with the greatest housing pressures, with greater partnership
working between local government and rural communities.
Empty properties: outcomes of policy evaluations
•
Policy intervention directed at bringing empty property back into use in rural
Scotland appear to offer a way of addressing housing need, especially in
remoter rural locations where development of new affordable housing by
housing association may prove problematic.
Conclusions
Part of the rationale for undertaking this report was to reflect on the specific benefits
that the methods of systematic reviewing can bring to social policy, using the
example of an investigation of the impact of empty and irregularly occupied
dwellings on the sustainability of rural communities.
Given the often emotive nature of the view of second home ownership as a key
driver causing dwellings in rural areas to be empty or irregularly occupied, the
approach of ‘going back to basics’, rigorously searching for material, and
considering only empirical evidence (rather than opinion or observations), allows
reflection on the topic in a more neutral way. This is not to say that the study can
claim objectivity or transparency, but allows the reader to see how and why
decisions have been made through the process of this review, and how the available
evidence has been handled. In this respect systematic reviewing offers a valuable
set of methods in approaching the secondary analyses of existing evidence.
However, whether a systematic review is perceived to be more rigorous and
valuable in terms of output and findings than a traditional literature review conducted
by experts in their field remains an empirical question.
Further, in looking afresh at the empirical evidence contained in existing studies, a
systematic review attempts to draw out answers to questions which the original
research may not have been designed or set up to answer. This represented a
challenge but it is important to note that the difficulty relates to the process of asking
research studies to answer questions which are not their primary focus rather than
xii
to any fault in the original studies. Nevertheless, a defining feature of much of the
evidence in relation to empty or irregularly occupied property is its age. A
considerable body of work investigating second homes, particularly, relates to UK
society over twenty years ago. The value of more recent evidence on second
homes lies in highlighting the scale of the issue and the efficacy of possible policy
responses. However, in relation to providing a succinct answer to the two questions
regarding the impact of empty or irregularly occupied dwellings on the sustainability
of rural communities and the effectiveness of policy interventions, the available
empirical evidence is limited, and this in itself is useful to know.
1
Chapter One
Introduction
This introductory chapter describes the background to the development of this
ESRC-funded review of the evidence regarding the effects of privately owned empty
or irregularly occupied properties on the sustainability of rural communities, and the
extent to which policy interventions have mitigated these effects. The chapter
explains why a systematic review of this area of public policy is important, and
introduces the relevant policy context.
Introducing the study: developing evidence-based policy
There is a growing requirement for public policy to be evidence-based. A key tool in
the formulation of evidence-based policy is the systematic review which seeks to
provide a comprehensive assessment of existing knowledge in a given area through
extensive searching and critical appraisal of available evidence. The methods of
systematic reviewing are commonly used in the fields of health, and education, and
are increasingly being adopted to consider social and public policy topics. The
ESRC has funded a programme of research projects that aim to develop and refine
the methodologies required for the identification, appraisal and synthesis of
evidence in the social policy context, and examine how evidence-based policy can
be generated in a number of social policy areas (see www.evidencenetwork.org).
As part of this ESRC programme, the University of York has established an
‘evidence node’ in health and social policy, focusing upon the methodology of
reviews in social policy and social care. The first review undertaken by the node
examined the evidence related to the effectiveness of current public and private
safety nets available to mortgagors in unforeseen financial difficulties, attempting to
link policy responses or ‘interventions’ with specific outcomes, notably mortgage
arrears and repossessions (Croucher et al. 2003). Other reviews undertaken by the
York node have addressed how carers access health care (Arksey et al. 2003) and
the effectiveness of respite services for carers of people with dementia-type
illnesses (Arksey et al. 2004). A number of other reviews have also been generated
by the ESRC programme at other academic centres in the UK (see for example:
Thompson et al. 2001; Atkinson, 2002; Egan et al. 2003; Blandy et al. 2003). As
intended, this growing body of work has helped to stimulate methodological debate
and development regarding how systematic reviews can be undertaken in complex
policy areas (for a fuller discussion see Wallace et al. 2004). This review therefore
adds to the growing body of work undertaken at the University of York and
2
elsewhere and has two purposes: to provide a rigorous and authoritative account of
the evidence in the topic area; and to take forward some of the methodological
debates related to undertaking reviews in complex policy areas raised by Croucher
et al. (2003).
Why undertake a review in this topic area?
A review in this area of interest is timely. The topic addresses key national and local
policy concerns, notably sustainable communities and housing demand. The
complexities of the policy context also present particular methodological challenges.
Furthermore, the social and economic impacts of second homes, in particular, on
rural communities are contested, and have been the focus of considerable, often
emotive debate over the last few decades1.
Policy Context
As part of its publication Sustainable Communities: Building for the Future (Office of
the Deputy Prime Minister [ODPM], 2003) the Government has developed the
themes that were identified in the Rural White Paper to tackle social exclusion. The
policy agenda has set out its intentions with respect to sustainable and inclusive
communities principally through the development of affordable housing. Housing is
not only the major contributor to the experience of disadvantage in rural areas, but
has been described as the principal engine of social change in rural England
(Joseph Rowntree Foundation [JRF], 1999). At the same time, these policy
developments are linked with sustaining and developing rural economies,
particularly in relation to tourism, alongside the maintenance of environmental
quality.
Vacant or empty properties
A fundamental issue in relation to the maintenance of sustainable communities in
the countryside is the extent to which the stock of residential dwellings in any
community is fully occupied. The government have drawn attention to the issue of
stock under-utilisation. Dwellings may be empty or irregularly occupied for a variety
of reasons. Research has drawn attention to the need to distinguish between two
types of vacant dwellings (Fielder and Smith, 1996). The first, transactional vacants,
are an inherent function of the housing market and represent properties vacant
whilst being sold or let. Included in this type are properties undergoing renovation or
improvement and which are intended to be re-occupied relatively quickly. In
contrast, the second type can be described as problematic vacants, and are
unoccupied for substantial periods of time and are often in poor condition. There
are many reasons for dwellings remaining vacant for considerable periods of time.
The consultation paper on empty homes issued by the ODPM (2003) identified
1
th
th
See for example: The Observer, 12 November, 2000; New Society, 7 September, 1967; Pilkington, 1990; Soley,
1990; Haines, 1974; Mahon, 1973; Rowe, 2002.
3
factors such as dilapidated dwellings, requiring substantial investment to bring up
them to a habitable standard; in extreme cases buildings that have been abandoned
by their owners; cases where ownership is unresolved, say if an occupant died
intestate; properties held as speculative assets; property held as an investment, say
for retirement; and property held by two home owners who begin co-habiting,
leaving the other property vacant. The consultation paper noted that the latter two
examples are often viewed as second homes. A significant additional factor in the
rural context is that vacant properties may arise as a result of the rationalisation of
agricultural labour on farm holdings and estates, which has led to a considerable
number of dwellings becoming redundant as tied accommodation, although owners
have often been reluctant to sell or let these dwellings on the open market (Finch et
al. 1989).
Second and holiday homes
Cutting across these policy areas are the factors of production and consumption in
relation to leisure and housing. Increased leisure time and cultural and lifestyle
choices can be expressed in the free market through the consumption of property
and can act as one component of the drivers of social change in rural areas that the
Government is seeking to mediate. A further variable is the use of property for
leisure purposes that also coincides with individual strategies in relation to
retirement planning and investment. Such dynamics have contributed to an
increase in second home ownership and an influx of households into the
countryside. An essential feature of such migration, alongside other migration flows
resulting from commuting or retirement, is that it is differentiated by income and
wealth and throws into sharp relief the unequal capacities within the general
population to attain owner occupation in the countryside (Findlay et al. 1999). As
part of these phenomena, second homes have a localised impact in rural localities
leading to micro-crises in local housing markets (Gallent et al. (2002).
Policy responses
Policy responses to second and holiday homes are centred around attempts to
mitigate the impact of demand-led pressures on the rural housing stock. In contrast,
policies aimed at tackling vacant dwellings in the private sector are focused upon
supply-led considerations encouraging, or compelling, owners to bring properties
back into use.
The issue of empty homes was the subject of recent policy attention in England in
the form of the consultation paper Empty Homes: Temporary Management, Lasting
Solutions (ODPM, 2003). This paper set out a range of approaches for tackling
empty homes, including the potential for new statutory powers for local authorities to
take over the management of some private sector empty homes.
4
A rationale for policies aimed at bringing empty properties back into use in rural
areas is that they enable more households to live in these communities. This has a
knock-on effect on the viability of local services and facilities such as shops and
schools. Further, such schemes often ensure that such properties are targeted on
households that need affordable housing. There are a number of examples of
schemes at national level, such as the rural empty property initiative in Scotland, or
at local level, the farm cottage scheme, run by Kennet District Council, Wiltshire.
Second and holiday homes occupy the interface between the two policy areas of
leisure and housing. Tensions between these policy areas were highlighted by the
operation of the controversial policy in the Yorkshire Dales National Park whereby a
redundant barn could be converted into accommodation for a holiday home, but
could not be converted into a permanent dwelling to meet a local housing need
(Humphries, 2003). This policy was subsequently revised, and indeed, Yorkshire
Dales National Park recently adopted a policy whereby the sale of new homes or
barn conversions will be restricted to buyers who qualify under the scheme as
‘local’.
At the same time, the subject of second homes has been increasingly the focus of
policy attention at the national level. The Government legislated to reduce the
discount on second homes in England with respect to council tax from 50 per cent to
ten per cent and Part 6 (Council Tax Provisions) of the Local Government Bill came
into force in 2003. Local authorities can spend any additional funds thus raised on
improving public services such as transport, affordable housing or policing.
However, it is significant that the discount will not be removed entirely, and will be
set at a minimum of ten per cent. It is hoped that this retained discount will provide
an incentive for individuals to continue to register their second homes to enable local
authorities to monitor the scale and impact of second home ownership within their
areas. This step marks the view that from a policy perspective it is deemed
necessary to separate out the impact of second home ownership from other
influences upon local housing markets. Similarly, local authorities in Scotland have
the new power to reduce the discount on second homes from 50 per cent to ten per
cent. It will come into effect at the start of the financial year 2005-06. Any additional
income generated by cutting the discount will be retained locally and used to provide
new-built affordable social housing Unitary authorities in Wales have had the
discretion to charge full council tax on second homes since 1998. The research by
Tewdwr-Jones et al. (2002) noted that by 2001, all but two of 22 authorities had
done this.
Policy attention at local level has also focused upon the issue of second homes. A
review of planning authorities in other parts of the UK has noted that a number of
authorities are proposing specific second homes policies for their areas (Johnston,
2002). For example, the Draft Unitary Development Plan for Gwynedd Council sets
5
out that any proposal for developments that would lead to an increase in second
homes will be refused in communities where the level of second homes has reached
ten per cent.
Whilst policy documents in particular note that such use of dwellings on an irregular
basis in rural areas may have both positive and negative impacts, the costs and
benefits of second and holiday homes have not been elaborated in a systematic
way. Further, it is necessary to understand the diverse impacts that vacant, second
and holiday homes have upon rural housing markets and economies in the context
of sustainable communities.
Methodological challenges
In addition to the policy relevance, the context for the review is complex and
presents particular methodological challenges. A clearly defined question is the
essential first step in undertaking a systematic review; the question frames the
review, generates the consequent search strategies and study selection criteria. In
addressing review questions in complex policy areas, however, it is necessary to
resolve the tension between the defined question (and seeking the material to
address that question), and the requirement to provide a ‘contextual map’ in order to
understand the question and make the conclusions of a review meaningful.
Croucher et al. (2003) recognised that although the focus of their review was on the
various safety nets available to mortgagors, the findings of the review had to be
seen in the wider context of a complex interaction of factors - economic cycles,
interest rates, housing prices, financial regulation and lenders’ practices - that
impact on sustainable home ownership. The context for this review is similarly
complex.
Various factors, such as the growth of home ownership and the ‘Right-to-Buy’
legislation, changing patterns of employment, and the so-called ‘flight from the
cities’, have resulted in growing housing demands in rural areas from both local
people and new residents, high house prices, and a lack of social rented housing.
Evidence gathered in the Countryside Agency’s annual ‘state of the countryside’
reports indicate growing housing demand from local people and new residents, high
house prices, low incomes, and a lack of social rented housing in many rural areas.
However, demand for housing and the operation of housing markets must be seen
against a broader background of on-going socio-economic and environmental
changes occurring in the countryside. A review of the impact of empty or irregularly
occupied properties, particularly second homes, must therefore be located in this
complex context. In preparing this review we have not sought to provide a
‘contextual map’ as time and resources did not allow for the examination of the
wider contextual literature. Fortunately the Countryside Agency has recently
published a review of countryside issues in England (Countryside Agency, 2004),
drawing on the evidence collated between 1999-2003 for the preparation of the
6
annual ‘state of the countryside’ reports. It provides a valuable portrait of emerging
trends across a number of key themes, including: rural demography; health and
social care provision; education; transport; environment and recreation; and the rural
economy. It provides a valuable background to our review.
A further methodological challenge relates to the difficulties of defining key concepts
such as ‘rural’, ‘second home’, and ‘sustainability’. In Chapter Two we present the
definitions we have adopted for the purpose of the review. It is important to note at
this point that our thinking regarding sustainability has been shaped by the work of
Long (2001). Indeed the dimensions of sustainability outlined by Long (see Chapter
Two, Table 2.2) provided a framework for organising the evidence we retrieved.
Long presents a series of headings relating to different aspects of sustainability
including: housing demand; quality and design of housing; crime and anti-social
behaviour; social exclusion and poverty; accessibility and viability of facilities; and
community cohesion. We have sought to present the evidence against these
headings, in an attempt to distinguish the different ways in which empty and
irregularly occupied properties impact on rural host communities.
As noted above the social and economic impacts of second homes, in particular, on
rural communities are contested. There are about 100,000 second homes in rural
England representing less than 1% of the total stock; nevertheless second homes
are widely perceived to be a manifestation of social inequality, and a main cause of
rural housing shortages (Gallent et al. 2002). A review in a contested area such as
this may be particularly useful in moving the debate forward.
Report structure
This report is presented in seven chapters. Chapter Two presents a detailed
account of the methods and definitions employed in the review. Chapter Three
presents a commentary on the research methods adopted by the studies –
highlighting some of the difficulties regarding different definitions particularly of
‘second homes’, and the range of methods used in the studies that entered the
review. Chapter Four presents the substantive findings of the review examining the
impact of empty, second and holiday homes upon the sustainability of rural
communities. Chapter Five explores the nature of policy interventions on empty,
second and holiday homes, examining studies that have evaluated policy
mechanisms, and also drawing together recommendations for policy, which have
been set out by various studies in the review. Chapter Six addresses the particular
methodological challenges encountered during the review process. Finally Chapter
Seven provides the conclusions from the review, highlighting possible avenues for
future research. Substantial appendices are attached for reference, providing more
detail on the search strategies, data abstraction methods and studies included and
excluded from the review.
7
Chapter Two
Methods
Introduction - What is a systematic review?
A systematic review aims to provide a comprehensive and unbiased summary of
available evidence on a given topic. This is achieved by: the use of a clearly defined
search strategy to ensure that an extensive range of potential sources of evidence is
explored; and the use of explicit criteria to appraise the quality of the evidence to
ensure that only robust evidence is synthesised in the production of the final review.
The review process is guided by a protocol in which the approach to be taken by the
review team is explained in some detail, making transparent the basis on which
decisions will be made, the source of studies, the reasons why studies will be
included or excluded from the review, how quality will be assessed, and on what
basis the data will be synthesised. Once a review is underway a greater
understanding of the content and type of literature may develop. If it is found that
changes to parts of the protocol are necessary, these are documented and justified
within the final report of the review.
Systematic reviews are complex (and often costly) studies, but they offer an
invaluable means for policy makers and practitioners to make sense of large
volumes of evidence that may be difficult and time consuming to locate and of
variable quality. In addition they can be used to direct future research towards that
which is poorly understood or under-researched. The six stages of the review
process are set out in Table 2.1.
Table 2.1 Review process
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Formulate the review question/s
Develop review protocol
Define appropriate study design
Define quality assessment criteria
Devise search strategy
Devise data abstraction method
Decide data synthesis method
Document identification and retrieval
Application of study selection criteria
Extraction and synthesis of data from studies entered into the review
Presentation of review findings.
8
This literature review was conducted using systematic review techniques. It was
guided by a protocol that set out how decisions at each stage of the review process
would be made. This chapter discusses how we conducted this review and our
thinking at various key stages of the review process: from defining the question,
developing the inclusion and quality criteria, searching for evidence, and
synthesising the findings of the final selection of studies. The key to a systematic
review is transparency, and we are eager to ensure that the methodological process
we adopted is accurately described and our underlying decisions made clear. We
are also aware of the growing interest in undertaking systematic reviews in complex
policy areas, and hope that our approach will help inform current methodological
debates.
Formulating the review question
The formulation of the question/s to be addressed by a systematic review is crucial
as the question provides the focus and boundaries of the review, and shapes all
aspects of the review process: the inclusions and exclusion criteria, the search
strategy, the amount of literature retrieved, the quality appraisal, and the final
synthesis of the evidence. This review examined evidence that could contribute to
answering two related questions:
Q1:
What are the effects of privately owned empty or irregularly occupied
properties upon the sustainability of rural communities in the UK?
Q2:
To what extent have the policy interventions addressed the effects of empty
or irregularly occupied properties on the sustainability of rural communities?
The first question considered the evidence-base upon which policy at local, regional
and national level is - or should be - based, looking at the effects of vacant and
irregularly occupied properties upon the sustainability of rural communities. The
second question examined to what extent current policy is actually addressing any
consequences identified, and whether any changes (i.e. outcomes) can be attributed
to different policy interventions.
Definition of terms
Much of the evidence regarding empty or irregularly occupied properties in the
countryside is characterised by the lack of consistency in definitions of ‘second
homes’, ‘holiday homes’, ‘holiday lets’, ‘rurality’, ‘sustainability’ and so forth.
Therefore an essential first step at the beginning of this review process was to
ensure there was no ambiguity surrounding the questions that the review was
intended to address. The key terms are defined below.
9
Privately owned, empty, or irregularly occupied properties
The review sought to assess the effects of private sector dwellings that are empty or
are irregularly occupied upon rural communities in the United Kingdom. The review
included vacant property, both residential and commercial, second and holiday
homes. The review included holiday homes – that is properties rented out on short
term lets - because whilst the property may well be occupied throughout the year,
the same household does not occupy it. The review excluded the under-occupation
of property, where a household may be defined as small in relation to the number of
rooms available, but is occupying the home as a primary residence. Dwellings
occupied by students during term-time were also excluded. Further, the review
included private sector dwellings only, excluding social rented accommodation. In
relation to vacant properties, the review set out to focus on problematic vacants as
opposed to transactional vacants (see Chapter One).
Rural communities
The ODPM definition of urban and rural areas was adopted, taking any settlement
below 10,000 population as rural. This definition includes small market towns as
well as villages and buildings in the open countryside. Although vacant and
irregularly occupied properties are also a feature of urban areas, debates about the
impact of these properties tend not only to be directed towards the countryside, but
also tend to be most emotive in the rural context. Where there were studies
addressing urban and rural initiatives, only the sections relating to rural localities
were considered for the review. It is to be noted that very few studies reported
settlement size and although it was clear they were placed in a rural setting,
definitions of ‘rural’ or ‘rurality’ were not always offered.
The focus was on communities rather than neighbourhoods as the former
encapsulates relationships between people whilst the latter focuses upon place.
Thus the term ‘communities’ allowed the review to include material that covers the
concept of social cohesion, based upon relationships, shared experience, trust and
social capital. This distinction was not apparent in the literature, although the issues
were evident but not framed in such contemporary terms.
Sustainability
Policy has focused attention on elaborating how a sustainable community should
look. The ODPM define sustainable communities as:
..places where people want to live and work, now and in the future. They meet
the diverse needs of existing and future residents, are sensitive to their
environment, and contribute to a high quality of life. They are safe and
inclusive, well planned, built and run, and offer equality of opportunity and
good services for all (ODPM, 2005).
10
Commentators have noted that an overarching definition of sustainability will be
made up of a number of dimensions including social, economic, and environmental
concerns (Kearns and Turok, 2003). A review of the literature on village
sustainability pointed to the need to recognise that the importance attached to
specific dimensions of sustainability will vary in a rural context compared with urban
areas, specifically around the issue of the localisation of activity, and the importance
of private transport and affordable housing (Shorten et al. 2001). Indeed, Long and
Hutchins (2003) also highlighted this issue and noted that a single boarded up
house may have very different impacts in a village than on a large estate.
Looking at the issue of sustainability from a housing perspective, a definition for
social landlords, not surprisingly, focuses specifically on the full occupation of
dwellings. Here, sustainability is achieved where:
People continue to choose to live in a community in sufficient numbers that the
housing is effectively fully occupied (Long 2000).
This definition reflects the specific concerns of social landlords, around the issues of
residualisation, low demand, and limiting voids in the social housing sector as well
as contributing towards vibrant communities.
However, this review of irregularly occupied property focuses upon circumstances
where the operation of the housing market has led to privately owned property being
held vacant or not fully occupied, for whatever reason. Nevertheless, in attempting
to determine the impact of irregularly occupied dwellings on rural communities Long
(2001) usefully sets out a range of different factors, which together make up a
‘Toolkit of Indicators for Sustainability’. This toolkit highlights a range of different
factors that can be used as a basis for elaborating the sustainability of communities
in a rural context.
Table 2.2: Dimensions of sustainability
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
The demand for housing/access to affordable housing;
Reputation or image of the community;
Crime and anti-social behaviour;
Social exclusion and poverty;
The accessibility of facilities, services, employment;
The viability of facilities, services, employment and business;
The quality of the community’s environment;
The quality, design and layout of housing;
The extent of community cohesiveness
The mix of the community.
Source: Adapted from Long (2001)
11
Question One examined the effects of vacant and irregularly occupied property
against the dimensions of sustainability set out in Table 2.2 above, drawing together
the evidence under each dimension.
Policy interventions
The second question was concerned with policy interventions that are focused
directly upon empty or irregularly occupied properties and the extent to which they
had addressed the effects of such properties on the sustainability of rural
communities. Thus, the review excluded policies which indirectly may address the
impact of vacant or irregularly occupied properties, but which are not targeted on the
properties themselves, (examples of such policies are the development of affordable
housing).
The development and interpretation of policy continues throughout the various
stages of the policy process, including the stage during which policies are
implemented. As noted by Croucher et al. (2003) it is necessary to ‘unpack’ how
policy interventions are applied, since aspects of the policy process may affect how
a policy is implemented, quite apart from the extent to which local factors may
mediate intended policy outcomes set out at national level. In order to unpack policy
interventions, it is important to address questions regarding the way policy is set up
(structure), the way it is implemented (delivery), and the effects (outcomes) that it
has. Our intention in this review had been to examine these different aspects of
policies directed at empty and irregularly occupied properties with particular
reference to the effects on the sustainability of rural communities; however this
approach proved ambitious as few policy evaluations were found, and the review
was unable to fully appraise the policy impacts on sustainability. Nevertheless, what
is known surrounding fiscal, planning and other such policy initiatives is reported in
Chapter Five.
Study selection criteria
Before studies can be entered into a systematic review, they have to be subjected to
two filters. The first filter – comprising a set of inclusion and exclusion criteria –
ensures that only studies that are relevant and able to address the review question/s
are taken through to the second filter. This comprises a set of pre-determined quality
criteria against which the studies are critically appraised to ensure the findings are
sufficiently robust to be entered into the review. It is essential that the criteria
against which studies will be judged to be both relevant and sufficiently robust are
decided upon in the early stages of the review. These criteria effectively mark the
boundaries of the review, and help focus the development of the search strategy, as
well as ensuring consistency among the review team.
12
Study selection criteria - relevance
Our first filter is presented in Table 2.3 below. It is clear that the selection criteria
were generated from the review question.
Table 2.3: Study selection criteria
Inclusion criteria
Geographical coverage
Studies that relate to the UK
Timing of studies
No date was set.
Population
Rural communities under 10,000 population,
unless not specified by the study.
Relevance to topic: Question 1
Studies concerned with the effects of empty
and irregularly occupied property on the
different dimensions of sustainability set out in
Table 1.
Relevance to topic: Question 2
Studies concerned with the impact of policy
interventions that aim to address the effects of
empty and irregularly occupied property on the
sustainability of rural communities.
Study Design
Studies must include empirical evidence from
experimental or observational research
including qualitative research.
It may be
published or unpublished work.
Quality appraisal
Included studies must meet all five essential
elements of the quality appraisal criteria (Table
2.4 below) to secure internal validity of the
study and trustworthy findings.
Exclusion criteria
Studies that relate to countries outside of the UK
Urban areas (population above 10,000).
Studies that focus upon the sustainability of rural
communities that are unrelated to the effects of
empty or irregularly occupied properties.
Studies that focus on policies that contribute to the
sustainability of rural communities, but are not
specifically targeted on empty or irregularly
occupied properties.
For example: studies of
polices that contribute to the development of
affordable housing schemes in rural communities.
Book reviews, literature reviews, discursive opinion
will be excluded. In cases where there are multiple
publications of data from a single study, then the
main findings only will be used to avoid duplication
of results.
Studies that do not meet the essential elements of
the quality appraisal criteria, and so may not have
trustworthy findings.
Location and timing of studies
Study inclusion was limited to material in English published in the UK. It was
beyond the scope of this review to examine literature from other countries as
interpretation of any studies retrieved would require a comprehensive understanding
of that country’s cultural norms regarding housing markets, finance systems and
perhaps leisure trends. It is unknown whether restricting the search in this way
omitted any research that included empirical data relating to the UK that was not
published in the UK, although this seems unlikely. The resources available to the
review did not allow the additional effort required to locate, retrieve and filter
literature from outside the UK.
13
In setting the boundaries of a review, it is usually necessary to decide a ‘cut-off’
point, where evidence from before a given time is considered to be less useful as it
addresses concerns or interventions that are too far removed from current context
and practice to be meaningful. There was no obvious date that would provide a
logical cut-off point for research in this field. There were no major policy changes
that would suggest any prior research was inappropriate (with the possible
exception of the 1980 Housing Act that introduced the ‘Right-to-Buy’ council homes
which had significant implications for rural areas) or notable housing market events
that would suggest major changes in the field. Gallent et al. (2002) note that the
theme of second homes flourished in academic literature in the 1970s. Moreover
many of these early studies continue to be frequently cited in more recent reports
and publications.
Initial scoping searches showed that we would not be
overwhelmed with potentially relevant studies and so a decision was taken not to
restrict studies on date. Studies were therefore included regardless of when they
were published, which produced substantial debate within the review team
surrounding the applicability of older research in this field to contemporary policy
making, especially when examining dynamically changing housing markets. We
return to this issue in Chapter Six.
Study design
One of the challenges for a review addressing policy is deciding on the type of
‘evidence’ that will provide the most trustworthy answers to the review question/s,
and this was a central concern for this review. We are aware there are lively
debates about what constitutes ‘good’ or ‘good enough’ evidence when promoting
evidence-based or evidence-informed policy and practice. For the purpose of this
review we took evidence to mean any contribution that is based upon primary
empirical material as part of the study – be that qualitative or quantitative. Any study
setting out views or opinions that could not be substantiated by its own empirical
data was not included in the review. We recognise that there may be other types of
‘evidence’ that could have informed this review, however given that second home
ownership is a highly politicised and emotive subject, we were keen to ensure that
the evidence we included could be grounded directly in empirical research. We also
recognise the use of hierarchies of evidence in many systematic reviews –
particularly in the health care field - that privilege experimental over other types of
study design, as they are deemed to provide the most robust internally valid results
when assessing the effectiveness and outcomes of health care inventions. For
reviews in complex policy areas however, such hierarchies are less useful, in part
due to the (almost complete) lack of experimental studies, but also because
‘evidence’ is more broadly defined and drawn from a range of research paradigms.
Study selection criteria - quality appraisal
One strength of systematic reviewing is the consistent critical appraisal of the
evidence-base. It examines what is known about a subject and how confident we
14
can be in this knowledge.
It also ensures that the conclusions and
recommendations derived from a review are based on evidence in which the
research design and its conduct can be assumed to offer a reasonable level of
confidence in the results. Studies of poor quality are therefore excluded. A quality
criteria tool developed by Croucher et al. (2003) was chosen to establish whether a
study met the quality threshold. Although there is little consensus over the use of
appraisal tools in reviews, this tool has been successfully adopted by other
reviewers since its development (Arksey et al., 2003, Arksey et al., 2004). It was
also utilised in this review as reviewer and readers alike can readily understand it; it
includes guidance on its practical application; it offers prompts to aid reflection on
the study and is not resource intensive. The set of criteria is presented in Table 2.4
below.
Table 2.4 Study selection: quality criteria
Question
Is the research question clear?
E
Theoretical perspective
D
Study design
Is the theoretical or ideological perspective of the author (or funder)
explicit?
Is the study design appropriate to answer the question?
Context
Is the context or setting adequately described?
E
Sampling
Qualitative: Is the sample adequate to explore the range of subjects
and settings, and has it been drawn from an appropriate population?
Quantitative: Is the sample size adequate for the analysis used and
has it been drawn from an appropriate population?
Was the data collection adequately described and rigorously
conducted to ensure confidence in the findings?
Was the data analysis adequately described and rigorously
conducted to ensure confidence in the findings?
Has consideration been given to alternative explanations of results?
Has consideration been given to any limitations of the methods or
data that may affect the results?
Do any claims to generalisability follow logically, theoretically or
statistically from the data?
Have ethical issues been addressed and confidentiality respected?
E
Data collection
Data analysis
Reflexivity
Generalisability
Ethics
E
E
E
D
D
D*
E = Essential, D = Desirable, * Ethic may be essential in other sensitive fields
Source: Croucher et al. 2003
These criteria were applied to each study that met the initial inclusion criteria. As
noted by Croucher et al. (2003), those criteria marked as essential are those with
the potential to alter the findings of the research, and the reviewers had to be
confident that studies going forward to the review had addressed these criteria
satisfactorily. Those criteria marked as desirable aid interpretation of results and
may help explain variance in findings.2
2
It is recognised that there may be sensitive fields for example researching children’s experiences where
addressing ethical issues may be essential for a study to be considered sound, but this was felt not to be the case in
this review.
15
Devising the search strategy
The aim of a search is to identify as comprehensive a list as possible of studies that
relate to the review questions, reducing the potential for bias that may arise from too
narrow a consideration of the field of investigation. A search strategy should
therefore aim to be as inclusive as possible of the range of sources of primary
studies, within the confines of resource constraints of the review. This section
details how our search was conducted.
The subject of vacant and irregularly occupied property has relevance to a variety of
different policy areas such as housing, planning, recreation and environmental
health. Further, in an academic context, both housing and rural studies can be
characterised as having a strong inter-disciplinary focus. These features suggest
that the search strategy needed to have a very broad focus. Research evidence
was identified using a number of channels, shown in Table 2.5.
Table 2.5: Identifying research
•
•
•
•
•
Searches of appropriate electronic databases
Reference checking of all articles received
Checking relevant internet sites
Hand searching of journals
Contact with a sample of local authorities with high concentrations of second homes
The review team included an Information Scientist from the NHS Centre for Reviews
and Dissemination (NHS CRD) who developed and conducted the electronic search
strategy working with the research team to establish key search terms, and potential
sources of studies. The search terms included in the search strategy are set out in
Appendix One. Recognising that many social science databases do not allow for
sophisticated searching, the aim was to develop a strategy that would be highly
sensitive, and facilitate identification of the greatest number of potentially relevant
studies in the subject area.
Electronic databases
Electronic databases represent a powerful source of references for a review.
However different databases are constructed in different ways, and tend to
specialise in certain types of data sources (for example, some contain only journal
but not book references), or particular topics or disciplines (for example, housing,
economics, health care etc). In addition, some are better indexed and contain more
detailed abstracts than others. It is therefore important to utilise a range of
databases within any one review. The requirement to search a range of databases
is increased in a complex area of study, where different disciplines may have been
involved and a range of approaches may have been taken to addressing research
questions. As noted by Croucher et al. (2003), electronic databases do not appear
16
to be as valuable a source of references for social policy reviews as for reviews on
social care or health topics. Very few of the studies retrieved from electronic
databases entered this review, nevertheless the studies provided a valuable source
of additional references from which a number of included studies were drawn (see
below – Reference checking).
A full list of the databases searched is presented in Appendix One. A total of 10
were searched including the key social science databases (e.g. Social Science
Citation Index and ASSIA), as well as the databases for related disciplines like
economics (EconLit) and planning (Planex), and those covering grey literature
(SIGLE). The inclusion of databases covering grey literature was thought to be
particularly important as a significant number of the studies eventually included in
the review conducted by Croucher et al. (2003) were retrieved from indexes of grey
literature. Hansard was also searched for evidence cited in government sources.
The majority of databases were searched for no cost, as they are available through
the University of York resources, or access to them at the British Library has been
financially supported through the ESRC Evidence Network.
Only some databases were sophisticated enough to run a complex search. Those
where this was possible include: Sociological Abstracts, SIGLE, ASSIA, Econlit,
PAIS, SCCI and SSHICP. The remaining databases were searched using a
simplified version of the search strategy. To ensure consistency in searching
procedures, the search strategies were designed and undertaken by a specialist
Information Officer from the NHS Centre for Reviews and Dissemination. The
search strategies are presented in Appendix Two.
Internet web sites
Internet web sites can prove a valuable source of up-to-date material and grey
literature. A number of websites were browsed for relevant documents. The
websites searched in this review cover a range of national and local government
sites, academic research institutes, professional organisations, and research
funders. A list of these websites is presented in Appendix Three. As noted by
Croucher et al. (2003), not all websites incorporate search engines or allow easy
navigation. Although a number of potentially relevant references were found on the
web (n=11), only one went forward for inclusion in the review.
Hand searching
Electronic databases may be incomplete or not up to date in their coverage of the
field so some hand searching was included in the search. Croucher et al. (2003)
noted that in their review on safety nets for home owners that hand searching
proved a fruitful source of studies for their review. Appendix Four includes a range
of journals from policy and academic fields with a remit in the housing and rural
17
studies area that were hand searched for papers that may not have been
catalogued on databases or cited elsewhere.
Reference Checking
The reviewers checked the reference lists of all retrieved literature for additional
references, including unpublished material. Each new reference identified in this
way was also searched in turn for new references until this process was exhausted
(Croucher et al. 2003). Citations in retrieved studies were an important way of
tracing older studies. In this particular review, reference checking provided more
that half of the studies that were finally included.
Local Authority Contacts
Local authorities are charged with undertaking comprehensive assessments of their
local housing markets, although until recently this has primarily concentrated on the
needs and requirements for social housing (Blackaby, 2000). Nevertheless, it was
thought that certain local authorities may have undertaken research into empty or
irregularly occupied dwellings, given the reported level of interest in this issue and
recent policy changes concerning the council tax reductions for second homes.
It was thought too onerous to canvas each rural local authority in the UK; therefore,
a sample of authorities in England and Wales, identified by FPD Savills (2004) as
having in excess of three per cent of dwelling stock used as second homes, were
contacted and asked about research in their area. A list of the authorities contacted
is presented in Appendix Five.
If more time had been available the
comprehensiveness of the review would have been improved by contacting
authorities in similar positions in Scotland and Northern Ireland. One Welsh county
council provided major reports by key researchers that had not been identified
elsewhere, however other local authorities did not appear to possess significant
unpublished research.
Document identification and retrieval
The search process produced 1060 references. Once duplicate references were
removed, a total of 963 remained. All references were entered into Reference
Manager, an essential tool to ensure that that the progress of each reference at
each stage of the review is tracked and recorded. Table 2.6 below shows the
number of studies retrieved at each stage of the review, broken down by source of
reference. If studies were unavailable within the research unit or University of
York’s library then they were obtained from the British Library Documents Supply
Centre or other university libraries and inter-loans arranged. We were unable to
obtain some studies and these are detailed in Appendix Six.
18
Applying the selection criteria
Table 2.6 details how the initial reference set of 1060 reports and studies became
the 23 included in this review. After the lead reviewer scanned each reference, 273
were identified as being potentially relevant and copies of the reports retrieved. If
the relevance was uncertain because of the absence, or quality, of the abstracts
then the report was retrieved anyway. The reports were then examined in more
detail and checked against the inclusion criteria. Studies that looked likely to pass
the inclusion criteria were then subjected to the data extraction process using the
form in Appendix Seven, which was created with Microsoft Access. At least two
reviewers checked the decisions made regarding the application of the inclusion
criteria and quality appraisal, with disagreements decided by consensus within the
whole review team. This left 30 studies that met the inclusion criteria but 7 of these
did not meet the quality threshold, meaning a total of 23 studies went forward to the
final review.
Table 2.6: Sources of references at each stage of the review
Databases/source
ASSIA
EconLit
Total
hits
74
131
After deduplication
59
126
Potentially
relevant
Passed
inclusion
criteria
Passed
quality
criteria
9
2
-
-
PAIS
69
56
4
-
-
SSCI
171
162
30
-
-
SSHI/SSHICP**
28
26
1
-
-
SocAbs
72
50
7
-
-
IBSS
50
28
8
1
1
PLANEX
165
131
57
2
2
SIGLE
300
201
31
5
5
Hand searching named
journals
0
0
0
-
-
Personal communication***
0
15
15
3
2
Reference checking
0
98
98
18
14
Internet searching
0
11
11
1
1
1060
963
273
30
23
Totals
The 23 included studies are listed in Table 2.7.
19
Table 2.7: Studies included in the review
Bielckus, C., Rogers, A. and Wibberley, G. (1972) Second Homes in England and Wales. Wye
College, Countryside Planning Unit, School of Rural Economics and Related Studies.
Jacobs, C. (1972) Second Homes in Denbighshire. Tourism and Recreation Research Report No.3.
County of Denbighshire.
Tuck (1973) Merioneth Structure Plan. Subject Report 17: Second Homes. Merioneth County Council
Pyne, C.B. (1973) Second Homes. Caenarvonshire County Planning Dept.
De Vane R. (1975) Second Home Ownership: A case study. Bangor: Bangor Occasional Papers
Number 6, University of Wales Press.
South West Economic Planning Council (1975) Survey of Second Homes in the South West. London:
HMSO.
Downing, P. and Dower, M. (1977) Second Homes in Scotland. Dartington Amenity Research Trust.
Bollom, C. (1978) Attitude and Second Homes in Rural Wales. Cardiff: Social Science Monographs
No.3. University of Wales, Board of Celtic Studies.
Bennett, S. (1979) Rural Housing in the Lake District. Lancaster University
Shucksmith, M. (1981) No Homes for Locals? Farnborough: Gower.
Davies and O’Farrell (1981) An Intra-regional Locational Analysis of Second Home Ownership.
Cardiff: Dept of Town Planning, University of Wales.
Coleman R. Second Homes in North Norfolk in Moseley, M.J. (Ed.) (1982) Power, Planning and
People in Rural East Anglia. Centre for East Anglian Studies, University of East Anglia.
Capstick, M. (1987) Housing Dilemmas in the Lake District. Lancaster: Centre for NW Regional
Studies, University of Lancaster.
Henderson, M., Shucksmith, M., MacDonald, C. (1994) An Evaluation of Scottish Homes Rural Empty
Homes Initiatives. Edinburgh: Scottish Homes
Murie, A., McIntosh, S., Wainright, S. and McGuckin, A. (1995) Empty Dwellings in Scotland.
Research Paper No.63. School of Planning and Housing, Edinburgh College of Art/Herriot Watt
University.
Shucksmith, M. (1996) Review of Scottish Homes Rural Policy. Edinburgh: Scottish Homes.
Damer, S. (2000). Scotland in Miniature? Second Homes on Arran. Scottish Affairs, 31, Spring, pp
37-54.
Caledonian Economics Ltd, Arneil, J., Nevin, M., Finnigan, M., Johnston, D., Lees, F., Metwe, D. van
der (2001) Evaluation of Empty Homes Initiative. Edinburgh: Scottish Executive.
Tewdwr-Jones, M., Gallent, N., and Mace, A. (2002) Second Homes and Holiday Homes and the
Land Use Planning System. Cardiff, Welsh Assembly.
Gallent, N., Mace, A. and Tewdwr-Jones, M. (2002) Second homes in rural areas of England.
Wetherby: Countryside Agency.
Johnston, E. (2003) A Source of Contention: Affordable Housing in Rural Wales. Cardiff: IWA/JRF.
Ashby, P., Birch, G. and Haslett, M. (1975) Second Homes In North Wales. Liverpool: Dept of Civic
Design, Liverpool University.
Finch, H., Lovell, A. and Ward, K (1989) Empty Dwellings. A study of vacant private sector dwellings
in five local authority areas. London: HMSO.
Details of the seven studies that did not meet the quality threshold are included in
Appendix Eight. Three of these were conducted for Masters or Diplomas in Town
Planning, and, although they demonstrated sufficient understanding of the topic and
research methods, were not adequately robust to meet the quality threshold of this
review. One other study did not use methods that were sensitive enough to capture
20
data relating to second homes, or other empty or irregularly occupied properties, as
acknowledged by the authors. Two further studies did not contain enough
information about the methods used in the study to convey any confidence in the
findings reported. Although this may have been due to poor reporting rather than
poor research, it was nevertheless problematic. Finally one study mainly reported
an unsystematic literature review; although there was some new research reported
in addition to secondary data, again this was not reported in sufficient detail.
Wallace et al. (2004) report how some authors express concern at the reduction of
such large initial reference sets to the small numbers of studies that go forward for
review, suggesting that a large quantity of relevant evidence is being lost in the
process (White, 2001). The two most common reasons for studies not passing the
inclusion criteria were that they did not address the issues of empty or irregularly
occupied property or were not based upon empirical research. Many studies did not
pass the inclusion criteria in the review of assistance for mortgagors in financial
difficulties (Croucher et al. 2003) for very similar reasons, either they did not pass
the inclusions criteria or were not empirical studies.
As reported in Arksey et al. (2004) the table should be treated with some caution
when assessing the utility of different databases for the review. Once the initial
references were received the duplicate entries from different databases were
removed according to a hierarchy of databases relevant to this review. The less
sophisticated databases, such as Planex or IBSS, were deduplicated against the
more specific ones, such as SSCI, SSHI, SocAbs, SIGLE, Econlit or ASSIA.
Nevertheless, it is interesting to note the dominance of grey literature databases and
reference checking as sources of studies for this systematic review. As in Croucher
et al. (2003), the academic peer-reviewed databases were less helpful as a supply
of studies that were worth consideration for the review. It is apparent that journal
articles are not the prime publication source of primary research in housing. Those
journal papers that were retrieved were usually excluded in favour of the main report
to the commissioners, as they included more detail about the substantive topic and
the research methods.
Document retrieval
Most retrieval was conducted through the British Library Document Supply Centre
(BLDSC), which generally worked very well. However, 35 reports were found to be
potentially relevant but were unavailable through the BLDSC, the research
commissioners or other libraries. These studies are listed in Appendix Six. They
were mostly from the 1970s and generally evenly split between those focussing on
second homes and those focussing on general rural housing issues. One of the
reports dated from the 1960s, 14 from the 1970s, 5 from the 1980s, 10 from the
1990s and 1 from 2000 onwards. The 1970s reports were more concerned with
second homes (11 out 16 reports), and the 1990s reports with general rural housing
21
issues (9 out of 10 reports). Many of these studies were produced at the local
authority level, and not deposited within the public domain which may account for
the difficulties in locating them. Emails and letters were sent to the rural authorities
with the most concentrations of second homes, but apart from one authority where a
particularly interested information officer was employed, this resulted in few studies
being identified, despite local authorities being charged with conducting local
housing market area analysis. The information officer with whom the review team
was in contact actually supplied some key studies that were not identified through
any databases but that were included in the final review. It is also of concern that
fifteen studies conducted in the 1990s and 2000s were also unavailable. One of
these was produced for a private client who would not agree to the full report being
released, but others were requested from libraries and commissioning organisations
with no success.
From the patterns of decisions made as the other reports went through the review
process, it may be surmised that many of the reports would not have met the
inclusion criteria for the review because they were not based upon empirical
research. In addition many of the reports that focussed on general rural housing
issues may not have included work on empty or irregularly occupied properties, as it
is likely that they may have only have addressed the supply of social housing or
planning concerns, for example. It is likely, however, that the earlier studies on
second homes would have been the most rewarding to have found, albeit that they
are several decades old.
Data abstraction and synthesis
An electronic data extraction form (presented in Appendix Seven) was designed: to
ensure a uniform and structured set of data was extracted from each study; to
record the reasons for including or excluding studies from the review; and to aid
comparison between the studies. Reviewers completed a form for each of the
studies that passed the relevance criteria for the review. An Access database was
used to manage data extraction forms. Over and above the bibliographic and
descriptive data extracted from each study, these forms were used to record the
different strands of evidence relating to the impacts of empty and irregularly
occupied properties on the different dimensions of sustainability set out in Table 2.2
above. In regard to policy initiatives data were abstracted regarding the structure,
process, and outcome of policy.
Two matrices were developed. The first matrix charted the evidence from each
study concerned with the impacts of empty and irregularly occupied properties on
rural communities onto the different dimensions of sustainability. We drew on raw
data from the studies and the interpretations of the authors of the studies. The
second matrix charted different types of policy interventions – planning, fiscal,
housing market, environmental – and evidence relating to their structure, process
22
and outcomes. These matrices enabled us to organise the evidence around
particular themes, and compare findings across different studies.
Achieving an actual synthesis of the findings has been problematic. In particular it
has been a challenge to draw conclusions from evidence on housing markets.
Housing markets are dynamic systems and change considerably across both time
and location. In addition, the disparate nature of the studies, in terms of case study
areas, time when research was conducted, various methods adopted, and
inconsistent definition across studies means the review relies heavily on a
descriptive account of study findings. The review team are aware of the debates
surrounding methods in narrative synthesis (see Dixon-Woods et al. 2004; Popay et
al. 1998) but recognise that more empirical testing of various approaches is required
to develop these methods further.
Conclusion
The review has presented particular methodological challenges. These are further
explored in Chapter Six. We are confident however that the rigour of the search
ensures that very little evidence has been overlooked, and that through the
application of study selection criteria only robust evidence has been synthesised
and presented in the findings of this review.
23
Chapter Three
Researching empty and irregularly occupied
dwellings: definitions, methods, timing and
location
Introduction
The studies included in this review were undertaken in various locations across the
UK over a period of more than thirty years. Some studies used multiple case study
areas and others were located in a single place. Different studies adopted different
definitions of second or empty homes. A range of methods were utilised - most
usually surveys (for example to identify unoccupied properties, to identify the
characteristics of second home owners and patterns of second home usage), and
interviews with different groups of key informants. As might be expected different
studies focused on different aspects of empty and irregularly occupied properties.
This chapter presents an overview of how the evidence included in the review has
been gathered, exploring a number of key features such as:
•
the focus of different studies;
•
when studies were conducted;
•
where research has taken place across the UK;
•
the way that empty, second and holiday homes have been defined in the
studies in the review;
•
how empty and irregularly occupied dwellings have been identified;
•
the range of methods that studies have utilised.
Brief summaries of the studies included in the review are presented in Appendix
Nine. These studies passed the inclusion criteria for the review. It is however to be
noted that these criteria are not meant to provide a ‘gold standard’, but more a ‘good
enough standard’. At the end of the Chapter we consider the limitations of the
evidence, and make some recommendations regarding how studies might be
undertaken in the future.
24
Focus of the studies
The review sought studies that considered the impact of empty or irregularly
occupied properties on the sustainability of rural communities and/or evaluated
policy interventions designed to reduce or mitigate these impacts. All the studies
that were entered into the review were pertinent to the review questions.
Four studies addressed empty rural homes, two addressed rural housing generally,
and the remaining 17 studies addressed second homes.
Of the four studies
addressing empty homes, three were undertaken in Scotland within the last ten
years and were evaluations of specific policy interventions (Schucksmith, 1996;
Henderson et al. 1994; Caledonian Economics et al. 2001). One of the studies
addressing general rural housing was located in Scotland, and one in Wales. The
remaining 17 studies addressing second homes were almost all concerned with
identifying the extent and distribution of second homes in one or more areas, and
the impacts of second homes on local housing markets.
Several studies attempted to measure the impact of second home ownership on the
viability of local businesses and services, sometimes aggregating data from surveys
of second homeowners to estimate the total contribution to county or regional
economies (Pyne, 1973; Jacobs, 1972; SWEPC, 1975; Tuck, 1973; De Vane, 1975;
Downing and Dower, 1977; Damer, 2000). However, those studies that tried to
identify the economic contribution the second home markets provided locally were
problematic, as comparison to other industries was not always included and none
compared the regular expenditure of second home owners to that of a permanent
resident.
One study (Bollom, 1978) was primarily concerned with the attitudes of host
communities towards second home ownership and the degrees of interaction
between second homeowners and local residents, whilst a further study (Damer,
2000) focused on the social attributes of second home owners. Eleven other
studies presented data regarding attitudes towards second home ownership
although this was not their primary focus (Bielckus et el, 1972; Jacobs, 1972; Ashby
et al. 1975; Pyne, 1973; Tuck, 1973; Downing and Dower, 1977; Bennett, 1979;
Coleman, 1982; Capstick, 1987; Gallent et al. 2002; Johnston, 2003). The analysis
of second homes was hampered by a lack of any disaggregration of the attitudes of
local residents to all incomers, including those seeking housing for retirement,
commuting or for holiday lets.
When were the studies carried out?
As well as methodological and definitional issues, the timing of the studies in the
review is of significance. Ten of the studies considered which included work on
empty, second and holiday homes were conducted in the 1970s, five in the 1980s,
25
three in the 1990s and five since 2000. One group of authors are responsible for
most of the contemporary work on second homes.
A number of the earlier studies from the 1970s were carried out in-house by local
authorities, where, perhaps, nowadays, specific research would be outsourced.
Indeed, more recent research has tended to be commissioned by national bodies or
government such as the Countryside Agency (Gallent et al. 2002) and the Welsh
Assembly Government (Tewdwr-Jones, 2002). Other research has been funded
from academic sources such as The Leverhulme Trust or the Social and Economic
Research Council.
Ten of the studies considered were conducted more than twenty five years ago. It is
pertinent to reflect on how the broader social, economic and cultural context in
which this body of evidence sits, notwithstanding the views, experiences and
attitudes of respondents in these studies, may have moved on to such an extent that
consideration needs to be given to the application of their findings in the current
context. Interpreting the evidence across time and place was difficult as it was hard
to ascertain whether the circumstances were different because of general economic
or societal changes over time or because of that particular location had unique
experiences. Where possible we have highlighted the most significant differences
between the more recent and older literature.
Location of studies
Of the twenty-three studies in this review eight studies focussed on England, ten on
Wales and six on Scotland3. No studies considered empty, holiday or second
homes in Northern Ireland. This may reflect more pressing housing problems in the
region. The studies are dominated by case study evidence of communities and
counties in North Wales where the issue of second homes received great attention
in the 1970s, although the Lake District also features strongly as an area with great
interest in second homes. The areas examined in England, with few exceptions,
relate to one piece of research. The studies conducted in Scotland also often relate
to the issue of empty properties and are more recent, and consider policy
evaluations of initiatives to bring dwellings back into use. Ten studies were
conducted in the 1970s, five in the 1980s, three in the 1990s and five in the 2000s; it
is the most recent work that explores empty as well as second homes. One group
of authors are responsible for most of the contemporary work on second homes.
Figure 3.1 illustrates the distribution of case study areas featured in the reviewed
research, and shows the locations chosen in over three decades of research in the
field. There are 52 case study areas, but many of those areas feature several times
in the research, such as in Scotland the Strathspey area; in England the Lake
District and in Wales Gwynedd.
3
These figures add up to 24 as one study considered both England and Wales.
26
Figure 3.1 Distribution of areas used as case studies in research
included in the review.
1970s
1970s
1980s
1980
1990s
1990
2000s
2000
© Crown Copyright 2004. Image produced from Ordnance Survey’s get-a-Map service. Image
reproduced with permission of Ordnance Survey and Ordnance Survey Northern Ireland.
Definitions of empty, second and holiday homes
The definition of what constitutes a second home or holiday home has been a
perennial problem. This is an issue in all aspects of the research as it impedes
comparison between studies and has the potential to cause confusion. Although
27
individual studies may provide a clear definition of the types of accommodation that
were included or excluded, it is unclear whether studies that compared evidence
from other research findings to each other or to the Census material were talking
about the same phenomena. For example, a study that reported the growth in
second home ownership in local areas may have recorded the growth in purpose
built holiday villages, rather than existing dwellings in villages, smaller settlements or
dwellings that stand alone in remote countryside.
A degree of permanence relating to the dwelling physical structure was often
included in definitions of second homes. However, other studies included chalets,
log cabins and static caravans. Their inclusion could be problematic as the analysis
did not always disaggregate the findings for these distinct parts of the second
homes market. It was therefore capable of overestimating the number of second
homes in a locality with potential as permanent first homes for local people. Local
demand for residence in holiday parks, with chalets, log cabins or static caravans,
appears to be generated by lack of other housing opportunities rather than housing
preferences, although residency in Park Homes may be more long term. Exploring
these differences would have added some clarity to any analysis of the degree of
competition in the local housing market between locals and second home owners.
Several studies were careful to draw a distinction in principle between second
homes and holiday homes (Gallent et al. 2002), Tewdwr-Jones et al.(2000), Pyne
1973, South West Economic Planning Council, 1975, Bennett, 1979, Davies and
O’Farrell, 1981, Capstick, 1987). However, difficulties with differentiating between a
second and holiday home were readily acknowledged by a number of the studies
(for example, Davies and O’Farrell, 1981; Bielckus, 1977). Bielckus also noted that
where households owned two properties, it was not always clear which could be
defined as the first home or second home, since the way in which such properties
were used, and also length of occupancy in the different residences were not always
clear cut.
Distinctions were also blurred between the dwellings used as holiday homes and
second homes, as second homes were sometimes let to defray costs associated
with ownership. One study defined holiday homes as a reduction in supply and
conceptualised them as part of the tourist stock of accommodation, such as hotels
(South West Economic Planning Council, 1975). This may also be problematic if
looking comprehensively at demand in local housing markets as they remain
dwellings unavailable for use as permanent residence for local people but have
been removed in the analysis of total dwelling stocks.
Some definitions emphasised the use made of the dwelling for leisure or recreation.
As there are changing patterns of employment for some, with home-working, teleworking and dual income households, the distinction may today be less clear. One
28
partner may use the ‘other’ dwelling to work from whilst the other does not, as
household and working arrangements become more diverse. This pattern of
changing housing consumption has yet to be explored in research concerning
second or holiday homes.
Identifying empty and irregularly occupied property
A fundamental difficulty that studies have sought to address is the identification of
an accurate figure of the number of empty, second homes and holiday homes, either
nationally, or in case study areas. As has been noted above, this difficulty relates in
part to the definition of the types of dwelling that constitute empty, second and
holiday homes. A further difficulty stems from the way that empty, second and
holiday homes are identified in sources of data, and potential confusion over the
precise use to which dwellings are put. Subsequently, these factors have
implications for the comparison of the number of empty, second and holiday homes
between studies and over time.
The Census provides a readily accessible source, in that it attempts to measure the
number of empty, second and holiday homes. The Census has provided data on
second and holiday homes every ten years since 1981 – prior to this, second homes
were not recorded in the Census. However, whilst the 1981 and 1991 Censuses
differentiated between second homes and holiday homes, the 2001 Census only
included an aggregate figure including both second and holiday homes.
Furthermore, studies have highlighted that it is likely that the Census undercounts
the actual number of second homes (Gallent et al. 2002).
Second/holiday homes were identified in the 2001 Census as being distinct from
vacant dwellings either by the enumerator or from a household completing a Census
form for an address that was not their principal residence. Households that returned
a form where all household members are visitors are classed as second or holiday
home. Unoccupied dwellings are classified as a second or holiday home if at least
one of the household spaces (i.e. flats or apartments) within it (or the single
household space if the dwelling is unshared) is a second or holiday home.
However, as Gallent et al. (2002) point out, enumerators exclude properties that are
not known to be secondary residences or holiday homes, and this is where an
undercount may occur. These authors also noted that it is not known to what extent
second homes are enumerated as occupied accommodation on Census night.
Difficulties in accurately distinguishing between empty, second or holiday homes
was also noted by Murie et al. (1995) who described problems in the way in which
properties are recorded as empty by surveyors as part of surveys of empty
properties in Scotland. A number of properties recorded as empty were in fact
second or holiday homes, which casts doubt on the way these are recorded. For
example, the Post Census Survey of Vacant Properties (PCSVP) was conducted in
29
1991 by the General Register Office for Scotland as a follow up survey of properties
classified by Census enumerators as being vacant on Census night. It did not
include households spaces identified in the Census as not used as main residence
or occupied household spaces where the household was absent on Census night.
The qualitative research conducted by Murie et al. (1995) noted problems with the
classification between these two categories and the truly vacant category and
suggested that it was probable that some vacants were student housing or were
second or holiday homes. Other research on empty properties in Scotland has
reinforced this finding. The evaluation of the Scottish Empty Homes Initiative found
that many properties identified as empty were in fact being used as holiday homes
(Caledonian et al. 2001).
A further concern about the Census is that it only provides data every ten years, and
thus the figures soon date. Studies subsequently need to have recourse to other
sources to obtain current numbers between Censuses. Historically, rating registers
have provided an important source of data for studies of second homes. The
majority of the studies undertaken in the 1970s drew upon rating registers for this
purpose. However, the registers did not identify second home owners directly, and
instead noted which owners had an address outside of the county. Thus they only
indicated the possibility of dwellings used as second homes. Surveys were then
required to identify which properties were actually used as second homes.
However, in line with the identified drawbacks of the Census, a number of studies
recognised that such methods might lead to an undercount of the actual number of
second homes. As highlighted by the De Vane (1975) study, the work by Tuck
(1973) and Pyne (1973) estimated that the rating register undercounted second
homes by about ten per cent. To attempt to mitigate this undercount, a number of
studies used alternative sources to identify second homes to complement the
figures drawn from the rating registers. Thus Coleman (1982), Bennett (1976),
Bollom (1975), De Vane (1975), the South West Economic Planning Council (1975),
Tuck (1973) used a case study approach to draw on alternative sources to
corroborate the figures identified from the rating register. These studies used the
local knowledge of local residents to try and identify second homes in their
respective settlements. Bollom (1975) and the South West Economic Planning
Council (1975) also used the electoral register as a method of identifying possible
second homes. Other studies used field surveys such as Davies and O’Farrell
(1981) – an approach which may offer the potential for additional accuracy, but
which would be a costly method to reproduce in future research.
Recent research such as Gallent et al. (2002) identifies council tax returns as the
most promising source of data on second homes, although these authors also
highlighted drawbacks. To a certain extent confusion arises from the way that
properties may, or may not, be registered by owners for council tax. At the time that
the research by Gallant et al. (2002) was undertaken, a 50% discount for properties
30
used as second homes was available, and the authors point out that, individuals
may not necessarily have claimed the discount of 50%, even though they may have
been eligible, thereby removing themselves from any count (Tewdwr-Jones et al.
2002). Murie et al. (1995) also noted that in Scotland, although the majority of
dwellings that qualified for two discounts for council tax were second homes, this
number was not wholly accurate as a count for second homes specifically. Greater
clarity over second home numbers may develop as local authorities in Scotland
develop their monitoring and identification of second home owners as part of the
billing process.
Which methods have studies used?
The authors of the various studies had employed a mixture of methods, primarily
surveys, interviews and discussion groups with various key respondents (see
below). Some also utilised secondary data sources such as previous research or
market surveys. The summary table in Appendix Nine includes a brief description of
the methods employed by each study.
Surveys
Many of the earlier studies undertook large-scale postal surveys of second home
owners (Bielckus et al. 1972; Jacobs, 1972; Tuck, 1973; Pyne, 1973; De Vane,
1975; South West Economic Planning Council, 1975; Bollom, 1978). Second home
owners were usually identified through rating registers (see below ). Two smaller
studies also surveyed much smaller samples of second home owners (Coleman,
1982; Capstick, 1987; Damer, 2000). Questions posed to second home owners
addressed a variety of topics across the different studies; for example, location of
primary residence and distances travelled to second homes, seasonal use of
property, frequency and length of visits, amenities used, average expenditure, age
and socio-economic status of second home owners, as well as questions about the
location, age and state of repair, and amenities in the properties used as second
homes.
Other studies surveyed rural officers in local authorities (Tewdwr-Jones et al. 2002;
Galllent et al. 2002), and local estate agents (Shucksmith, 1981).
Case Studies
Nearly all the studies investigated second homes in different case study areas
although the location and connection between the case studies varied. Only one
study considered case study areas across the UK (Bielckus et al. 1972). Others
used case studies in particular nations (Downing and Dower, 1977; Davies and
O’Farrell, 1981; Henderson et al. 1994; Murie et al. 1995; Shucksmith, 1996;
Authors, 2001; Tewdwr-Jones et al. 2002; Gallent et al. 2002; Johnston, 2003),
regions (Ashby et al. 1975, South West Economic Planning Council, 1975; Bollom,
1987), counties (Jacobs, 1972; Tuck, 1973; Pyne, 1973; De Vane, 1975) or other
31
defined geographic areas such as a National Park (Bennett, 1979; Shucksmith,
1981; Capstick, 1987). These multi-area case studies were very useful to illustrate
the diversity in the experiences of the same phenomena displayed in different local
housing markets. Only two studies considered second homes in a single location
(Coleman, 1982; Damer, 2000).
Key informants
A key feature of this body of research was collating the views, experiences and
judgements of key informants on various aspects of empty, second and holiday
homes through surveys or interviews and discussions. However there was some
variation across the studies regarding the type of respondents that were considered
as key informants, reflected to some extent the shifting focus of the research.
As noted above, a feature of studies investigating second homes in rural areas in
the 1970s and 1980s was a focus on assessing impacts by surveying second home
owners themselves. With the exception of one study (Jacobs, 1972), all the studies
also presented local residents’ views regarding second home owners and,
sometimes, local housing demand, usually via interviews/discussion groups with
local residents, although an alternative approach used by many of the studies was
to examine impacts of second homes by contacting local key informants. In some
instances, these informants included local contacts, such as police, local
businesses, members of the clergy (Jacobs, 1972; Downing and Dower, 1977;
Bennett, 1979; Coleman, 1982; Capstick, 1987; Gallent et al. 2002; Johnston,
2003). Some studies reflected methods of gauging local feelings that would now be
considered inappropriate for research. Examples include using village gatekeepers
such as the clergy, police officers, postmasters or teachers. With greater
commuting and turnover in employment, the ability of such professions to talk on
behalf of a community may be more limited today. Moreover, it may be more
acceptable to actually the hear the voices of those who are the subjects of that part
of the study, for example, holding focus groups of villagers.
On a similar theme, no studies interviewed or surveyed first time buyers in rural
areas, and yet their ability to enter owner occupation underpinned many
assumptions about the problems second homes may be causing. One study held a
focus group of young people, but they were not engaged in the process of
registering or searching for property to rent or own at that time. Although, one study
did make the point that the ability of households to trade up as household
circumstances change is also vital for sustainable communities and so retaining
existing homeowners is a problem in areas of high house price rises. Inclusion of
data from those making house searches in case study areas would be beneficial for
comprehensive analysis, to highlight similarities or differences between the type and
price of property they are seeking to buy.
32
A considerable proportion of the studies also interviewed professionals in the public
and/or private sectors. Many studies used the knowledge of housing and planning
officials or staff from housing associations to gauge knowledge about local housing
markets. However, many local authorities did not have housing needs assessments
and some were out of date. Few had conducted comprehensive housing market
analysis and so the ability of these people to comment on the local housing market
was drawn mainly from their local knowledge and experience of the areas where
they worked. Government and regulatory pressure has recently been exerted on
local authorities to conduct more comprehensive analyses of local, sub-regional and
regional housing markets, and so it is hoped that local policymakers will have a
more robust evidence-base on which to draw in the future. There are already richer
sources of contemporary data available now relating to house prices and
neighbourhoods. These data are available at small output levels, such as the
Census and other official statistics and market research tools such as Mosaic.
Some studies presented data based on interviews with estate agents; however, it
was unclear whether a range of local agents had been sampled and the how the
data were analysed. Greater use could have been made of key players – estate
agents, lenders and solicitors – in the private market to provide more information
about market processes and gauge levels of inward and outward migration.
Other studies interviewed key informants such as local tradesmen, planners and
local residents to gauge the impact of second home ownership on local economies
(Coleman, 1982; Bennett, 1979; Gallent et al. 2002; Tewdwr-Jones et al. 2002).
These interviews were rarely supported with financial information.
Secondary data
Some studies also drew on secondary data such as government report and market
research data (Downing and Dower, 1977; Henderson et al. 1994;), Census,
employment and labour market statistics (Capstick, 1987), statistics on vacant
properties (Murie et al. 1995), and Local Plans in Wales, Scotland and England
(Johnston, 2003).
Limitations of the studies
The political problematisation of second homes has, in effect, led to the focus of the
initial questions posed and research commissioned perhaps being too narrowly
defined. The issue of second homes has been, with notable exceptions, studied in
isolation from other expressions of external demand in local areas, such as
retirement and commuting.
The study of second homes in isolation from other drivers of housing demand meant
that it was difficult to separate impacts attributed to second homes from other
factors, although authors continued to attribute shortages of affordable housing for
33
local people and external competition in housing markets to second homes. One
author (De Vane, 1975) did, however, decide to abandon the aim of assessing the
impact of second homes on house prices as it was not possible to identify
contrasting areas with high and low levels of second homes where direct
comparison between housing markets could be achieved.
Where the issue of second homes was set within a wider economic and social
context, authors drew on data from multiple case studies and examined other
sources of external demand. For example, Gallent et al. (2002) noted that
assessments of the economic impact of second homes in rural areas need to
consider broader impacts such as e-shopping and the role of supermarkets in
changing shopping habits of residents in rural areas. The multitude of factors from
which housing market imbalances emerge should be included in any future analysis
of rural housing markets.
The issue of second homes would be interesting to explore in the context, not only
of the impacts on local housing markets, but as part of changing patterns of housing
consumption, housing wealth and subsequent housing inequalities. The point of
how home is interpreted was raised briefly in the evidence, but exploring this further
in relation to use of second homes would be interesting, given changing patterns of
work and residence.
Measures that have been taken to intervene in local markets have been poorly
evaluated, such as those to restrict occupancy in National Parks, for example.
Greater evaluation might shed light on the directions in which policy should develop
in this respect.
34
35
Chapter Four
The impact of empty or irregularly occupied
property on sustainability of rural communities
Introduction
This chapter presents the substantive finding from the review of the evidence
relating to our first review question: what are the effects of privately owned empty or
irregularly occupied properties on the sustainability of rural communities?
Presentation of the evidence
As noted in Chapter Two, we planned to organise the evidence thematically around
the ten different dimensions of sustainability presented in Table 2.2. As we worked
through the studies it became apparent that the evidence only addressed one of
these dimensions – demand for housing/access to affordable housing – in any great
depth. There was a smaller although significant body of evidence that addressed
impact of empty or irregularly occupied property on the viability of rural facilities,
services, employment and business. There was some evidence relating to the
socio-economic status of second home owners and their interaction with their host
communities which addressed the dimensions of community cohesiveness and
community mix. There was a very small amount of evidence relating to the quality
of the built environment. There is as yet no evidence-base that addresses the
impact of empty and irregularly occupied property on a number of the dimensions of
community sustainability, notably: reputation or image of the community; crime and
anti-social behaviour; social exclusion and poverty; and the accessibility of facilities,
services, and employment. We will discuss this lack of evidence on these key
themes in Chapter Seven.
Given the available evidence, we have organised the evidence under four thematic
headings:
•
Impact of empty or irregularly occupied property on rural housing markets;
•
Impact of empty or irregularly occupied property on community cohesion;
•
Impact of empty or irregularly occupied property on community viability.
•
Impact of empty or irregularly occupied property on the quality of the built
environment.
36
Each theme starts with a brief introduction, and the evidence is then presented in
sub-sections as appropriate.
Theme 1: Impact of empty and irregularly occupied properties on rural
housing markets
As noted above, the main body of evidence retrieved in this review related to the
impacts of empty and irregularly occupied properties on rural housing markets. We
have divided the evidence into three sub-themes:
•
changing rural housing markets;
•
impact of second homes on rural housing markets;
•
impact of empty and holiday homes on rural housing markets.
The first sub-theme presents evidence relating to the inter-play between second
homes and patterns of in- and out- migration, and wider considerations relating to
supply and other sources of external demand within the local housing market.
The second sub-theme considers the growth of the second homes market, where
second homes are located, the characteristics of second home owners, and the
types of properties used as second homes. It then considers to what extent second
home owners represent adverse competition in the local housing market to residents
of rural areas.
Finally the third sub-theme presents the more limited evidence on the impact of
empty or holiday homes on rural housing markets.
Changing rural housing markets
•
It is clear from the studies in the review that the issue of empty or irregularly
occupied properties cannot be considered in isolation from the other
processes of change within rural housing.
•
Although there is a widely held view that rural depopulation is a
consequence of local residents’ inability to compete with second home
owners for local housing, many studies conclude that the outward migration
of young people and young families from rural areas is more closely allied to
a lack of appropriate employment, education and leisure activities than to a
lack of housing.
•
Second homes are not the sole source of external demand in rural areas,
however they have been subject to more attention that other external
demands such as retirement or commuting. Indeed, second homes remain
a local phenomenon, and it seems that their national significance has
declined over the last decade.
37
•
Ageing and retirement are the key factors likely to impact on housing
markets in the next 25 years.
•
Increased demand for housing in rural areas is only one aspect of the
complex changes that are taking place in rural areas, which include the
undersupply of alternative forms of housing, changes to local economies
and loss of industries (such as forestry, agriculture, quarrying), and
improved transport links.
•
There is an absence of alternative forms of housing supply. Many rural
areas have historically had proportionately less publicly owned housing than
national and regional averages. Moreover the rural housing stock has been
reduced by the Right-to-Buy, and there are planning constraints and
financial limitation that constrain the development of new social housing.
Economic changes
To varying degrees, many studies considered how empty or irregularly occupied
properties, and second homes in particular, were part of wider societal and
economic transformations affecting rural communities. The review did not seek
research that addressed the issues of rural depopulation, in-migration and the
supply of social housing, but nevertheless a comprehensive literature will exist that
is specifically concerned with these issues. Nonetheless, as some studies highlight,
understanding the impacts of second homes cannot be divorced from wider events
in rural housing markets.
Many of the studies make reference to the decline in the rural populations, and the
elements of social exchange that occur due to young people leaving and older
people entering areas for retirement or commuting purposes.4
Many of rural areas used as case studies thrived on agriculture, forestry, mining or
quarrying, the economic importance of which has diminished in the post war period.
This is particularly evident from the 1970s Welsh studies. Jacobs (1972) illustrates
the rapid demise of land-based industries in Denbighshire, North Wales, showing
the number of agricultural workers declined from 3552 to 2079 from 1961 to 1970.
Pyne (1973) indicates, in his study of Caenarvonshire, that areas where agriculture
is the main source of employment have faired better than those where quarrying
was dominant, in terms of the sudden withdrawal of employment. He also cites the
County Development Plan 1952 which charts that the decline in rural population had
begun by 1870, and in quarrying parishes by 1911. Between 1911 and 1921, the
population of rural districts fell by 12%, and from 1931 to 1949 by a further 5%,
although in some parishes it was up to 30%. Tuck (1973) notes that the growth of
second homes was strongly influenced by the economic changes taking place in the
4
Champion (2000) now demonstrates that there is a population drift to the countryside through the hierarchy of
settlements from cities to towns to villages to deep rural areas.
38
area, and notes that, at the time, second homes were created out of surplus houses
resulting from the decline of the slate industry or the rationalisation of agriculture.
It was implicit that many authors, particularly in the early studies, were addressing
popular hypotheses that suggested that rural depopulation was a result of local
residents’ inability to compete for local housing with people seeking second homes.
Nevertheless, many studies conclude that the loss of young people and young
families from rural areas was not so much a consequence of lack of housing, but
was allied rather to the lack of appropriate employment suited to their educational
attainment, and for education or lifestyle opportunities (Capstick, 1987; Shucksmith,
1981; Johnston, 2003). Bennett (1979) used Census data to show population
decline mainly in the younger age groups between 1961 and 1971, and only one
parish had experienced an increase fuelled by commuters. Furthermore, Bennett
surveyed school leavers and found that lack of employment was not necessarily the
reason why a good half of them left their parishes, as stable employment was
available within commuting distance of the two parishes surveyed, but it was rather
a lack of social facilities, such as education and leisure opportunities. However, the
employment opportunities that existed for those that remained were in the local
quarry, shops or local mills, so young people with greater aspirations may have felt
propelled to leave.
Coleman (1982) also notes the decline in the marine trade in North Norfolk and the
lack of alternative employment opportunities, except in service industries and
tourism, with the consequence that the area has experienced an outward migration
of young people and the inward migration of older retired people.
Although there are strong reasons other than housing why younger people may wish
to leave their villages, some did wish to return when married (Bennett, 1979).
Capstick’s (1987) later study found evidence that young people were moving away
from the Central Lakes towards the cheaper industrial villages and towns, but, even
with rising incomes, house prices prohibited a return to their parish of origin later in
life. But Tewdwr-Jones et al. (2002) conclude, after consideration of the evidence
and detailed case studies, that a dearth of educational and employment
opportunities is the principal push-factor causing young people to migrate from the
countryside to larger towns and cities, rather than merely an inability to enter the
housing market.
The tourist industry has become economically important in many of the areas
subject to second homes, bringing employment to these rural areas. This can bring
mixed fortunes, as it is a sector characterised by low incomes and seasonal
employment, which reduce local residents’ ability to enter the housing market. For
example, Gallent et al. (2002) suggest that employment opportunities exist in places
such as the Lake District National Park, but that the ‘cream tea economy’ offers
39
inadequate wages and the employment is insecure. These changes have
reconfigured these areas into ones subject to residential tourism, which has in turn
generated further external demand for housing as it appeals to urbanites’
perceptions of the rural idyll. This again may adversely impact on local residents’
ability to compete in the housing market. The report returns to the issue of
competition within local housing markets later in this section.
External demand in local housing markets
Second homes are not the sole source of external demand in rural areas, although
they have become subject to more attention than others. Most studies focus solely
on the impacts of second homes on local housing markets, attributing housing
problems in local areas solely to second homes. Many do, however, acknowledge
that there are other sources of external demand. Some studies examined these
other sources of external demand in more detail and found that whilst permanent inmigration, for retirement or commuting purposes, and second homes both exert
considerable pressure on rural housing markets, demand from retirement and
commuting is thought to be of more significant concern than second homes in most
places (Gallent et al. 2002). They found that second homes might not be a
predominant problem at local authority level, but that they do raise significant
concern in some individual villages. Tewdwr-Jones et al. (2002) examines second
homes in Wales and finds they remain a local phenomenon, where the problems
need a local policy response, but that their national significance has waned over the
last decade, and that ageing and retirement emerge as the key factors most likely to
affect housing markets in the next 25 years.
Older studies also found commuting and retirement purchases were important
factors in external demand for property (Bennett, 1979; Shucksmith, 1981; Jacobs,
1972). For example, retirement and commuting, together with demand for holiday
and second homes, has put pressure on housing in the Lake District. In the late
1970s, Shucksmith (1981) found external demand for property in the Lake District
was hugely significant. It was estimated by local estate agents that over half of all
property purchases were by people outside the area. Whilst 48% of demand for
private housing to buy came from local people, locals were selling 60% of property
on estate agents books. This indicated a net transfer of 12% from local people to
people outside the region. Retirement was seen as the largest source of external
demand, followed by second homes, and then by holiday homes. By the late 1980s
external demand across parishes in the National Park may perhaps have dropped
but it remained strong nevertheless. The origins of land search requests from
outside of Cumbria accounted for between 12-43% across three of the four district
councils that cover the Lake District National Park (Capstick, 1987). But as Bennett
(1979) notes, these expressions of urban demand in the countryside represent only
an element of complex changes that have taken place, which also include the
undersupply of alternative forms of housing such as council housing, structural
40
changes to the local economy and greater accessibility by the provision of improved
road transport links.
Other drivers of changing demand were identified as developments in information
technology and tele-working. These had increased demand in rural areas in the
South and East where people worked partially at home and commuted to London
once or twice a week (Gallent et al. 2002). Johnston (2003) identified commuters as
an especially important source of external demand in the Brecon Beacons, where
homes were purchased by people working in Cardiff and the South coast
employment centres. Coleman (1982) also suggests commuters were important in
Norfolk. In addition, Buy-to-Let investors were also a recent source of external
demand in some rural housing markets, although it is unclear to what extent and
whether the end use would be for private renting, holiday lets or second homes, or
even resale to the open market after speculative purchase.
Purchase for holiday homes was also identified as a source of external demand
(Shucksmith, 1981), although there were also examples of local residents
purchasing property for holiday letting purposes (Bennett, 1979; Gallent et al. 2002).
Alternative supply of housing
Increased demand creates imbalances in local housing markets, in the absence of
alternative forms of supply, across all tenures. Some earlier studies highlight the
uneven provision of council housing in many rural areas and suggest that this
contributes to the problems associated with various forms of external demand.
Studies suggested that council and private rented housing were preferred by many
local residents at that time, as they were not necessarily in the market to buy
(Jacobs, 1972; Shucksmith, 1981). Capstick (1987) shows that the proportion of
publicly owned housing across the four district councils in the Lake District National
Park was substantially below the national, regional and even the district average as
a whole. In 1981 local authority housing stood at only 12.3% of the stock within the
national park, although this did vary considerably across the district councils.
Shucksmith (1981) also draws attention to this deficit and shows that only a limited
supply of council housing had been built in the Lakeland authorities, which he
attributes to the dominance of the local landowners and farmers. Council housing
was important, particularly at this time, as it offered alternative low-cost housing as
the private rented sector declined. Shucksmith (1981) argues that this issue needs
to be scrutinised as authorities made insufficient use of the powers available to them
to produce social housing and this, in conjunction with the demand for housing for
sale, has contributed to the current housing problems.
From a limited base point, Capstick (1987) also demonstrates the effects of the early
stages of the Right-to-Buy policy in the Lake District National Park. Only five of the
council homes already sold had become second or holiday homes in the period
41
1981 to 1986, the first five years of the policy. However, Right-to-Buy sales
represented 27.7% of the stock in Copeland District Council, 18.5% in Eden DC,
9.8% in Allerdale and 10.5% in South Lakeland. A total of 273 homes were sold
across the four districts in the National Park, which represents a large loss, and all
interviewees in her study stressed that a large stock of rental housing was essential
for meeting local needs. The former council homes that had become available on
the open market were still unaffordable to local people and therefore did not
represent a low-cost entry point to home ownership.
Today, Johnston (2003) also illustrates the undersupply of social housing and
demonstrates that in her case study areas, the three Welsh National Parks
(Snowdonia, Brecon Beacons, Pembrokeshire Coast) and Ceredigion, both council
housing and stock held by Registered Social Landlords was below the Welsh
average. The private rented sector in the case study areas was above the average
for Wales, but it was unclear how accessible this was for those on low-incomes.
Capstick (1987) suggested that district councils in the Lake District were making
headway in reducing long waiting lists for rented housing in the National Park, but
that provision of new rural social housing to ameliorate any housing stress was at
that time highly constrained by financial limitations. Johnston (2003) emphasises
the financial limitations that hamper the supply of new social housing, but also draws
attention to the land constraints of new housing provision in the National Parks
where development sites rarely become available because of restrictive planning
regimes. Housing and planning officials in National Parks, showed greater concern
about second homes than in other case study areas, as the supply of new dwellings
is limited by planning constraints designed to protect the amenity value of the
natural environment and by a lack of public funding for affordable homes (Gallent et
al. 2002). This has, therefore, increasingly focussed attention on the use made of
the existing dwelling stock.
Concern was also expressed that planning controls have been unable to deliver
housing that meets local needs when sites had become available (Johnston, 2003).
Focus group evidence showed local residents’ unease that when sites were
available luxury executive homes were erected, which did not meet local needs for
smaller and family units. It was felt that this further attracted purchasers from
outside the area and did nothing to solve local housing problems. Another factor
influencing many local housing markets is the change in housing preferences by
those making housing choices. In Johnston’s study, local people in one case study
area said people did not want the council housing that was available but were
unable to afford what they did want.
This section has provided a flavour of the complexity of rural housing markets and
illustrates how other factors are important in how housing market imbalances
42
manifest themselves in many rural areas. The phenomenon of second homes must
be seen in this context.
Impacts of second homes on rural housing markets
•
The multiple definitions of second homes present particular problems when
trying to establish quantitative estimates of the distribution and extent of the
dwellings used in this way.
•
The number of second homes grew rapidly from the mid 1960s to 1970s.
Subsequently numbers have continued to grow but at a much slower rate,
although local differences may be hidden in this general trend.
•
Early studies highlight the importance of isolated rural locations for second
homes, although later studies show second homes were no longer confined
to deep rural areas. Various factors such as accessibility from urban
conurbations, family ties to an area, scenery, and availability of outdoor
activities and pursuits influence the choice of location.
•
Early studies show that second home owners were overwhelmingly drawn
from older and wealthier households; however, little is known about
characteristic patterns of contemporary second home ownership.
•
Second homes are not confined to picturesque cottages. All types of
property can become second homes, but there are local differences
depending on levels of demand and nature of the housing stock.
•
Demand for second homes has increasingly been directed towards
properties that otherwise could be used by permanent residents.
•
Retirement and commuting are generally the most significant expressions of
external demand in rural housing markets, although alongside these second
homes do exert pressure on local markets.
•
Low wage rural economies, restrictions on the supply of new housing and
external demand combine to raise house prices and disadvantage many
local people in rural housing markets.
Growth of second homes
Estimating the number of second homes is problematic as various definitions are
used in the literature relating to ownership, primary use, construction, permanence
and distance from first home (see discussed in Chapter Three). Problems find
expression crucially in the types of dwelling included as second homes and the use
made of those dwellings. Different approaches are taken to the inclusion of chalets
and static caravans and how dwellings are interpreted as being a chalet or static
caravan, as some of these represent permanent accommodation available all year
round, such as Park Homes, but may be log cabins in holiday villages with
residential restrictions. Similarly, the boundaries between the uses of second
43
homes for leisure by one family and the same property let on a holiday basis to
defray costs of ownership are indistinct. Also problematic in national estimates are
the blurred distinctions between second homes, holiday homes, empty homes,
homes held ready for resale, whether initially purchased by the owner or inherited,
or merely homes whose occupants were absent on Census night.
Many authors have found it a challenge to quantify numbers of second homes at the
local or county level, and so it is unsurprising that few have attempted to do so at
the national level. There are disparities between data sources, no doubt relating to
the different definitions. Gallent et al. (2002) surveyed all rural local authorities, and
extrapolating local estimates he suggests that there are approximately 100-120,000
second homes in England. The response rate to this survey was 40% and a bias
may exist in that those authorities with higher concentrations of second homes may
have felt more inclined to respond, possibly producing an over-estimate. In contrast,
Gallent et al. (2002) cite the Survey of English Housing 1999/2000, which suggests
that 230,000 dwellings are not the usual residence of a household and of these 36%
are used for recreation or pre-retirement purposes. This would provide an estimate
of around 82,800 second homes. The South West Economic Planning Council
study (SWEPC, 1975) estimated that the number of second homes, not including
holiday lets, would grow by an average of 5% per year and reach 45,000 by the end
of the last century in the South West region alone. Interestingly, the 2001 Census
estimates 38,381 second homes and holiday homes combined in the South West,
whilst for England the combined figure is 135,202. Tewdwr-Jones et al. (2002)
report Census data from 1991 that suggest that there were between 19,000-22,000
second and holiday homes in Wales at that time, which is an estimate based upon
the assumption that the Census includes an undercount of 16%. Using the 2001
Census the corresponding figures are between 16,500 and 19,500 showing a small
decline. Downing and Dower (1977) use a range of market research and official
statistical data sources to estimate second homes in Scotland at 35,000, compared
to 29,299 in the 2001 Census.
The early local studies trace the common growth patterns of the second home
phenomenon from the 1960s onwards (Tuck, 1973; Downing and Dower, 1977;
Davies and O’Farrell, 1981; Tewdwr-Jones et al., 2002). There is agreement that
the growth of second homes in various localities was quite small in the early 1960s,
growing rapidly from the mid-1960s to the mid-1970s. Expansion of this niche
market grew once more from the late 1970s, but at a much slower rate, and has
remained relatively steady since. The economic oil crisis of the mid-1970s is
frequently offered as an explanation of why the expansion of second homes slowed
across the UK in the 1970s. Other inhibitors of growth may also have been the
withdrawal of home improvement loans for second homes (Downing and Dower;
1977), the withdrawal of mortgage income tax relief on second homes (Downing and
Dower, 1977), the responsiveness to public opinion in the 1970s (Downing and
44
Dower, 1977) and the propensity of households to holiday abroad (Gallent et al.
2002). It may also be related to the redirection of second home demand to
countries like France and Spain from the 1980s onwards but this is not explored in
the literature selected for review.5 Gallent et al. (2002) found no increase in second
homes but did suggest that the issue was more politicised and publicised. However,
local differences may be hidden in this general picture of second home trends. In
her study of the Lake District, Capstick (1987) offers a comparison of Bennett’s 1975
data to the 1981 Census that recorded second homes for the first time. She found
53% of parishes had experienced over a 50% increase in second homes by 1981,
although it is unclear whether the data from these two studies are strictly
comparable.
Location of second homes
Tewdwr-Jones et al. (2002) suggest that, although second home numbers may have
dropped, their spatial distribution remain the same. It is apparent that coastal and
upland locations of attractive natural beauty predominate for second homes and this
has been consistent over the years. Nevertheless, early studies highlight the
importance of isolated rural locations for second homes but as the market grew,
settlement density became less important as a factor in locational choice (Jacobs,
1972; Davies and O’Farrell, 1981). Davies and O’Farrell (1981) found that the
number of second homes decreased with increased distance from a beach, but that
the significance of this has decreased over time. Second homes were increasingly
found in village settlements and were no longer confined to remote deeply rural
places. Similarly, Jacobs found that early second home owners did prefer the
privacy and seclusion of isolated dwellings, but that when concentrations of second
homes reached 12% of the local dwelling stock a saturation point was achieved, and
demand for second homes was directed elsewhere, including villages and towns. It
is unclear from where Jacobs derives the figure of 12% saturation point but Bennett
(1979) also traces the spread of second homes across the Lake District, where as
suitable properties dry up in certain settlements, demand spreads into adjoining
areas.
Bennett (1979) also notes that in the Lake District the areas that have the most
second homes are Eden, as it is easily accessible, and South Lakeland as it is a
strong tourist area. The west side of the National Park had fewer second homes but
as other areas become more saturated in the late 1970s it was becoming more
popular. The urban centres of Keswick, Ambleside, Windermere and Bowness had
high levels of second homes, but had more problems with holiday lettings. Second
homes in more remote places have followed depopulation as properties enter the
market following relocation for employment reasons. Chapel Stile in the Lake
5
See Hoggart and Buller (1995) for exploration of UK second homes abroad.
45
District National Park is cited as a village wholly taken over by the second homes
and holiday homes market (Capstick, 1987, Gallent et al. 2002).
Several studies found that motivations for second homeowners’ choice of location
related to the quality of the scenery (Tuck, 1972; Pyne, 1973; Ashby et al. 1975) and
the availability of outdoor activities and recreation in the forms of hill-walking or
beach-related pursuits (Jacobs, 1972; Pyne, 1973). The SWEPC (1975) study
found second homes more important in towns and villages on or near the coast,
which was especially true of the flats and chalets included in that study. In the
South West the perception of second homes being older homes set apart from the
main settlements was not apparent.
Pyne (1973) found that there was little regular pattern to whether second homes
were in villages or not. Instead this study identified factors that influenced location
as: depopulation and subsequent availability of surplus housing or low cost
cottages; the decline in job opportunities; landscape quality; recreational facilities;
colonisation, whereby family and friends help potential second home owners identify
available property in proximity to their own; escape from urban pressures and
accessibility to a first home. Jacobs also found family and friends were an important
source of information regarding available properties as 38% of second home owners
found their property through this route. Family links to an area were important, in
part, to the development of a second homes market, where people living away from
their place of origin wished to retain some sentimental links and associations with
the area’s culture or traditions via the purchase of a second home (Bollom, 1978;
Tuck, 1973; Downing and Dower, 1977; Pyne; 1973; Damer, 2002). Downing and
Dower found large minorities of people had actually inherited their second home in a
study of second homes in Scotland. It is unclear to what extent these homes remain
in the family today. Nevertheless, although not significant in other regions,
inheritance was an especially important source of properties in Oban and Skye,
where 74% and 60% owners had acquired their second home this way. This raised
ontological questions about the meaning of ‘home’ to some people, many of whom
evidently viewed the second residence as the real home to which they returned
periodically. Downing and Dower argue that the motives of second home owners
were not clearly understood but felt that the importance of it being a second ‘home’
was very important, as opposed to any other tourist accommodation. It was
essential for this to be borne in mind when considering redirecting demand for
second homes away from existing local dwellings.
Accessibility from their main home was important to second home owners, as most
owners come from the nearest major urban conurbation, although some travel long
distances to use their second home. Remoteness has not therefore precluded an
area experiencing dwellings being used as second homes. Studies in Wales show
most second home owners come from the wealthier suburbs of Merseyside, the
46
North West or the West Midlands with the exact location being influenced by the
transport networks (Jacobs, 1972; Tuck, 1973; De Vane, 1975; Bollom, 1978). In
the SWEPC (1975) study, although 20% of owners came from within the region,
nearly two thirds came from the wider South East region. Moreover, 80% of second
home owners in the South West had their first residence below a line from the
Severn to the Wash. One in 1250 households in the western suburbs of London
had a second home in the South West, compared to one in 5100 nationally. It
appears, therefore, that homeowners in the South West travel longer distances
more regularly to access their second home. Downing and Dower (1977) found in
Scotland that Edinburgh and Glasgow were the primary residences of second home
owners. Indeed contrary to some popular opinion, most second home owners in
Scotland reside in Scotland. Downing and Dower found nine out of ten second
home owners were Scottish, although local variation existed with 99% in Largs but
only 45% in Assynt, where 23% of owners’ primary residences were in London or
the South East. Damer found that 76% second home owners on Arran were
Scottish, primarily from West Central Scotland and did not conform to common
perceptions of ‘White English Settlers’. Although residing in Scotland, 92% of
second home owners in Scotland travelled in excess of 300 miles to reach their
second home, although again local differences were evident with 98% of second
home owners in Largs travelling less than 100 miles to reach their second home.
Coleman (1982) found that most second home owners in North Norfolk had their
main residence in London, Cambridge, Peterborough and Leicester. Capstick
(1987) found that most land search requests for property in the Lake District made
during the legal conveyancing process originated from the North West, although
other regions were represented.
Characteristics of second home owners
Second home owners are overwhelmingly drawn from older and wealthier
households (SWEPC, 1975; Downing and Dower, 1977; Bollom, 1978; Damer,
2002). Local differences are evident, particularly in some locations in Scotland and
characteristics of owners vary depending on the types of properties included as
second homes. Second home owner characteristics are important as they serve as
proxy indicators of their purchasing power, and their ability to compete in the local
housing markets (see below).
A survey of second home owners in the South West (SWEPC, 1975)found twothirds of second home owners were over 50 and a further quarter were aged
between 40 and 49. The second home owners’ households were better off than the
national average, except for chalet owners who were less wealthy than those for
built homes. Downing and Dower’s portrait of Scottish second homes in the 1970s
shows how diverse the experience was at that time. Many second home owners did
conform to the wealthy, middle-aged, highly educated professional norm, but there
was evidence of manual and non-manual workers on moderate incomes purchasing
47
static caravans or holiday flats near urban conurbations for recreational purposes.
Seventy percent of second home owners across the study had a full secondary
education whilst 51% of second home owners in Largs, a holiday resort serving the
Glasgow conurbation, left school at age 14. Owners whose second homes were
static caravans had incomes close to the national average, but those who owned
built second homes were significantly wealthier.
The SWEPC study noted that second homes were once viewed as a luxury
commodity but that they had been transformed from a rare acquisition to one to
which many more people could aspire. Apart from the modest survey of home
owners on Arran (Damer, 2002) later studies have not used second home owners
as a focus of the research. Little is known therefore about the characteristics and
patterns of ownership in the contemporary second home markets, and whether
indeed more people have been drawn into the market with rising housing equity or
lifestyle aspirations.
Property purchased as second homes
The literature shows generally that second homes are not confined to the ‘roses
round the door cottages’ (Capstick, 1987). All types of property can become second
homes, but there are local differences depending on the level of demand and
historical nature of the housing stock.
Housing stock surplus to local requirements, due to the economic decline in many
land-based industries and the subsequent out-migration of much of the resident
population, has been a contributory factor in the development of the market for
second homes in the UK. Bennett (1979), however cautions against seeing the
availability of property as being the sole determinant of second homes; it
nevertheless features in many earlier studies. These address how the market for
second homes provided an alternative to abandonment in many areas, and in these
terms second home ownership could be construed as beneficial (Ashby et al. 1975;
Jacobs, 1972). Jacobs identifies second homes in Denbighshire as being small
remote and isolated dwellings, often without amenities, offering an idyll of a more
simple life and privacy for urban dwellers. The aesthetic was apparently important,
promoted by weekend glossy magazines in the late 1960s and early 1970s (Jacobs,
1972). Rateable values were low, reflecting their size and/or their poor condition.
Tuck (1973) also suggests that three-quarters of second homes in Caenarvonshire
were similarly purchased in a poor state of repair and renovated by their owners.
Even where local residents have been unhappy about the growing numbers of
second homes or in-migrants in their area, Ashby et al. (1975) report that many
were resigned to the phenomenon, as the only alternative would be the possible
abandonment and dilapidation of these properties.
48
The re-use of surplus dwellings as part of the second home market may have been
a short-lived phenomenon. Even Jacobs’ (1972) study of Denbighshire, North
Wales, that highlights the use of dilapidated dwellings as second homes, notes the
increasing growth of second homes in villages and the recent purchasing of more
terraced, less isolated properties. Davies and O’Farrell (1981) also note, in their
study of a district in West Wales that second homes were no longer a phenomenon
in open farmland alone but their significance as a village occurrence increased over
time. The South West study dispels the myth that second homes were bought
dilapidated, cheaply and renovated at public expense, using housing improvement
grants, as the situation was more complex. It seems apparent that in many areas,
as mentioned, the market developed beyond the stock of remote surplus housing,
and gave rise to competition for existing dwelling, new build built homes, caravan
sites or chalet developments. The expansion may have occurred at different
times,giving rise to regional and local variations in the experiences of local housing
markets.
Whilst Tuck (1973) and Jacobs (1972) report that in North Wales property is usually
old isolated stone built cottages, barely habitable, with two or three bedrooms, many
studies show how a full range of property is used as second homes (SWEPC, 1975;
Capstick, 1987; Coleman, 1982; Downing and Dower, 1977; Gallent et al. 2002).
The South West study shows that houses are the dominant form second homes
take, but bungalows, flats and chalets are also common. Two-thirds of the flats
used as second homes were built after 1945 and the remainder were conversions of
larger Victorian properties. Two thirds of the houses and bungalows used as
second homes in the South West were also built after 1945, and only five per cent
were built prior to 1914. There were spatial differences to this pattern, however, as
in the East of the region, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire 90% of the second homes
were built before 1914, but second homes were less prevalent in these counties. In
Cornwall 19% of second homes had been purchased new, although as a proportion
of all new build in the county second homes represent only four per cent. In some
villages, however, second homes accounted for at least a quarter of new build
properties, as in Padstow and Wadebridge in Cornwall.
Second homes in the South West also had more amenities than the regional
average. Ninety-five per cent of the second homes surveyed had five basic
amenities and 70% of them had these amenities when the properties were
purchased. In Jacobs’ study second home owners conducted extensive repairs to
the properties, but this was less apparent in the second home market in Devon and
Cornwall at this time, although it may have been apparent in an earlier period. The
size and the range of properties used as second homes were close to the regional
averages.
49
Downing and Dower found a similar range of properties used as second homes to
the SWEPC study. Built second homes were more predominant than caravans or
chalets, but again these were spatially concentrated and so local variations existed.
Second homes in Angus for example, were houses and cottages, but in Largs
caravans, chalets and flats were evident in large numbers. The rateable values of
some second homes, in Strathspey for example, were quite high reflecting the
affluence of the owners.
Capstick (1987) illustrates how second homes in the Lake District included older
terrace properties in Windermere, Keswick and Ambleside, quarrymen’s cottages in
Coniston, purpose-built flats in Windermere, and even terrace houses in the exindustrial village of Staveley. She notes that building to high density with spartan
standards to keep the price low does not deter second home owners, as in the
example of new houses in Thrang Quarry. In addition, Coleman (1982) found that
25% of second homes in North Norfolk were newer properties and 9% were newly
built when purchased.
Gallent et al. (2002) also report a full range of property being sought by second
home owners but suggested they were often smaller. They also found some remote
dwellings on the Welsh/Shropshire border with poor accessibility or employment
opportunities that he argued were not in great demand by local people, and so their
use as second homes represented a viable alternative. However, it is unclear from
later studies to what extent this use as second homes, of dwellings in poor repair or
in low demand by local residents, holds true today. What the studies do illustrate is
that any property has the potential to become a second home in these areas, but
that experiences are likely to vary considerably across different local housing
markets.
Competition within local housing markets
Many types of property may become second homes, and therefore direct
competition may exist for specific types of property with local residents. However, it
is necessary to consider the wider impact of second homes on local housing
markets. Second homes may exert an indirect influence, alongside other sources of
demand, and must be considered with the provision of new supply, as well as
housing market influences associated with the national or local economy.
The definitions used for second homes are important to consider. If chalets and
caravans have been included in the analysis with built second homes the degree to
which competition exists for housing within the local market may be misrepresented.
It was not explicit in the literature, but it is plausible that local demand for permanent
residence in static caravans or holiday chalets will be lower than that for built
homes, although there was evidence of caravans being used as winter lets in some
areas (Downing and Dower, 1977). Distinctions between different forms of second
50
or holiday homes and permanent or temporary dwellings are, however, blurred, but
greater effort should be made in any future analysis to disaggregate findings
accordingly.
This section presents the evidence relating to: whether direct competition exists
between second home owners and local residents; the role of second homes as part
of a number of sources of external demand creating house price inflation; the role of
a low wage economy in producing ineffective demand in housing markets and how
the availability of other forms of housing tenure may mitigate any adverse effects
produced as a consequence of external demand.
Early studies note that demand for second homes was expressed in the re-use of
surplus housing left by the effects of rural depopulation (Jacobs, 1972; Tuck, 1973).
Jacobs reported that local residents in Denbighshire considered these properties
less attractive. Younger and older local people wanted modern properties in towns
or villages, near employment, services and leisure facilities, and often preferred the
new council homes. Demand for these deep rural cottages pushed prices of these
homes upwards, but local residents and council officers did not believe this affected
locals, as they were not in the market for older homes. Isolated rural cottages were
viewed as suitable for recreational purposes but their usefulness for bringing up
young families was viewed as restricted. Tuck reported in Merionethshire that as
local residents were interested in modernised properties demand for the remote unmodernised cottages could have a positive effect on locals, as it provided an
opportunity for them to relocate to better quality accommodation.
However, it was apparent that as the supply of vacant property gradually diminished,
second home demand was directed towards property that otherwise could be used
by permanent residents (Jacobs, 1972; Tuck, 1973; Pyne, 1973). Davies and
O’Farrell (1981) found in a study of Cemeas in rural West Wales that it was not the
case that second home owners were only interested in isolated rural cottages and
found second home ownership an increasingly village phenomenon whose
significance had increased over time. Pyne also concluded that it was no longer
true that locals did not compete with second home owners in popular areas.
These studies addressed areas of North Wales. Also in the 1970s, Downing and
Dower (1977) considered several case study areas in Scotland and found a mixed
picture of second home owners being in direct competition with local residents. In
Angus and Largs they found no desire on the part of locals for the properties being
used as second homes, although in Strathspey and Skye there was evidence of
competition with local first time buyers. Shucksmith (1981) reported estate agents in
the Lake District thought that locals did compete with second home owners. Gallent
et al. (2002) surveyed local council officials in rural areas and none of the
respondents thought that local demand would be absent for dwellings currently used
51
as second homes, if that demand was withdrawn. However, in this contemporary
study, the authors did find property on the Shropshire Welsh border that had poor
accessibility and low demand, for which they suggested second homes would be a
viable alternative use.
Second home owners do act as direct competitors with local residents but this varies
across locations, and is under-explored in many studies. Moreover, there are wider
considerations relating to the impact of second home demand on local housing
markets, particularly with regard to the role second homes play, as part of wider
patterns of external demand. Many studies look at strong external demand pushing
house prices beyond the means of local residents (Coleman, 1982; Tewdwr-Jones
et al. 2002; Bennett, 1979; Jacobs, 1972). As Gallent et al. (2002) and TewdwrJones et al. (2002) emphasise, retirement and commuting are generally the most
significant expressions of external demand in rural housing markets, but that,
alongside these, second homes do exert pressure on local markets. Against this
background, Pyne (1973) makes the point that isolating the effects of second homes
from other factors that impact on any housing market is a considerable challenge.
Bennett (1979) traces the impact of ‘urban demand’, i.e. second homes, retirement
homes and commuters, on the Lake District housing market and sees that it
severely diminishes opportunities for local people who have lower wages and are
more geographically fixed in terms of employment or family locations in certain
villages.
She suggests that changes of use and accessibility are both
manifestations and causes of complex changes that have resulted in serious
inelasticity in the local housing situation for local residents. The cheaper end of the
market had gone to second home owners and commuters and the intensity of the
demand had raised house prices beyond the means of the locals. She uses local
data sources to show how, with above national average house price inflation in the
Lakes, local residents would struggle to buy homes in the area. Moreover, she
advises that once a property becomes a second home it does not revert to the
mainstream stock of houses available to local residents. National data seem to
suggest that numbers of second homes have fallen since this study was undertaken,
so it may no longer be the case in some areas at least that second homes do not
revert back to permanent residences.
Following on from the Bennett study, Capstick (1987) found that in the late 1980s
estate agents in the Lake District reported that demand for second homes was not
as significant as it had been, but that those who bought second homes were often
cash buyers who could afford a lot more than local residents. ‘Offcomers’, as
people from outside the area were called, could pay £50,000 cash, whilst local
residents struggled to afford £30,000 with a mortgage. Local residents’ wages were
below the national average and prohibited purchase in the National Park, as the
property was valued at prices beyond their means. Only Cockermouth and Penrith
52
offered opportunities for local buyers to access home ownership. Even former
council properties, of which a few had by this time entered the mainstream housing
market, remained unattainable to local residents. Gallent et al. (2002) also highlight
inadequate wages and insecurity in employment in the Lakes, where people working
locally have moved outside of the National Park and are bussed in for employment
causing problems for retaining balanced communities. In other case study areas
such as the Dales National Park and the New Forest, there was also experience of
local people being priced out of the market, but again as a result of demand for
retirement- and commuting-related house purchases as well as, to a varying extent,
second homes.
Ashby et al. (1975) found that in many parishes in North Wales the number of
second homes were a large proportion of, or were in excess of, the numbers on the
council housing waiting list. This study concluded that second homes were
responsible for this demand for public housing. An association between these
variables may be plausible, but, without an examination of the wider housing market,
any claims that second homes alone directly cause larger waiting lists may be
considered debatable.
Many rural areas in the case studies reported problems of first time buyers’ inability
to access home ownership (Bennett, 1979; Capstick, 1987; Gallent et al. 2002;
Johnston, 2003). Bennett (1979) did find young people moving to villages and
towns further from the Lake District but local residents were just as concerned about
the affordability of housing in areas such as the West where there were relatively
few second homes as residents in areas where second homes were nearly a third of
the total housing stock. Focus groups with young people and local residents in
Wales suggested some people had unrealistic expectations of the housing market,
and were not willing to take some council housing that was available (Johnston,
2003).
Gallent et al. (2002) also identify the ability of existing residents to trade up to reflect
changing household circumstances as important. This may have adverse impacts
through losing that household to the area, or the by the physical extension of the
current dwellings, thus reducing further the supply of smaller and cheaper properties
in the locality.
Coleman (1982) reports how local people in North Norfolk felt that demand from
local cities and London was fuelling higher house prices locally, and that they
considered incomers were paying ‘absurd’ prices for local property. Tewdwr-Jones
et al. (2002) warn that, in Wales, pressure exerted by second homes is of minor or
no significance, except in a few areas where it is viewed as an important component
of external demand. Local officer interviews highlighted that rising local house
prices were as much a product of reduced new supply in the countryside, national or
53
local economic factors, as well as the pressure exerted from external demand, and
that problems of affordability and poor housing access in rural Wales is as much a
consequence of ineffective demand caused by low wages.
Many factors conspire to influence local housing markets. Second homes are
problematic for locals in some areas but must be seen against a background of low
wage rural economies, restrictions on the supply of new housing and other sources
of external demand. In combination these factors have raised local house prices
and disadvantaged many local people in rural housing markets.
Impact of empty and holiday homes on rural housing markets
•
There is little evidence on the impacts of empty or holiday homes on rural
housing markets. Holiday homes were not the focus of any studies but
were often included in the analysis of second homes.
•
Tensions are apparent between the use of residential housing stock as
holiday accommodation and the importance of holiday letting to the tourist
industry.
Limited evidence regarding empty and holiday homes
Very little evidence was available on the impacts of empty or holiday homes on rural
housing markets (or the sustainability of rural communities). It is unclear whether
this is because of the lack of political, and therefore research commissioners’
interest in the subject or whether it is related to the search strategy used for this
review. The search strategy was quite broad and the terms used wide ranging, but
it is unclear whether a stock of literature related to the tourism industry remains
untapped. The causes of low demand and abandonment in urban areas have
generated a substantial body of work in the last decade but few studies concerning
causes and impacts of empty homes as a rural phenomenon were found.
Holiday homes were not the focus of any studies but were often included in the
analysis of second homes. Holiday homes were afforded separate analysis in
Davies and O’Farrell’s (1975) village study in Wales, but other studies were less
distinct in their treatment. Second and holiday homes were frequently referred to in
unison, which meant it was difficult to determine to what exactly the perceived
impacts related. Holiday investment properties were mentioned as a significant
source of external demand in some areas in Wales (Tewdwr-Jones et al. 2002), but
they were generally viewed as less problematic in the local market than second
homes (Johnston, 2003; Gallent et al. 2000; SWEPC, 1975). It is unclear whether
this relates to their being less prevalent, or that residents’ perceptions of their role in
the tourist economy produces a more positive image than a second home for purely
private use.
54
It is apparent that a tension exists between the significant use of residential housing
stock as holiday accommodation in situations of affordable housing shortages, and
the alignment of holiday letting with the local tourist economy, which is important in
many rural districts. Gallent et al. (2002) reports anxiety about this in Cornwall and
the Scilly Isles where the tourist economy is important for generating employment,
but affordable housing is in short supply. In the Scilly Isles the letting of holiday
homes owned by local residents was seen as positive as it brought income to the
islands that remained in the community and meant a local family were able to
remain living there. More concern was expressed at those holiday homes let by
owners who lived elsewhere, as money was not then retained in the community.
Holiday letting was associated with some problems in the local housing markets, but
they were not explored in great depth. The decline of the private rented sector in
some areas was linked, although the direction of causation is not established, with
the rise in holiday lettings, which were seen by landlords as more profitable
(Bennett, 1979). Deregulating the private rented sector may have ameliorated some
of this trend (Murie et al. 1995), but it remained an apparent problem in some areas
(Gallent et al. 2000). Longer winter lets for local residents were also problematic in
the more urban areas of the Lake District, such as Keswick, Ambleside and
Windermere, as people had to continuously find alternative sources of
accommodation once the tourist season began (Bennett, 1979).
The South West study conceptualised holiday homes as part of the stock of tourist
accommodation in the area, and not as a depletion of the mainstream residential
housing stock, which some holiday homes such as self-catering cottages will
certainly be. It cannot be assessed what impact this would have on any analysis as
the sister study, that focussed on tourist accommodation was unavailable for this
review.
Theme 2: Impact of empty and irregularly occupied properties on
community cohesion
There is much less evidence relating to the impact of empty and irregularly occupied
properties on community cohesion and the social mix of rural communities. Here we
report findings related to the integration of local residents with second home owners,
divided into the following sub-themes:
•
attitudes of local residents towards second home ownership;
•
attitudes of local residents towards second home owners;
•
the impact of second home ownership on community mix.
55
The first sub-theme presents evidence of the attitudes of local residents themselves
to second home ownership considering issues such as local residents’ perceptions
of social and change cultural change, and their tolerance of incomers.
The second sub-theme considers the evidence regarding the attitudes of host
communities towards second home owners themselves.
The third sub-theme relates to the impact of second home ownership on the
demographic profiles of rural communities, with particular regard to age and social
class.
Local residents’ attitudes towards second home ownership
•
Early studies indicate that second home ownership was seen by members
of host communities to be part of a wider process of social change rather
than the cause of out-migration, and was preferable to dereliction and
abandonment of surplus rural properties.
•
Attitudes towards second home ownership vary from location to location;
areas where tourism and recreation have been more dominant appear to be
more tolerant of second home ownership. Opposition to second home
ownership does not appear to be related to density or numbers of second
homes, but more related to cultural and community sensitivities.
Across the various studies local residents acknowledged that lack of work,
education, and leisure opportunities for young people as well as a lack of affordable
housing, had caused outward migration; second home ownership was seen to be
part of a wider process of social change (Bielckus, 1972; Jacobs, 1972; Pyne, 1973;
Bennett, 1979). In some areas outward migration and depopulation had followed
the closure of local industries (such as quarrying in the Lake District and North
Wales) and changes in agricultural practices had enabled second home ownership
to take hold. In some cases, the alternative to second home ownership was seen by
local people to be dereliction and de-population (Tuck, 1973; Pyne, 1973). Second
home owners were also seen to help maintain the local economy (see Community
Viability). In many places, local residents felt that property prices were forced up by
the demand from second home owners, and some reflected that local people had
benefited from this when they came to sell their houses (see for example, Ashby et
al. 1975).
In the survey carried out by Bielckus (1972), local residents were asked whether
second home development had had any impact on them. Across the four case
studies views varied; between 18% and 28% felt that had been affected by second
home development. They were also asked whether they thought second home
ownership was a ‘positive trend’. Responses to these questions also varied across
the four case study areas. Seventy per cent of local residents in one area (in West
56
Central Wales) thought second home ownership was a ‘good trend’, compared to
52% in the North Essex case study, dropping to 35% in South West Devon, and
31% in the Southern Lakes. Across all the four case studies approximately 15-20%
of respondents were indifferent to second home ownership. The authors suggest
that locations where tourism and recreation have traditionally been more dominant,
particularly coastal areas, are more tolerant of second home owners.
Differences in attitudes between areas were also reported by Bollom (1978) when
interviewing local residents in four case study areas in North Wales. Just over half
the residents in two case study areas, and more than 60% in a third thought the
effects of second home ownership were generally unfavourable. However in the
fourth case study area, with a high proportion of second homes, only 24% thought
second home ownership had unfavourable effects. Bollom (1978) noted that where
communities were held together either through religious or voluntary sector activity,
with strong local leadership, local groups were more likely to generate and articulate
opposition towards second home ownership and social changes. In the absence of
a mechanism to harness and articulate local opinion, communities were more likely
to be passively, but grudgingly accommodating of second home ownership. Bollom
suggests that effects of second home ownership on receiving areas will depend to a
great extent of the structure of the communities concerned, and ability of an area to
‘keep people in’. Opposition to second home ownership did not appear to be related
to the density or numbers of second homes .
Jacobs (1972) interviewed a sample of local gatekeepers, and found almost half
who thought the trend towards second home ownership was not welcome, but they
did not feel that second home owners were forcing young people out - there was no
work for young people, and they preferred town life anyway. Local people did not
want the properties that second home owners were buying because they were old,
or isolated, or had poor facilities. Many thought, however, that the prices of local
houses had risen due to second home owner demand.
One study (Ashby et al. 1975) interviewed a small number of local gatekeepers
regarding a chalet site for second home owners (formerly an army camp) that aimed
to be ‘self-contained’ and was relatively remote from any existing communities.
Local gatekeepers felt these types of development were preferable, because it
reduced pressure on permanent homes.
It is possible that attitudes have changed since these studies were conducted;
however, Gallent et al. (2002) also noted the differences between regions and areas
in perceptions of second home ownership and suggests that these differences may
be related to the economic cycle at any given time, the disposable income of the
new residents, and the attractiveness of second home living. In the UK, people in
areas where there are cultural and community sensitivities (such as the Welsh
57
speaking rural heartlands of Wales, and the Gaelic speaking, crofting communities
in Scotland) feel their way of life is particularly threatened by English speaking
temporary and permanent migrants. Johnston (2003) reported consensus among
local residents about incomers (second homes owners, commuters and retirees)
being the only people who can compete in local housing markets, and this was the
source of some local resentment.
Local residents’ attitudes towards second home owners
•
There is little evidence of conflict between second home owners and local
residents, although there are marked differences in attitudes towards
second home owners in different areas.
•
There is evidence of community interaction between second home owners
and local residents
There seemed to be very little conflict between second home owners and local
residents reported in the studies, although studies indicated that local residents’
views and second home owners’ views of their acceptance and levels of toleration
differed; second home owners thought they were more welcome than locals
reported (Downing and Dower, 1977; Coleman, 1982). Capstick found that
resentment was not directed at incomers but at the planning system which was
unable to prevent their entry or unwilling to allow local people access to land or
buildings to erect houses or convert redundant buildings into homes (Capstick,
1987).
The study by Downing and Dower (1977) carried out in seven case study areas
across Scotland also showed also marked differences between areas in local
residents’ attitudes to second home owners. In some areas, where family ties and
inheritance were strong, second home owners were not considered outsiders, since
they were predominantly local people who had retained ownership of their home
when forced to leave to find work. In other areas there was clear resentment of
wealthy, ostentatious newcomers, both second home owners and retirees.
Resentment existed where newcomers were in direct competition with locals in the
housing market, or where there were great disparities in wealth or social
mannerisms.
The main focus of difference between local residents and second home owners (and
other incomers – retirees, commuters) in the Welsh studies was the inability of most
incomers to speak Welsh. This fired local concerns about the dilution and erosion of
Welsh culture (Pyne, 1973; Jacobs, 1972; Tuck, 1973; Bollom, 1978; Johnston,
2003). However significant proportions of second home owners in these studies
reported previous ties with Wales (57%, Jacobs; 40%, Pyne; 60%, Tuck), and
claimed to have someone in their family who spoke Welsh.
58
Bollom (1978) found no difference in attitudes towards second home owners and
other incomers (usually retirees), however other studies indicated that permanent
residents were more welcomed by locals.
Various studies reported on the levels of social interaction between local residents
and second home owners. As Bennett noted, it is difficult for local residents and
migrants to contribute to communities together, as most second home owners visit
at weekend and holiday times, and are not present often enough to join in. Some
studies indicated that second home owners do ‘join in’ when they can, and local
residents reported that local festivals, fund raising events and activities were
supported by second home owners (Tuck, 1973; Jacobs, 1973; Ashby et al. 1975).
A further four studies asked second home owners about their membership of local
clubs and groups (Pyne, 1971; Bielckus, 1972; Coleman, 1982; Ashby et al. 1975).
Between one quarter and one third of respondents in these studies reported
membership of local clubs, but these were often linked to recreation such as golf or
boating, activities usually intended for incomers rather than locals. The level of
‘joining in’ was a function of how regularly second home owners used their
properties rather than the length of ownership.
In order to gauge the level of interaction, other studies asked second homeowners
how often they invited local people to their homes, and how many they knew by
name; local residents were asked similar questions (Bollom, 1978; Jacobs, 1972;
Ashby et al. 1975). It was clear that there was some regular interaction.
Community Mix
•
Profiles of second home owners indicate that generally they are middleaged or retired, and wealthier than the national average, however much of
the data is more than 20 years old.
•
It is difficult to compare the ‘incomers’ with ‘locals’ as few studies profile
host communities.
•
More recent studies report concerns that the age profile of rural
communities is unbalanced as younger people migrate away and are
replaced by older incomers.
•
Demands for housing from commuters, the retired and second home
owners has changed the profile of rural communities.
A number of studies attempted to profile second home owners in respect to age,
income, education, and area of main residence (Bielckus, 1972; Pyne, 1973;
SWEPC, 1975; Downing and Dower, 1977; Bollom, 1978; Bennett, 1979; Coleman,
1982; Damer, 2000; Gilbert, 2001; Johnston, 2003; Gallent et al. 2002). Some
caution is required however in interpretation as many of these data are more than
20 years old. Without presenting too much of the detail, there are a number of
59
generalisations that can be made. In general the majority of second home owners
came from the urban conurbation/s nearest to their host communities6. Second
homes in Scotland were predominantly owned by people from urban areas in
Scotland. In terms of age, social class and income, second home owners were
predominantly middle aged or retired, and predominantly on higher than national
average income (SWEPC, 1975; Downing and Dower, 1977; Damer, 2000; Gilbert,
2001; Bollom, 1978; Bielckus, 1972). Most were from the educated, professional
classes. If asked, many expressed their intention to retire to their second home.
These are broad generalisation and between locations there could be significant
differences; for example, the coast areas in easy reach of Glasgow had greater
numbers of manual, and skilled-manual workers with second homes, and the
Scottish islands had a number of people who had migrated to urban centres but
maintained a base in their home communities. Few studies profile the host
communities in any great depth, so it is problematic to compare the ‘incomers’ with
the ‘locals’ although clearly many of the host communities in these studies were in
decline, and had experienced outward migration, particularly of young people.
Two early studies reflected that over time the demography of communities will
change, as many second home owners intended to retire to their second property or
had bought the property specifically with retirement in mind (Pyne, 1973; Coleman,
1982), prompting speculation that this will increase pressure on health and social
welfare systems in the future. These concerns are echoed in the later studies.
Johnston (2003) reported local concerns that young people were leaving rural
communities and being replaced by older incomers (both second home owners and
permanent residents). Gallent (2000) also notes the in-balance in the age profile of
some rural areas associated with outward migration of the young and inward
migration of older incomers (second home owners, and retirees and commuters).
The use of housing for recreation and retirement has changed the type of people in
villages and community life (Bennett, 1979; Gallent, 2000). Bennett concluded that
the effect of demand for holiday homes had been to limit the numbers and types of
people able to live in the countryside, and this had some disruptive effects by
establishing dissatisfaction and frustration, engendered by the presence of empty
housing, and accentuated the differences between the ‘new’ and ‘old’ population
with respect to different access to housing. By 2002, Gallent et al. suggested that
the damage to local communities arising from demand (and consequent increase in
6
In North Wales, second home owners came from Merseyside and southern Manchester (see Jacobs, 1972; Ashby
et al., 1975; Bollom, 1978); in Central Wales, second homeowners came from the West Midlands and Merseyside
(Tuck, 1973); for Norfolk second home owners come from the South East, London and the East Midlands (Coleman,
1982). For the South West, the majority came from the South East and London (SWEPC, 1975). In Scotland,
challenging notions of ‘white settlers’ from south of the border, the overwhelming majority of second homeowners
were from Scotland, usually from the Scottish urban conurbations (Downing and Dower, 1977; Damer, 2000). The
studies in the Lake District (Bennett, 1979; Capstick, 1987) did not collect data regarding main residence of second
homeowners.
60
house prices) from second home owners, commuters, and retirees had already
been done.
Theme 3: Community Viability – the extent of contribution to local
economies from second home ownership
Second home owners can potentially bring income into an area from the initial
purchase price of their property, spending on renovation and improvements, paying
local taxes (rates or council tax), and spending on food, leisure and other services.
Below we present the evidence relating to the economic contribution to local
economies from second home ownership under the following sub-themes:
•
contribution to regional and country economies;
•
income from property sales;
•
income from renovation and improvements;
•
income from local taxes;
•
expenditure on local services;
•
employment opportunities.
Contribution to regional and county economies
•
Second home ownership was seen to make a useful contribute to local
economies as part of the tourist industry, but there were differences in the
levels of contribution between different localities, making generalisations
regarding the impact of second home ownership problematic. None of the
studies tried to compare the typical expenditure of a second home owner
with that of a permanent resident.
Jacobs (1972) estimated that £4.2M per annum was added to the total Welsh
economy by second home ownership; the South West Economic Planning Council
(SWEPC) study (1975) estimated that £5.1M was generated in the region by second
home ownership. Tuck (1973) estimated £1.34M was added to Merioneth county
income. Without knowing what proportion of county/regions income these figures
represent, it is difficult to ascertain the significance of the contribution made by
second home ownership. De Vane (1975) gives some indication of this, reporting
that the income generated in Gwynedd to be approaching £3M per annum, which
compared favourably with other sectors such as textiles, quarrying and rail transport,
placing the second home industry about mid-way in the income-producing league.
The SWEPC study noted that the total regional income from this source was not
great, although it may have been more significant in some areas than others; the
nature of their survey did not allow the identification of more localised areas that
benefited or suffered from second home ownership.
61
Income from property sales
•
It is difficult to ascertain on the basis of the available evidence whether or
not income from the sale of properties as second home supports local
economies.
The direct benefits of the initial property purchase price will not always accrue to
local populations. For properties that are owned locally, the value may enter the
local economy depending on how the seller uses the funds (SWEPC, 1975; Pyne,
1973). Pyne noted that in many cases the increased value of the cottages in North
Wales had facilitated outward migration as local people could now afford to move to
more expensive areas previously out of their price range. If a property is already
owned outside a local area the purchase funds will clearly not go into the local
economy. De Vane’s survey in Gwynedd identified that 45% of holiday cottages
were bought from local owners, although it is difficult to know whether this is
representative of other areas. Downing and Dower (1977) noted different patterns
of property ownership in their Scottish case studies. In areas where most
landowners are absentee, little financial benefit is directed to local communities by
property sales; however, in other places, the purchase price was more likely to
remain in the local economy, because many of the vendors and purchasers were
relatively ‘local’ (for example, Oban). The same points can be made about the
income generated from renting holiday properties.
Pyne and the SWEPC study noted that the sale of new build properties to second
home owners is more likely to bring money into the local economy (but this will of
course depend on whether the new development is funded by local investors). Pyne
(1973) estimated that £550,000 per annum was brought into Caenarvonshire from
the sale of new build properties. The SWEPC study (1975) estimated £1.6M per
annum was brought into the South West Region. Both these studies were
conducted during the 1970s, and it is difficult to know what this can tell us about
current income derived from the purchase of new build second homes.
Income from renovation and improvements
•
Spending on renovation and modernisation of second homes has brought
new income into local economies; however, these must be seen as one-off
spends.
•
Renovations carried out by second home owners have upgraded the
housing stock, although it is debatable whether local residents benefit.
•
Data regarding spending on renovation are mainly drawn from the 1970s
when they may have been a greater supply of properties in a poor state of
repair. We know very little about contemporary spending on renovations
and repair.
62
Spending on renovations and modernisation was also seen as a means of bringing
new income into local economies, as well as upgrading the housing stock. Eighty
seven per cent of second home owners in Jacobs’ survey (Jacobs, 1972) reported
they had undertaken repairs (at an average cost of £700). Pyne (1973) found 70%
of the second home properties surveyed had been improved, and 50% of these had
significant improvements such as the installation of basic amenities (bathrooms,
indoor WCs). The SWEPC study (1975) found 45% of second home owners in the
East of the region had undertaken repairs (average cost £1,400) compared to 75%
in the west of the region (average cost £2,200). Tuck’s survey of second home
owners in Merioneth (Wales) reported that 52% of properties were older unmodernised when purchased, 21% were modernised older properties, and 21% of
properties were new. There is some evidence (Coleman, 1982) that second home
owners spend on average less on renovation work than permanent residents, or
people intending to retire to their holiday properties.
Pyne (1973) estimated a total annual income to the county economy of £120,000
from renovation and repairs, while the SWEPC study estimated £325,000 was spent
annually in the South West region. Spending on renovation and repairs however
must be seen as ‘one-off’ spends. Note again that these studies were undertaken in
the 1970s when there may have been a greater supply of properties that were either
in a poor state of repair or derelict. We have very few more recent data to indicate
whether second home owners invest in renovations, although planners interviewed
across Wales (Tewdwr-Jones et al. 2002) noted that second home were more likely
to be created from properties that are less attractive to local people either due to
location or condition, but this was seen as a tendency rather than a general rule.
Renovation grants were available when some of these studies were conducted, and
there was some discussion regarding the distribution of these grants to second
home owners. De Vane and Pyne noted that much of the funding for renovation
grants came from central government. Thus second home owners were not being
subsidised by their host communities to renovate properties; they had brought in
central government funds which otherwise would not have been forthcoming and so
improvements carried out with grant funding could be seen as ‘credits’ to the local
community. The local housing stock was also being improved, although it was
questionable how much local residents had benefited from these improvements.
Both Pyne and De Vane highlight that the rateable value of renovated properties
increased, generating more income for local authorities, and allowing authorities to
recoup their (small) contribution to renovation grants.
Income from local taxes
•
Through payment of local taxes second home owners support services for
their host communities without creating much additional demand for
services.
63
•
Second home owners have been criticised because they do not use local
services and therefore reduce their viability. This is based on the
assumption that properties would be occupied by permanent residents if
they were not occupied by second home owners, and clearly this was not
the case in some of the case study areas.
Various authors made the point that second home owners paid rates for services
that they either did not use (such as social care, education) or used very
infrequently, and were in fact supporting services for their host communities without
creating additional demand. The additional rates contribution of second home
owners was particularly important in remote areas with small, scattered and often
ageing populations in properties with low rateable values (Downing and Dower,
1977).
Pyne (1973) noted that although second home owners did not use some services,
the seasonal pattern of occupancy created difficulties for service providers, for
example, refuse collection and sewage/water services. There were also concerns
about villages being ‘dead’ through the winter months (Bielckus, 1972; TewdwrJones et al. 2002). Tuck notes that second home owners are often criticised
because they do not use local services particularly schools, decreasing their
viability. Such criticisms are based on the assumption that properties would be
occupied by permanent residents with children if they were not occupied by second
home owners, which clearly was not the case in some of the communities where
local informants grudgingly accepted second home ownership as a preferable
alternative to dereliction. Pyne also notes that many services were in decline before
the arrival of second home owners (1973). Gallent et al. (2002) also noted that
although falling school roles have been attributed to incomers, particularly older
incomers, there is evidence or rolls rising as people migrate towards the most
popular schools.
There were no studies which investigated the consequences of increased levels of
income derived from recent changes to council tax paid by second home owners.
Expenditure on local services
•
We know very little about current patterns of expenditure by second home
owners on local services.
Several studies (Jacobs, 1972; Tuck, 1973; De Vane, 1975) present detailed
estimates of spending in local shops and on recreation. However, the growth and
dominance of large supermarket chains that has occurred since many of these
studies were undertaken makes it seem likely that the shopping habits identified in
the 1970s are no longer typical of contemporary second home owners or local
residents. With this caveat in mind, studies showed that many second home owners
64
reported that they used local shops for food shopping, and some did this
intentionally to support services in their host communities (Damer, 2000).
The level of annual spend by second home owners is also mediated by the number
and length of visits to second homes. Data from surveys suggested that the number
of visits varies considerably and is frequently related to the accessibility of the
properties, whether the property is rented/loaned out to other visitors, and whether
the owners are retired. Jacobs (1972) reported the second homes in his survey to
be occupied on average for 17.5 weekends per year, and 7.5 weeks per year
(usually in the summer). The SWEPC study reported second homes being occupied
for 108 days on average per year, but this varied greatly (range 80-140 days), with
properties in more accessible places being used less at weekends, but for longer
breaks in the summer. In Coleman’s survey of second home owners 90% used their
properties between 40 and 100 days a year (Coleman, 1982). Pyne reported an
average occupancy of 83 nights per year, but with little use made of the properties in
the winter months. The seasonal peaks and troughs of occupancy increase summer
trade, but this falls off again in winter months.
Based on interviews with a sample of local businesses, Coleman (1982) reported
that only 23% of trade came from second home owners, compared with 46% from
permanent residents and 30% from ‘other visitors’. These levels varied of course
depending on the type of business, with specialist leisure and recreation related
businesses being more dependent on trade from second home owners. About one
quarter of the businesses surveyed thought they would close down without the
second home owner trade.
Employment opportunities
•
Early studies suggest that employment related to renovation and building
was created by second home ownership, however a more recent study
suggests that any additional jobs are limited, low skilled and seasonal.
Employment opportunities – particularly related to renovation and building – were
seen to have been created by second home ownership and two studies attempted to
quantify the number of jobs created. Pyne (1972) suggested that the income
generated by second home ownership equated to the provision of almost 1,000 jobs
in Caenarvonshire; however, the almost contemporary study (De Vane, 1975)
estimated that second home ownership generated 1,500 jobs in total across Wales.
Additional but limited, low skilled and usually seasonal work (gardening, cleaning,
catering) was also seen to be generated by second home ownership. Gallent
(2000) notes the dangers of the narrowing of local economic as a result of
agricultural decline; population loss; the inability to foster new forms of economic
65
activity other than through tourism; and the growth of temporary and permanent inmigrants.
Theme 4: Impact of empty and irregularly occupied properties on the
quality of the built environment
There was little evidence in regard to this theme, and what there was related to
studies from the 1970s.
•
Early studies suggest that second home ownership had a positive impact on
the built environment, particularly with regard to conservation, as many
properties were renovated.
•
No studies address broader environmental concerns.
As noted above, the studies from the 1970s indicated that many properties
renovated by second home owners had been in a poor state of repair, and would
have been demolished (Bielckus, 1972; Tuck, 1973; Pyne, 1973). Thus second
home ownership could have a positive impact on the built environment with regard
to conservation.
There were, however, concerns about the chalet-type
developments and their impacts on the visual environment, as they frequently were
not built in traditional vernacular styles and needed to be sited carefully and
screened to ensure their visual impact was minimised. No studies addressed
broader environmental concerns – for example additional traffic generated by
visitors, sewage and waste disposal – beyond noting that services could be put
under pressure during the seasonal summer peaks of occupancy.
More recently Gallent et al. (2002) indicates that new residents (second
homeowners and permanent incomers) are more likely to oppose new
developments, albeit of housing or jobs, in rural areas, and are more likely to want to
preserve a place ‘in aspic’.
Conclusion
Studies have focused primarily on second homes rather than holiday homes.
Studies have tended not to consider the impact of empty dwellings on rural
communities. Evidence from studies is primarily geared towards a consideration of
second homes, with a particular emphasis on their impact on rural housing markets
rather than other aspects of sustainability such as economic or environmental
factors.
An assessment of the impact of empty or irregularly occupied properties on housing
markets cannot be divorced from a broader consideration of wider processes
operating in rural areas. Demand for housing from other groups such as commuters
and retirees, as well as people buying second or holiday homes, presents one factor
66
impacting on the availability of housing. However, low wage economies, restrictions
on the supply of new housing, as well as external demands combine to raise house
prices and disadvantage many local people in rural housing markets. Further, many
studies conclude that outward migration is more closely allied to a lack of
employment, education, and leisure opportunities than to a lack of housing.
Demand for housing from commuters, the retired and second home owners has
changed the profile of rural communities. More recent studies report concerns that
the age profile of rural communities is unbalanced, as younger people migrate away
and are replaced by older incomers. However, it is difficult to compare ‘incomers’
with ‘locals’ as few studies profile host communities.
Nevertheless, second home ownership was seen to make a useful contribution to
local economies as part of the tourist industry, but although differences in levels of
contribution between different localities make generalisations regarding the impact
of second home ownership problematic.
Further discussion of the impact of empty and irregularly occupied properties on
rural communities is presented in Chapter Seven.
67
Chapter Five
Reviewing policy options and recommendations
Introduction
In spite of the contentious nature of second and holiday homes, very few policy
instruments have focused on directly tackling their impacts.
In contrast,
considerable attention has been given to dealing with empty properties and much
practice has developed across the UK. However, as will be seen, evaluations of
policy and practice in tackling empty properties drawing on empirical data are
limited. This chapter explores any evidence relating to how policy interventions
have addressed any effects of empty or irregularly occupied properties on the
sustainability of rural communities. It does this outlining those policies that have
been directed at empty, second and holiday homes, or policies that have sought to
mitigate the impact of external pressures on rural housing markets, which have
included empty, second and holiday homes amongst other factors. The chapter is
divided into two sections. In Section One we consider the evidence related to policy
on second homes. In Section Two we consider the evidence related to policy on
empty properties in rural areas.
Section One: Second homes - policies, policy evaluations, and policy
recommendations
In this section we present evidence drawn from the review studies regarding policies
directed specifically towards second homes. We start by looking at the local policies
directed at second homes that are reported in the review studies. We then move on
to consider any evaluations of second homes policies looking at the limited empirical
evidence and evidence-based on extensive interviews with key stakeholders.
Finally, we present policy recommendations that have flowed from the overall
conclusions drawn from the studies by the authors themselves. Thus this section is
structured in the following way:
•
existing and proposed policies on second homes as reported in the review
studies;
•
empirical evaluations of policies on second homes;
•
stakeholder views on policy options;
•
policy recommendations made by authors of the review studies.
68
Existing and proposed second homes policies as reported in the review
studies
•
In both England and Wales, only a minority of local authorities and National
Parks report that they have a specific policy towards second homes.
•
Broadly speaking, where these policies exist they relate to occupancy
controls mostly on new dwellings.
In England, Gallent et al. (2002) surveyed housing and planning departments in
rural district and unitary authorities. They identified local authorities included in their
sample that stated that they had policies directed specifically at second homes.
Only 11% of planning departments had developed a specific policy whilst 30% of
housing departments stated that they had done so. One third of National Parks had
specific policies. However, Gallent et al. (2002) noted that it was clear that in the
main these related not to actual polices but to consultation exercises, or proposals
on the formulation of policies. These included consultation on council tax discounts
on second homes, proposals on occupancy controls in partnership with nearby
National Parks, or a recognition of the positive economic impact of second homes
on the economic vitality of local areas. With respect to planning departments, the
removal of the discount on council tax for second homes again featured, although
three planning authorities restricted new development to affordable housing only,
and also second and holiday homes were encouraged as part of farm diversification
schemes.
Further detail on existing and proposed second homes policies was reported as part
of research into the extent and nature of housing pressures in the Welsh National
Parks and Ceredigion (Johnston, 2003). Of the twelve National Parks and councils
in England and Wales reviewed, eight had no specific policy on second homes
(Ceredigion County Council, Conwy County Borough Council, Powys Council,
Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority (NPA)/Pembrokeshire County
Council, Snowdonia NPA, and Brecon Beacons NPA, Peak District NPA and Lake
District NPA). Of the remainder, Johnston (2003) noted that:
•
Gwynedd Council had a policy whereby any proposals that would lead to an
increase in second homes would be refused in communities where the level
of second homes had reached 10%;
•
Dartmoor NPA did not have a specific policy, but a change of use from a
holiday home to residential use would be viewed positively;
•
Exmoor NPA proposed that planning applications for change of use would
have to be submitted if owners do not intend to spend more than 6 months
of the year living in the property. Authorities would be instructed to refuse
applications that could endanger the economic welfare of local communities
69
who depend on the year-round trade of full time residents, rather than the
seasonal income from holiday homeowners. These would not be granted
where 10% of homes are second homes. Subsequent to the report by
Jonhston (2003), the proposals by Exmoor NPA were dropped from the
Local Plan after comments from Government Office for the South West. It
was felt that potential use of a dwelling as a second home could not
legitimately be controlled by planning legislation, and that such a policy
would be difficult to monitor and enforce. Further, there were also concerns
that the policy might serve only to increase house prices beyond the
national park, and that the policy would be open to challenge in the courts
by potential homebuyers. Instead, the revised deposit Local Plan aimed to
focus almost exclusively on the provision of low cost housing to achieve the
levels of affordable housing required to meet community needs within the
National Park.
Recently, Yorkshire Dales National Park has passed a policy to restrict the
occupancy of new homes and barn conversions. Planning applications will only be
approved where it can be shown that they meet local needs.
Evaluating policies on second homes
•
Evaluations of specific policy interventions in rural areas have been limited,
and have focused upon the use of restrictions on occupancy.
•
This review identified only two studies (Shucksmith, 1981; Capstick, 1987)
that evaluated the use of the Town and Country Planning Act 1972 to
restrict new development. The two authors reached different conclusions,
however both agreed that restricting new development to local people only
did not help local people on low incomes.
•
Very little recent work has been undertaken to assess the impact of local
occupancy policies on rural housing markets. Instead, research has
focused upon the mechanisms for delivering affordable housing in the
countryside
Evaluations of specific policy interventions in rural areas have been limited, and
have focused upon the use of restrictions on occupancy. As such, second homes
form part of the range of pressures that these policies have sought to address.
Shucksmith (1981) evaluated the use of Section 52 of the Town and Country
Planning Act, 1972, by the Lake District National Park Planning Board. In 1977, the
Board introduced a policy to restrict new development within the National Park to
locals only, in an attempt to reduce demand pressures on new housing, so making it
more accessible for local people. Shucksmith (1981) presented data to show that a
70
sharp rise in house prices was observable at the same time that this policy was
introduced. The reason put forward for this was that demand had been deflected
into the market for second-hand sales. Further, a reduction in planning permissions
meant that a reduced supply of housing was available for local people as well.
However, the research by Shucksmith (1981) was contested by Capstick (1987)
who argued that the policy adopted by the Lake District National Park Planning
Board did not cause a reduction in the number of sites coming forward for
development, and that the number of planning permissions remained steady both
before and after the policy was adopted. Further, Capstick suggested that South
Lakeland Council already had a policy which was more restrictive than that applied
by the National Park Planning Board, and that the increase in prices could not
necessarily be attributed to the policy introduced by the Planning Board.
However, perhaps more significantly, Shucksmith noted that, although prices did fall
in the market for new homes, it was reported that estate agents queried their
availability for local people on low incomes. They noted that new homes tended to
be more expensive than second hand sales and were not an entry point for first time
buyers for example, and that the local people who were purchasing the new homes
were existing owners anyway. Furthermore, the evaluation by Capstick also noted
that, although the policy was locally popular, a survey of properties developed under
the S52 policy showed that it was not first time buyers who were buying this
property, but older owners, who were trading up from existing homes. Thus,
although the policy helped people who met the criteria of being local, it was argued
that it failed to help local people on lower incomes.
Since the work undertaken by Shucksmith and Capstick, very little work has been
undertaken to assess the impact of local needs policies on rural housing markets.
Instead, research has focused upon the mechanisms for delivering affordable
housing in the countryside (see for example, Crook et al., 2002; ENTEC et al.,
2003).
However, Johnston (2003) noted that Pembrokeshire National Park had
commissioned research to examine the extent to which local needs policies may
inflate local house prices.
Stakeholder views on policy
•
Recent research in England suggests strong support from authorities for
greater powers in respect of second homes, however research in Wales
shows more ambivalence towards the use of second homes policies.
•
Evidence suggests that planning controls are not seen by key stakeholders
to be the correct mechanism for controlling second homes; fiscal measures
are thought to be more appropriate and could be more sensitively applied in
local contexts.
71
•
Other pressures on rural housing markets, particularly from people seeking
to retire to rural areas, are thought to be more significant than second
homes.
•
Any policy measures should not adversely impact on holiday letting which is
perceived to be an important factor in local economies.
•
Restricting new build to local occupancy is unlikely to make a significant
difference to the supply of affordable housing in areas such as National
Parks, where there are few if any new developments. There is a greater
imperative to manage existing housing stock.
A key source in the evaluation of existing or potential policies on second homes has
been interviews with stakeholders as part of case study work exploring views on
various policy options available on second and holiday homes. Research in
England by Gallent et al. (2002) found strong support from authorities for greater
powers. Although housing departments were keen to see planning take a more
leading role, planning departments themselves were more ambivalent in this
respect. It was felt by the latter that planning was not the correct mechanism for
controlling the use of private property and also that second homes are a minor issue
and not a central planning concern. Further, since planning only has a real
purchase on the development of new dwellings, it was noted that limited impact
could be made in areas of high amenity value, where new development was
restricted in any case. This finding from planning departments coincides with the
views of planners interviewed in earlier research by Bielckus et al. (1977) who also
noted that second homes were only really taken account of in policy terms in so far
as they fit in with, or conflict with, existing planning policies. The broad view from
this latter research was that no special policy either existed or was thought to be
necessary. Second homes form only part of the general considerations that
planners needed to take account of and it was felt that existing provisions could
cope with any particular situation which might arise.
Interviews with housing and planning authorities in Wales suggested that views are
ambivalent on the extent to which policy should be applied to second and holiday
homes. In part, second and holiday homes are viewed as one component of wider
pressures on rural housing markets. Tewdwr-Jones et al. (2002) found that any new
planning powers should not relate to second and holiday homes, but rather to
retirement and commuting markets. Respondents to research in Wales also noted
that any policy directed at second and holiday homes must be seen as
complementary – nd even secondary – to a more concerted effort to manage wider
social (including cultural and linguistic) change and economic challenges facing rural
areas.
72
As with findings in England, Tewdwr-Jones et al. (2002) found that members of local
authority planning departments felt that there was generally little support for
planning to be used as a mechanism for controlling second homes. Instead, it was
felt that fiscal measures would not only be more appropriate, but could be more
sensitively applied in local contexts where second homes have a more significant
impact.
National Parks were more in favour of stronger measures such as removing Capital
Gains Allowance on second homes, strengthening occupancy conditions, or
amending use class orders so that a residential dwelling which became a second
home would be regarded as a change of use that would require permission. A
further possibility that was raised was the use of an impact levy on second home
owners, such as a higher stamp duty on properties bought as second homes.
One recent development has been legislation to remove, or substantially reduce, the
discount that second home owners received with regard to council tax. Previously,
second home owners had received a 50% discount on council tax. Unitary
authorities in Wales have had the discretion to charge full council tax on second
homes since 1998. The research by Tewdwr-Jones et al. (2002) noted that by
2001, all but two of 22 authorities had done this. Research conducted in England at
the time when the removal of the 50% discount on council tax for second homes
was subject to consultation, identified a view amongst local authority respondents
that, whilst the move was to be welcomed, the impact on second home demand was
likely to be negligible (Gallent et al. 2002). The extra revenue that removing the
discount would bring in would be welcome but minimal, except for a few areas
where second homes were present in very large numbers. However, very few
respondents thought that the extra revenue generated would be sufficient to support
key services in locations where their viability had been undermined by a high
incidence of second homes.
The analysis of stakeholders’ views offers a helpful insight at local level on the
extent to which second homes perhaps require specific policy interventions
compared with other factors affecting rural areas. The recent research in both
England and Wales highlighted other pressures on rural housing markets as more
significant, but particularly from retirement.
Further, planning and housing
professionals in Wales felt that the purchase of property for second homes was not
as significant an issue within their local areas as it had been ten years ago (TewdwrJones, 2002). Instead, second homes are viewed as having localised impacts,
where they have an upward pressure on house prices and other impacts due to
partial occupancy of dwellings. This research also noted the importance of
economic challenges facing rural communities. Given that second homes are one
facet of a range of pressures and challenges facing rural communities, this perhaps
reflects that the assessment of policy interventions has tended not only to cover the
73
limited policy initiatives focused exclusively on second homes, but to look more
broadly at policy responses that aim to tackle the range of pressures on rural areas.
Respondents at local level were also careful to distinguish between second homes
for personal recreational use and holiday letting as a commercial venture.
Respondents felt that policy tools should be sensitive enough not to adversely
impact on holiday letting, which was viewed as an important source of income for
local economies.
A further difficulty here is being able to distinguish between the impacts of one
source of housing pressure compared with another. A complicating factor is that
motivations for acquiring housing in rural areas may be closely inter-related,
including second home ownership and retirement. A number of case studies in the
1970s and 1980s noted that a proportion of second home owners intended to retire
to their second homes, suggesting that a proportion of second home owners would
eventually become permanent residents (Pyne, 1973; Bielckus, 1977; Bollom, 1978;
Coleman, 1982).
Reviewing policy recommendations on second homes
•
Authors’ policy recommendations reflected the period in which their
research was conducted.
•
A common theme through a number of studies has been that policy should
ensure the provision of affordable housing in rural areas.
•
Most recently authors suggest planning and policy tools should be used in a
focused way and targeted on those communities with the greatest housing
pressures, with greater partnership working between local government and
rural communities.
In some respects recommendations from the studies in the review reflected the
period in which research studies were conducted. A common finding from research
in the 1970s was that the use of redundant dwellings in areas of economic and
population decline for second and holiday homes was likely to reduce as this ready
source of accommodation was used up. For example, Bielckus (1977) described
the period of the mid 1970s as a watershed in second home development. In
response, a number of authors in this period put forward the view that second
homes and holiday homes could be located and concentrated in purpose built
developments (Jacobs, 1972; Tuck, 1973). Further, such developments would be
more suited to coastal areas, where they could fulfil a recreational role (Bielckus,
1977, Davies and O’Farrell, 1981).
However, later studies did not feature this response, tending to focus on policies that
either intervene in the market choices exercised by second and holiday home
74
buyers, or respond to impacts, rather than proposing to steer demand towards
purpose built second or holiday accommodation.
Nevertheless, a common theme running through a number of studies has been that
policy needs to respond by boosting the provision of affordable housing in rural
areas. Earlier studies emphasised the role of local authorities in this respect. Direct
provision of dwellings owned by local authorities was put forward by Bielckus et al.
(1977). This study and a number of others also suggested that a way to provide
affordable housing could be to purchase existing properties and rent or lease them
to people in housing need (anticipating in principle schemes by housing associations
such as Purchase and Repair, and Existing Satisfactory Purchase).
The research in Wales by Tewdwr-Jones et al. (2002) proposed a range of
recommendations for policy, with the overall thrust being that planning and other
policy tools should be used in a more focused way, being targeted at those
communities most affected by the housing pressures investigated in the report. The
study recommended that to require planning permission to obtain a change of use
from a first home to a second home would result in fundamental problems in terms
of definition and of enforcement and the authors did not consider this a practical
option. Further, occupancy conditions and development plan policies restricting
occupancy to local people were not recommended, since it was felt that they are
problematic legally and in terms of definition, and are difficult to enforce. Instead,
Gallent et al. (2002) concluded that fiscal measures offer the most productive way
forwards for policy. A key argument here is that fiscal measures would allow a more
targeted approach.
Further, second homes should be placed within the broader context of pressures on
rural areas, rather than accorded a significance greater than their actual impact in
comparison with other considerations. In particular, Gallant et al. (2002) felt that
further research was required to investigate the relationships between affordable
housing and wider rural issues, and especially how an integrated approach by
various agencies could provide common solutions to overlapping issues. A key
message was that second and holiday homes provide only one part of the pressure
facing rural communities. In this respect, the authors recommended that local
planning authorities should identify particular communities in their development
plans where it is proven that the combined impacts, caused by, for example, a
defined and unmet housing need, a lack of economic diversification, linguistic and
cultural sensitivity and external housing pressure, are undermining the sustainability
of these communities. They also suggest research to assess the feasibility of
requiring planning authorities to undertake 'Language Impact Assessments' as part
of assessing planning application submissions by developers. Similarly, the
research by Johnston (2003) also highlighted the issue of Language Impact
Assessments for new development.
75
Linked to the recommendation to take a more holistic view of the range of factors
affecting rural communities Gallent et al. (2002) suggested greater partnership
working between local government agencies and also with rural communities
themselves.
Thus, the study recommended that there should be stronger
integration of housing and planning strategies, and stronger advice to planning
departments on the use of housing strategies. Also, that there should be greater
joined up working on planning and housing matters – perhaps through
establishment of local housing fora. The report also suggested that professional
bodies provide training and advice to elected members and officers on the handling
of wider social, community and cultural matters in their planning duties. Further, that
national government should consider how to make the planning system more
responsive to community values and how individual communities can be effectively
consulted on planning related issues. Agencies should provide training courses to
assist in economic diversification within the countryside.
Analysing local housing markets and data collection
Findings drawn from local stakeholders, and also conclusions drawn from authors,
point to the importance of specifying impacts of second homes through local
assessments, to provide evidence of the actual impact of second homes. Indeed, a
number of authors note that a necessary precursor to the use of policy instruments
designed to mitigate the impacts of second homes is a sound evidence-base to
support their use (Tuck, 1973, Gallent et al. 2002). Increasingly, the value of robust
assessments of housing need or housing markets has been seen with regard to
supporting affordable housing policies. It is also likely that policies could be
challenged and a defence would need to be based on a clear exposition of the
impacts that second homes have had on specific localities or settlements. A similar
approach has been put forward for supporting the development of policies at local
level to mitigate the impact of second homes.
Further, policy interventions may have unanticipated or unintended consequences,
and their use should be preceded not only by an assessment of the need to apply a
policy to an area, but also by attempting to measure potential outputs and
outcomes.
Bielckus (1997) noted that any proposed new development of purpose built
accommodation for second or holiday homes should coincide with an assessment of
the impact on the local housing situation and on the local economy. Respondents in
recent research have also commented on the value of monitoring the impact of
second homes (Gallent et al. 2002). Interest in monitoring second homes was often
tied to the increased revenue offered by the removal of the council tax discount.
This had the potential to provide additional funds that could be targeted on areas
where it could be demonstrated that second homes had measurable social costs
76
and that it could be argued that communities should be compensated for these
costs.
The starting point for any assessment of impacts is ascertaining the number of
second homes in rural areas. However, as noted in Chapter Three one difficulty for
local authorities is the availability of accurate measures of second homes in their
areas. Recent research in England and Wales has suggested that local authorities
should establish separate procedures for collecting second home data (Gallent et al.
2002; Tewdwr-Jones, 2002). Data collection could be an integral part of council tax
monitoring, but it would be necessary to maintain a lower council tax rate on second
homes so that people be encouraged to declare or register their properties as
second homes (Gallant et al. 2002; Tewdwr-Jones et al. 2002). These authors also
suggested that further approaches to data collection include regular meetings
between local authorities and estate agents to ascertain patterns of growth,
migration, and house prices. It was also suggested that statistics on second homes
at local authority level should be published annually at national level and such
statistics should be disseminated annually to local authorities, housing agencies and
other organisations. Local authorities should demonstrate how the statistics are
influencing development of housing, planning and environmental policies locally.
Section 2: Empty properties
This section draws together the policy-related evidence on empty properties. The
four studies utilised here (Finch, 1987; Henderson et al. 1994; Murie et al. 1995;
Caledonian Economics et al. 2001) all focused on policies directed towards empty
properties. Two of these studies were evaluations of empty homes policies in
Scotland (Caledonian Economics et al. 2001; Henderson et al. 1994), and two were
studies designed to inform the policy making process by investigating the numbers
of vacant properties and reasons for vacancies, and suggesting policy
recommendations (Finch et al. 1987; Murie et al. 1995). The studies by Finch et al.
(1987) and Caledonian Economics (2001) addressed empty properties in both urban
and rural areas, and therefore it was not always possible to identify how far general
findings were applicable to the rural context. Nevertheless, the use of case studies
in this literature allowed empty homes to be examined in some detail in the rural
context, and to draw out issues that applied to empty properties in the countryside
from these examples.
Outcomes of policy evaluations
•
Policy interventions directed at bringing empty property back into use in
rural Scotland appear to offer a way of addressing housing need, especially
in remoter rural locations where development of new affordable housing by
housing associations may prove problematic.
77
The Scottish Empty Homes Initiative (Caledonian Economics, 2001) attempted to
bring back into use private sector properties across Scotland which were empty
because owners could not afford the costs of repairs, or because the costs of the
repairs was more than could be generated in rental income. Overall the scheme
brought 1, 623 properties back into use, of which 282 properties were in rural areas.
The evaluation found that rural areas gained from the scheme, receiving 10% of the
total grants, reflecting the spread of population. This study found that the location of
empty dwellings within rural areas was significant as the cost of bringing empty
property back into use was lower than average within villages; however, costs were
much higher than average in rural areas overall, reflecting the high costs of bringing
more remote properties back into use. In one instance it was noted that refurbishing
empty properties had played a positive role in the regeneration of that particular
area and in promoting community ownership, as the properties would eventually be
owned by a Community Trading Company. It was suggested that otherwise, the
properties would have been sold as holiday homes. Overall the authors conclude
that the policy was limited in the number of empty homes it could bring back into the
private sector as it was targeted on properties empty for specific reasons (see
above). Overall the evaluation concluded that the policy seemed to have a modestly
positive impact on housing need, and seemed to be a useful way of bringing some
empty properties back into use, although it is not clear whether these conclusions
apply equally to rural and urban areas. A difficulty that the policy could not address
was the reluctance of landlords to make properties available for renting because of
the management burdens and problems they anticipate with tenants (see below).
The authors suggest that one solution would be to allow local authorities to act as
management agents.
Henderson et al. (1994) examined the Scottish Homes Rural Empty Homes Initiative
which was a pilot scheme in Tayside. The intention behind the initiative was to
provide grant funding to private sector owners to encourage them to let vacant
properties. The initiative aimed to add to the diversity of housing available to
households on lower incomes in rural areas. At the time of the evaluation, 20
owners had been given grants to refurbish properties and bring them back into use.
A pattern appeared to be developing where a small number of landlords owned the
bulk of the properties that were receiving grants. The allocation of the refurbished
properties was at the discretion of the landlords and tenants were offered short term
assured tenancies. Landlords were unwilling to participate in the scheme unless
they could choose their tenants and would not have accepted nominations from
local councils. A key feature of the findings was the location of the property brought
back into use, which tended to be in remote and isolated locations where there was
little housing association activity, and often difficulties in identifying housing needs.
Those who were housed through the scheme were not traditional housing
association tenants, but were nevertheless in housing need. The authors of the
evaluation concluded that the scheme was offering a suitable housing option for part
78
of the community. The development of the initiative was labour-intensive, and there
were also delays in processing applications. The annuality of Scottish Homes
funding made it difficult for landlords to plan a programme of repairs. The research
highlighted that, by focusing on bringing empty property back into use, the poor
conditions experienced by existing tenants might well be overlooked; or worse, that
tenants might be given a notice to quit their home to enable owners to claim the
grant funding available to improve the property, although it did not seem that there
was any evidence that this had occurred.
A valuable aspect of these studies was to explore the views of owners of empty
properties. The studies were able to examine how far the focus of policy
mechanisms was likely to coincide with the reasons for property being empty, and
therefore the likelihood that the mechanisms would be able to encourage owners to
bring properties back into use. Thus, Caledonian Economics (2001) found that 20%
to 30% of dwellings in their study were empty because their owners could not afford
the cost of repairs, whilst about a further 20% intended to sell.
A common theme was the perceptions of owners of vacant property related to
difficulties associated with the letting and management of their property. An earlier
study by Murie et al. (1995) which examined the reasons why properties were
empty, concluded that an essential step in developing policies in this area was to
identify owners and understand why properties were empty. Caledonian Economics
(2001) noted that the Empty Homes Initiative could only focus on the proportion of
homes that were empty because their owners could not afford the repairs to bring
them back into use, or where the cost of repairs would be greater than could be
achieved in rental income. Properties empty for other reasons, for example
perceived difficulties in managing lettings, fell outside the policy mechanism.
Caledonian Economics (2001) recommended that future policy should focus on
demand side issues and that local authorities or housing associations could act as
managing agents (which anticipated the use of housing associations as managing
agents in Lead Tenancy Schemes in Scotland).
Caledonian Economics (2001) also highlighted that some properties in rural areas
may remain empty as their owners felt that they were unsuitable for letting because
their location on farms might interfere with the running of the agricultural business.
Landlords were also concerned that tenants had a local connection to the area and
were likely to make a contribution to supporting local facilities such as schools.
The small number of tenants who were housed in the Tayside Pilot Project
(Henderson et al. 1994) noted that they were satisfied with the location and standard
of the property. Indeed, the respondents indicated that they would have been less
willing to move to a housing association property if this meant moving to a larger
settlement. Moreover, although tenants noted that they enjoyed less security of
79
tenure than social rented tenants, renting from a private landlord appeared a
positive preference compared with becoming a tenant of a housing association. The
authors concluded that the scheme was providing a suitable housing solution for
part of the community. Further, since most of the properties were in isolated
situations where housing associations would experience difficulty in providing
alternatives, the initiative provided a useful way of meeting housing needs in these
remoter rural areas. A further finding was that a careful balance would need to be
struck in relation to the level of involvement of local authorities. One issue was
whether local authorities should be able to nominate tenants for this type of scheme.
It appeared that smaller landlords in particular, would not welcome this kind of letting
arrangement, preferring to choose their own tenants. Also the research noted that
local authorities may have difficulty in identifying tenants for these areas since there
were often no local people on waiting lists due to the dearth of local authority
accommodation in these areas. The study by Caledonian Economics (2001) also
noted the issue of the isolated location of some empty dwellings, and the lack of
demand for housing in some rural areas, especially islands.
Conclusion
Few local authorities and National Parks have specific policy interventions that
directly address the phenomenon of second homes, and where such policies exist
they usually relate to the occupancy controls on new dwellings. There is very limited
evidence regarding the effectiveness of these policies. Many stakeholders feel that
fiscal measures might be a more effective mechanism for controlling second homes
as these can be more sensitively applied to local contexts.
Policy interventions directed at bringing empty property back into use in rural
Scotland appear to offer a way of addressing housing need, especially in remoter
rural locations where development of new affordable housing by housing
associations may prove problematic. The Caledonian Economics study (2001) also
noted that the schemes were able to galvanise community activity and that a
positive outcome was former empty dwellings in community ownership. The use of
case studies in this evaluation was essential in being able to draw out the rural
dimension, although it was not always possible to discern how far general
conclusions could apply to the rural context, which emphasises the role of ‘rural
proofing’ polices, throughout the policy cycle. This highlights the need for the rural
dimension to be specified not only in policy formulation and application, but also in
subsequent evaluations.
Further discussion of the conclusions to be drawn from this and the previous chapter
are presented in Chapter Seven.
80
81
Chapter Six
Issues for review methods
Introduction
This chapter discusses the learning points for systematic review methods that
emerged from this review of the literature on second and empty homes in rural
areas. It follows on from the mortgage safety nets review (Croucher et al. 2003) and
our initial reflections on the transferability of the methods to new social policy fields
(Wallace et al. 2004). This report and paper concluded that there was value in
pursuing the development of the method in social policy fields but that considerable
challenges were apparent that were yet to be resolved.
The benefits included a wide search for literature, making explicit decisions relating
to study inclusion, and critically appraising studies to ensure policy
recommendations are made only on sound research. Challenges identified at this
early stage of the project were also evident. Searching for specific material in social
policy databases was difficult, due to the multiple understandings of many of the
words used in the search strategies and the absence of controlled language in the
searching facilities provided. Retrieving studies from some private organisations
was problematic due to high costs of market research or commercial confidentiality.
Reporting of methods in research reports and papers was also inconsistent and
often poor, so it was often unclear from where the findings were derived.
Furthermore, offering the same degree of rigour to the narrative synthesis of the
study findings as was afforded to the search, inclusion and critical appraisal stages,
was problematic. Finally, a point to which we return below, a significant challenge
existed in providing sufficient contextual material against which the findings in a
complex policy field can be interpreted.
This review of second and empty homes in rural areas has also presented some
clear benefits and some challenges that may require further reflection and testing.
The challenges became apparent when:
•
framing the review question;
•
assessing the value of older research;
•
locating studies;
•
assessing quality of research;
82
•
managing data extraction;
•
achieving a synthesis of research findings.
This chapter presents a brief outline of the main learning points for future reviews in
similarly complex fields. We first consider the benefits of undertaking a systematic
review, and then discuss the particular challenges faced by the review team at
different stages in the review process.
Benefits of systematic review methods
In this section we first compare this systematic review with a traditional literature
review in the same topic area, considering what the advantages of using systematic
review methods might be.
Comparison of systematic review to traditional literature review
To enable us to assess the value of systematic review methods we compared this
systematic review to a traditional literature review in the field. The literature review
chosen was Second Homes in Focus: A Comparative Review of Migrational Effects
on Rural Housing Supply in Britain and Europe by Gallent, Higgs and Tewdwr-Jones
(1996). This is a comprehensive review of the UK and international literature that
considers researching the field, growth of second homes, ownership and demand,
modelling future growth, economic costs and benefits, environmental costs and
benefits, social impacts and policy responses. These authors clearly have
considerable expertise in this field and since publishing their review they have
produced two of the studies that were entered into this systematic review.
Gallent et al.’s review focuses on built second homes, and compares the experience
in the UK to that of second homes in various European countries. In some ways our
systematic review had a wider remit as we included second, empty and holiday
homes (although most studies concerned second homes) but was limited to studies
conducted in the UK. In comparing the studies included in this review to those cited
in Gallent et al. the figures quoted regarding the systematic review relate to those
studies that consider second homes and were available at the time of the Gallent et
al. literature review. The figures for the Gallent et al. review relate to their UK
literature only.
83
Table 6.1: Comparison of UK reports cited in Gallent and Tewdwr-Jones (1996) to this
systematic review
In systematic
review
11
Identified by systematic review but not included
because:
Was not
focussed
Was not
Was
Did not
on empty
based on
requested
meet
or
empirical
but not
quality
irregularly
research
received
threshold
occupied
property
5
4
7
4
Was not
identified
by
systematic
review
3
Thirty-four studies are cited by Gallent et al. that relate to second homes in the UK.
Of these 11 were also included in the systematic review. Eighteen were cited in the
traditional literature review but were not included in the systematic review. Of these
18, seven were not based upon empirical research, four were not focussed on
second homes but wider rural housing issues, four were requested by our review
team but were unobtainable, and lastly three were not identified by this review. Of
the four studies that were unobtainable, two were from the 1970s, one from the
1980s and one from the 1990s. We had a journal article based on the more recent
study but this did not pass our inclusion criteria as it was insufficiently focussed
upon empty or irregularly occupied property. Of the references that were not found
at all in our initial reference set, one was produced by the Welsh Language Society
in the 1980s, and the other two, which were not apparently relevant from their titles,
were produced in the 1960s and appear to relate to architecture and leisure. One of
these studies was also published in a periodical and was therefore unlikely to be
empirical research. Five of the studies that did not meet the quality threshold for this
review were included in Gallent et al.’s review, although Gallent et al. place caveats
on some of the studies’ findings. In addition, there were three studies included in
this systematic review that were available at the time of Gallent et al.’s (1996)
review, but not included, that covered the Lake District, North Wales and North
Norfolk. In addition, 15 other studies addressing second homes were identified by
the systematic review that were available at the time of Gallent et al.’s review, but
were not cited by them, although the difficulties we experienced in obtaining some
studies may also explain their absence from the Gallent review.
As can be seen from Table 6.1 above, the traditional literature review included unempirical evidence, work that this review considered of poor quality, or work that
addressed general rural housing issues. Moreover, it is unclear how studies were
chosen for the Gallent et al. review. Our initial reference set identified many other
reports based upon expert opinion and a substantial amount of other work that
84
addressed wider rural housing concerns that was available but not cited by Gallent
et al.
The mortgage safety nets review (Croucher et al. 2003) was also compared to a
more traditional literature review (Ford and England, 2000). The comparison was
similar to the one made here, in that the traditional literature review offered in-depth
analysis of the substantive topic, but was not transparent regarding how contextual
and conceptual or discursive material was selected. It was also inconsistent in its
critical appraisal of the cited reports and studies, and selective in the choice of
studies cited. This lack of transparency and inconsistency gives rise to the potential
for bias to enter literature reviews. Systematic review methods seek to minimise this
bias by being explicit about how decisions are made regarding study inclusion. It is,
of course, acknowledged that narrative systematic reviews inevitably reflect the
subjectivity of the reviewers who interpret the studies; nevertheless, the transparent
search, critical appraisal and inclusion criteria impose parameters to any bias and
offer a degree of control over this issue. This is perhaps the most distinctive
element of a systematic review that sets the methods apart from more traditional
reviews.
Gallent et al. and Ford and England’s traditional literature reviews were conducted
by eminent researchers in the field at a cost that one would assume was
considerably lower than both our systematic reviews. What value policy users of
literature reviews place on the greater transparency and minimisation of bias
remains unclear, and how systematic reviews may be used in the housing policy
process is yet to be explored. Whether a systematic review is perceived to be more
rigorous and valuable than a traditional literature review conducted by experts in
their field remains an empirical question.
Other benefits of systematic review methods
Systematic review techniques lend themselves to contentious topics, such as the
impact of second homes on the sustainability of rural communities, as they allow
close examination of the evidence-base, and consideration of different viewpoints. If
the evidence has not been sufficiently strong for the review to act as an adjudicator
it has nevertheless provided a rigorous account of what is actually known in the
field. The recognition by some authors of the importance and growing significance
of other sources of external demand such as retirement and commuting has brought
a wider perspective to the consideration of the impacts of second homes on rural
sustainability. Bringing together critically appraised research makes a useful
contribution to the field and can guide future studies, by for example, drawing
together the different studies to identify commonalities and differences in an explicit
manner.
85
Comprehensive searches for literature provide opportunities to identify substantive
gaps in the understanding of the research base, such as the nature of more
contemporary second home ownership, and the impacts of second home ownership
on the environment, crime and anti-social behaviour, social exclusion, and local
governance. Uniquely, the systematic critical appraisal of the quality of the research
also enables the weaknesses in the knowledge base to be identified (for example
highlighting the requirement to consider second homes alongside other pressure in
rural housing markets) and ensuring that the findings of each study are based on the
evidence. Moreover, systematically appraising the studies included in the review
brings together a valuable commentary on the research methods employed in the
field and can guide future research activity and so may be of interest to researchers
and research commissioners. It is noted that the Gallent et al. (1996) review does
include a section on the challenges presented in researching second homes, but
this is not always clearly apparent in traditional literature reviews.
Challenges to systematic review methods
The benefits outlined above make systematic review methods attractive and in an
age associated with vast quantities of often competing information the appeal of
systematic reviews is easy to understand. There is growing interest in their
application to many fields outside of health and education where they have been
extensively used, with government departments (such as the Department for Work
and Pensions), research commissioners (such as the Joseph Rowntree Foundation)
and new research groups entering the field. There are, however, considerable
challenges to reviewing complex social policy arenas (Wallace et al. 2004) and
those identified by the experience of this systematic review are set out below.
Framing the review question
Systematic reviews can, of course, ask many different questions in many different
fields (Petticrew, 2001), but in healthcare, they have often centred on questions of
effectiveness alone. This assumes that a consensus exists about a problem, its
causes and impacts. For this review, prior to any policy examination, it was valuable
to review evidence that considered what the impacts of properties such as second
homes actually were, as the issue is both complex and contested. Before
considering the effectiveness of solutions, review teams should therefore first
consider to what extent the substantive ‘problem’ is understood or how it is
conceived.
The question frames the review process, but also may act as a constraint as it can
mean literature to aid interpretation of the evidence may be absent. The inclusion of
context in the review process was raised as important in Croucher et al. (2003), and
was suggested as a major challenge for reviews in social policy (Wallace et al.
2004). To include literature relating to planning regimes and the supply of affordable
housing in rural areas, retirement and commuting demand, changing rural
86
economies and population exchange would have made the review unwieldy and
cumbersome in the breadth and depth of literature that would need to have been
considered. These issues were found to be crucial when interpreting the research
evidence and yet this was only facilitated by the inclusion of these topics by some
authors. In the absence of the work of those authors, there is the potential for the
review findings to have been quite different.
Whilst this is an important issue for potential reviewers to consider before embarking
on a review, this may also be something that can be addressed by the review
commissioning process. The development of evidence – informed policy making
has led to more strategic approaches to the production of knowledge, such as the
setting up of the NHS Service Delivery and Organisation (NHS SDO) Research
Programme (http://www.sdo.lshtm.ac.uk/) or the Social Care Institute of Excellence
(http://www.scie.org.uk/). In the NHS SDO, scoping reviews of large fields have
been commissioned which set the overall context. Then multiple reviews of specific
subjects, within the substantive area, have been commissioned, providing allied
work that presents a mosaic of good evidence to inform policy. Such an approach
avoids one review being encumbered by feeling compelled to both set the scene
and review the evidence. It may, however, be the case that the research budget for
health and social care services is substantially more than that available to other
research fields, and it is important to note that the costs of systematic reviews are in
excess of traditional approaches to literature reviewing. In these circumstances,
there may be no easy alternative to the inclusion of contextual and substantive
material in research reviews and review teams must ensure that they offer the
reader sufficient information to aid interpretation of the findings.
Older research
The review team discussed at length the value of old research to a contemporary
knowledge base. No cut-off date was used for this review (see Chapter two on
methods used in this review), as no date was apparent that represented a major
policy break with what went before. In addition, it was not necessary to use a cut-off
date to restrict the numbers of studies retrieved, as the literature was relatively small
in comparison to many initial reference sets for other systematic reviews.
Second homes emerged as a political and media issue in the 1970s and therefore a
significant proportion of the research evidence comes from this period. What value
do these studies have now when the social and economic circumstances in which
second homes were examined are substantially different from today? How
transferable are their findings? What can this historical perspective bring that is
relevant to contemporary concerns? The 1970s studies have been included in the
review, but presented both benefits and problems. In this disputed field, it enabled
the review team to examine the development of the research literature, second
homes markets and the changing discourse over time. When assessing the social
87
impacts of second homes however, it was difficult to discern how applicable some of
the findings were to the present day, as experiences and expectations of
employment, education, shopping, commuting, family, church or community, for
example, have all changed quite dramatically over the last three decades.
Housing markets are dynamic systems; it is impossible to know whether what may
be apparent in one decade remains salient in another without confirming this
through contemporary studies or longitudinal studies that can trace changes over
time.
Locating studies
The abstracts and search facilities provided by social science databases do not
facilitate the identification of empirical research alone. Health science databases
have controlled searching facilities and structured abstracts detailing the aims,
methods and outcomes of the studies. Such facilities allow greater specificity when
searching electronic databases. The absence of such tools in this field meant a
great number of references that were irrelevant to the review topic being retrieved in
the initial reference list, and time and money unavoidably wasted, as references
were all checked for relevance and - in the absence of abstracts - some studies
were ordered or purchased that were not in the end appropriate.
Many of the studies of second homes were conducted across local or district
authorities, indeed were often commissioned by them, and problems were
encountered in accessing reports and information at this level. Local authorities
across the UK are charged with conducting local housing market analysis (Blackaby,
2000; DTZ Peida, 2004; Welsh Assembly, 2002; Maclennan et al. 1998). It was
anticipated that some contemporary rural local housing market studies would
address issues of concern to this review. Rural local authorities with the highest
concentrations of second homes were contacted but positive responses were few.
There may be a number of reasons why this was the case; for example, not
targeting the correct staff, or heavy workloads. Where it was successful however a
number of important studies were unearthed. In one case this was due to a
particularly interested librarian who unfortunately retired during the review process.
In addition, by chance, one important study arrived by mistake when another one
was requested. It had not been identified by any sources, but was relevant and
entered the review process. The searching strategy for this review has been
extensive and has given a range of organisations a chance to contribute, but it is
suspected that other data exist at the local authority level that the review team failed
to obtain.
The NHS Centre for Review and Dissemination (2001) advises that a variety of
search methods, both computerised and manual, should be used in systematic
reviews to ensure as comprehensive and unbiased a search as possible. Electronic
88
databases cannot be sole sources of references, as bias may exist in journals or
organisations that supply databases, or there may be a time lag between publication
and entry onto the database, or between the completion of research and journal
publication. Electronic databases have been valuable sources of citations for this
review and for the previous review carried out by Croucher et al. (2003), primarily
because citation checking of papers identified by the databases has led to other
studies being identified that were not listed on the databases. However, with the
exception of the grey literature databases (SIGLE and Planex), electronic databases
have not been repositories of primary publications of research studies that have
entered the final stages of the review. Alternative sources of references have
therefore had an important impact on reviewing in a field such as housing, and the
review team placed a greater emphasis on investigative work in uncovering and
actually obtaining studies that may be located in disparate places and not always in
the public domain.
Review teams should consider where they anticipate access to, and location of, the
primary studies and not assume that for all topics the electronic databases will be
the main source of references.
On a minor but practical note, many studies retrieved via the British Library, or other
university libraries, were only available for a few weeks and were not able to be
photocopied for copyright reasons. This presented some difficulties in having to
prioritise those studies for review, data extraction and double-checking by another
reviewer in the time when they were available. It would have been preferable to
have a hard copy of each study for reference purposes.
Quality
The systematic quality appraisal of the studies represented a challenge. Wallace et
al. (2004) note that it is not necessary to exclude studies from the review on the
basis of poor quality but that doing so does mean that policy recommendations are
made on the basis of credible research. Although there is not often a direct
relationship between research and policy adoption, including poor quality studies in
a review has the potential to alter the findings and therefore misdirect future
investment and policy initiatives or mislead understanding in the field.
This review highlights the importance of maintaining confidence in the evidence
synthesised, especially in a field where there is much conjecture and speculation
about the causes and impacts of second homes on rural sustainability. This is not
easy however, as invariably many studies occupy the grey area between
‘outstanding’ and ‘very poor’. Deciding on the cut off point for the quality threshold
was problematic. The review intended to exclude the very poor studies and was not
seeking ideal type research. We are confident that this has been achieved, but
there remains a problem with some of the studies entered into the review, outlined in
89
Chapter Three, which gives an overview of the research reviewed. There are also
some interesting points made in some of the excluded studies, which include the
importance of other sources of external demand (DTZ Peida, 1998) or the tensions
between the tourist economy and provision of tourist accommodation when
affordable housing is in short supply (Gallent et al. 2000). These were excluded
because the empirical base of the studies was weak or unestablished. There are
also studies that had only a small amount of information about the topic of empty or
irregularly occupied properties, but were of good quality that entered the review.
There are, therefore, tensions that exist in the use of quality appraisal as part of the
inclusion criteria for a review. There is no consensus over the application of quality
appraisal tools, and it is likely to remain a thorny issue.
Data extraction
Extracting data that answer the review question can be time-consuming, and
presents organisational issues in terms of recording and storing the data to be used
at the synthesis stage. Appendix Seven shows the form stored in MS Access that
was used to note information from the studies relating to the impact of any empty or
irregularly occupied properties on the elements of sustainability. Studies covered
many areas of housing markets and community impacts, and substantial data were
recorded. It was time-consuming to enter these into Access and the volume of
material was difficult to manage during some parts of the synthesis. The data
extracted were certainly more than the descriptive details about research methods
and the figures needed to estimate ‘numbers needed to treat’ or ‘effect size’, as is
the case in many health reviews (NHS CRD, 2001). MS Access was a useful
repository for the electronic forms but advanced skills are needed in order to
manipulate the forms, as the software was not simple to use. It may be that a
software package designed for the organisation of qualitative data (such as Atlas.ti
or NUDIST) would provide a more effective means of storing and organising data.
Synthesis
It is important to adopt the same degree of rigour in the synthesis stage of the
review process, as demonstrated in the search, retrieval and application of inclusion
criteria stages. However, consensus does not yet exist as to how a narrative
synthesis can be achieved in a systematic manner. Dixon-Woods et al. (2004)
outlines the interpretive and deductive methods of synthesis that could be drawn
upon to conduct this stage of the review, which are akin to different methods of
quantitative or qualitative data analysis in primary research. Demonstration projects
are being funded under the ESRC Research Methods programme
(http://www.ccsr.ac.uk/methods/) to empirically test different approaches.
This review used the information from the primary studies and within each main
theme analysed the findings thematically. In the future we will consider entering the
extracted data into a qualitative analysis computer software package, as this may be
90
a more useful tool for managing large quantities of information and facilitate
consistency in the application of any thematic codes. This would also ensure that
themes that may not fit within the framework imposed prior to the studies being
reviewed are not overlooked by rigid adherence to the protocol.
This review found it a challenge to achieve a complete synthesis of the findings as
the evidence varied greatly across time and location. The studies also included
many different definitions of second homes, which had the potential to alter their
findings. A narrative account of the study findings is presented, with some broad
conclusions about the field offered.
Conclusion
This review has been methodologically very interesting as it has illustrated some of
the difficulties in translating a method used extensively in one policy domain to
another where the literature not only lacks any tradition of research replication but
employs disparate methods, is multi-disciplinary and is sensitive to context.
Our conviction that systematic reviewing as an undertaking has merit continues, but
we feel that the challenges presented by the method should not be underestimated.
We would welcome further development and application of systematic review
methods in the housing field to work towards overcoming or managing the apparent
constraints.
91
Chapter Seven
Conclusions
This review addressed two questions. The first question related to the impact of
empty or under-occupied dwellings on the sustainability of rural communities, and
the second was concerned with the effectiveness of policy interventions designed to
mitigate the adverse effects of empty or under-occupied dwellings. In this Chapter
the key points that have emerged from the evidence are highlighted. We then go on
to consider how well the review has been able to answer the questions.
Impacts on the sustainability of rural communities
On the basis of the available evidence there is very little known about the impact of
empty or irregularly occupied properties on many of the key domains of
sustainability. Instead, the focus of much research attention has been on the impact
of second home ownership on rural housing markets. However, second homes
have to be seen as part of a wider process of social and economic change affecting
rural areas. In a housing context, any assessment of the impact of second homes
needs to be part of broader housing market analysis.
One difficulty is that a considerable body of the available evidence was conducted
more than twenty years ago. This reliance on dated research is fuelling a ‘myth’ that
second home ownership lies at the heart of affordable housing shortages. More
recent work emphasises that commuting and retirement are equally, if not more
important sources of external demand for rural housing. Apart from external
demand for rural housing, there has historically been proportionally less social
rented housing in rural areas compared to national and regional averages. The rural
stock of social rented housing has also been reduced by the Right-to-Buy. Planning
constraints and financial limitations hinder the development of new social housing.
There is little evidence of conflict between second home owners and local residents,
although there are marked differences in attitudes towards second home owners in
different areas.
The outward migration of young people from rural areas is more closely allied to a
lack of appropriate employment, education and leisure activities than to a lack of
housing. Nevertheless, second home ownership was seen in many studies to make
a useful contribution to local economies as part of the tourist industry, but there were
differences in the levels of contribution between different localities making
92
generalisations regarding the economic impact of second home ownership
problematic.
Effectiveness of policy
Key Findings
Evaluations of specific policy intervention directed towards empty and irregularly
used dwellings are few in number. Research has been more directed towards
mechanisms for delivering affordable housing.
However, where research has been conducted on policies which have attempted to
mitigate the impact of second homes, amongst other forms of demand pressures, in
rural areas such as the Lake District, evidence suggests that restricting new housing
to local people only did not help local people on low incomes. Given the renewed
interest amongst policymakers, particularly in the national parks, on restricting the
occupancy of new dwellings, it would be timely for researchers to revisit this topic
through a comprehensive evaluation of the impacts of these policies on housing
markets.
Evidence drawing on how policy might respond highlights that the extent and impact
of second home ownership varies across locations. Therefore a national policy
response to second home ownership is not appropriate. Recent research suggests
support from local authorities for greater powers in respect of second homes.
However planning controls are not perceived as the most appropriate mechanism,
rather, fiscal measures are thought to offer a more valuable approach as they can
be more sensitively applied in local contexts.
Although considerable strides have been made in the development of strategies to
tackle empty dwellings, this topic has attracted little in the way of research or formal
evaluations related to the rural context. The exception is in Scotland, where
government agencies have funded a number of studies. These evaluations show
that policy interventions directed at bringing empty property back into use in rural
Scotland appear to offer a way of addressing housing needs, especially in remoter
rural locations where the development of new affordable housing by housing
associations may prove problematic.
Limitations of the evidence-base
Although the questions posed by the review are highly pertinent to policy makers
and practitioners, this review has shown that the evidence-base is not sufficiently
developed to fully answer them. The research literature related to empty or
irregularly-occupied dwellings in rural areas is mainly focused on second homes.
The primary focus of many studies is the identification of the extent and distribution
of second homes in particular locations and the impacts on local housing markets.
93
There is however a lack of consensus over definitions of ‘second home’ and ‘holiday
home’, and in many instances it is difficult to know whether studies were talking
about the same phenomena. There are also difficulties in identifying the numbers of
properties that are not occupied on a permanent basis. Some studies are also
limited by their focus on second homes without consideration of other sources of
external demand for houses in rural areas, most notably demand from people
seeking a rural retirement and commuters. Similarly the evidence regarding the
effectiveness of policy interventions is very sparse, although various authors have
attempted to identify local policies in different areas, canvass the opinions of key
players such as local planners and housing officers regarding policy options, and
many authors make policy recommendations.
The review was interested not only in the impact of empty and irregularly occupied
property on rural housing markets, but also on other key domains of sustainability of
rural communities (see Table 2.2, Chapter Two). The evidence to fully address
these different domains is not currently available. As noted above, the focus of
many studies has been on the impact of second homes on housing markets, and
there has been very little research that addresses other key dimensions of
sustainability. There is a small body of literature that considers community
cohesion; however this is quite dated and may not reflect current patterns of social
and community integration. There is some literature regarding the economic impact
of second home ownership, again this is quite dated, and probably does not reflect
current patterns of spending on leisure or other services, either by permanent
residents or visitors. There is very little evidence regarding the impact of empty or
irregularly occupied dwellings on the built environment and no evidence concerned
with wider environmental issues, the reputation or image of the community, crime
and anti-social behaviour, social exclusion and poverty, and the accessibility of
facilities, services and employment. Some studies might give some small insights,
but none have actually focused on any of these key issues. Thus we can conclude
that we know very little about the overall impact of empty or irregularly occupied
properties on the overall sustainability of rural communities, although more is known
about the impact of second homes on rural housing markets.
Given the considerable time and resources that are required to undertake
systematic reviews, we must reflect on what specific benefits the methods of
systematic reviewing have brought to the investigation of the impact of empty and
irregularly occupied dwellings.
In the first instance the shortage of affordable housing in rural areas generates
much debate, and second home ownership in particular is an emotive topic. The
approach of ‘going back to basics’, rigorously searching for material, and
considering only empirical evidence (rather than opinion or observations), allows
reflection on the topic in a more neutral way. This is not to say that the study can
94
claim objectivity or transparency, but allows the reader to see how and why
decisions have been made through the process of this review, and how the available
evidence has been handled.
This review has challenged some of the longstanding myths about the detrimental
effects of second home ownership.It illustrates the importance of putting second
home ownership in the broader context and assessing its relative importance
alongside other external drivers of demand, particularly if effective policy responses
are to be developed.
One reason for undertaking a systemic review is to utilise existing evidence to
answer research questions. In particular, it provides the potential to draw upon a
much wider range of data to meet its research objectives than could be achieved by
a new study. However, in looking afresh at the empirical evidence contained in
existing studies, a systematic review attempts to draw out answers to questions for
which the original research may not have been designed or set up to answer. It is
important to note that any difficulty identified relates to the process of undertaking
the secondary analyses of data rather than to any fault in the original studies from
which the evidence is drawn. Nevertheless, a defining feature of much of the
evidence in relation to empty or irregularly occupied property is its age. A
considerable body of work investigating second homes, particularly, relates to UK
society over twenty years ago. The value of more recent evidence on second
homes lies in highlighting the scale of the issue and the efficacy of possible policy
responses. However, in relation to providing a succinct answer to the two questions
regarding the impact of empty or irregularly occupied dwellings on the sustainability
of rural communities and the effectiveness of policy interventions, the available
empirical evidence is limited, and this in itself is useful to know.
95
References
Arksey, H., Jackson, K., Croucher, K., Weatherly, H., Golder, S., Hare, P.,
Newbronner, E. and Baldwin, S. (2004) Review of respite services and short-term
breaks for carers for people with dementia, NHS SDO, London
Available at: http://www.sdo.lshtm.ac.uk/carers.htm#arksey2
Arksey, H., Jackson, K., Wallace, A., Baldwin, S., Goldner, S., Newbronner, E., and
Hare, P. (2003) Access to health care for carers: barriers and interventions, NHS
SDO, London
Available at: http://www.sdo.lshtm.ac.uk/access.htm#arksey
Ashby, P., Birch, G. and Haslett, M. (1975) Second Homes in North Wales.
Liverpool: Dept of Civic Design, Liverpool University.
Atkinson, R. (2002). Does Gentrification Help or Harm Neighbourhoods? An
assessment of the evidence-base in the context of the new urban agenda. CNR
Paper 5, Glasgow: University of Glasgow, Centre for Neighbourhood Research
Bennett, S. (1979) Rural Housing in the Lake District, Lancaster: Lancaster
University
Bielckus, C., Rogers, A. and Wibberley, G. (1972) Second Homes in England and
Wales. Ashford: Wye College, Countryside Planning Unit, School of Rural
Economics and Related Studies.
Blackaby R. (2000) Understanding Local Housing Markets: Their role in local
housing strategies. Coventry/London: Chartered Institute of Housing/Council of
Mortgage Lenders.
Blandy, S., Lister, D., Atkinson, R. and Flint, J. (2003). Gated Communities: A
Systematic Review of the Research Evidence, CNR Paper 12, Glasgow: University
of Glasgow, Centre for Neighbourhood Research.
Bollom, C. (1978) Attitude and Second Homes in Rural Wales, Social Science
Monographs No.3, Cardiff:.University of Wales, Board of Celtic Studies.
Brittan, N., Campbell, R., Pope, C., Donovan, J., Morgan, M. and Pill, R. (2002)
Using meta ethnography to synthesise qualitative research: a worked example.
Journal of Health Services Research & Policy, 7.4 pp 209-215.
96
Caledonian Economics Ltd, Arneil, J., Nevin, M., Finnigan, M., Johnston, D., Lees,
F. and Metwe, D. van der (2001) Evaluation of Empty Homes Initiative. Edinburgh:
Scottish Executive.
Capstick, M. (1987) Housing Dilemmas in the Lake District. Lancaster: Centre for
NW Regional Studies, University of Lancaster.
Champion T (2000) Flight from the cities? In Bate, R., Best R. and Holmans, A.
(Eds) On the Move: The housing consequences of migration. York: Joseph
Rowntree Foundation.
Coleman R. Second homes in North Norfolk in Moseley, M.J. (Ed.) (1982) Power,
Planning and People in Rural East Anglia. Norwich: Centre for East Anglian
Studies, University of East Anglia.
Countryside Agency (2004). Review of Countryside Issues in England, London: The
Countryside Agency.
Crook, T., Currie, J., Jackson, A., Monk, S., Rowley, S., Smith, K. and Whitehead,
C. (2002) Planning Gain And Affordable Housing: Making it count York: York
Publishing Services.
Croucher, K., Quilgars, D., Wallace, A., Baldwin, S. and Mather, L. (2003) Paying
the Mortgage? A systematic literature review of safety nets for homeowners. York:
Department of Social Policy and Social Work.
Damer, S. (2000). Scotland in miniature? Second homes on Arran. Scottish
Affairs, 31, Spring, pp 37-54.
Davies and O’Farrell (1981) An Intra-regional Locational Analysis of Second Home
Ownership. Cardiff: Dept of Town Planning, University of Wales.
De Vane R. (1975) Second Home Ownership: A case study. Occasional Papers
Number 6, Bangor: Bangor, University of Wales Press.
Dixon-Woods, M., Agarwal, S., Young, B., Jones, D. and Sutton, A. (2004)
Integrative Approaches to Qualitative and Quantitative Evidence. London: Health
Development Agency.
Downing, P. and Dower, M. (1977) Second Homes in Scotland. Dartington:
Dartington Amenity Research Trust.
DTZ Peida Consulting (2004) Housing Market Assessment Manual. London: Office
of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM)
97
Edwards, A., Russell, I. and Stott, N. (1998) Signal versus noise in the evidencebase for medicine: An alternative to hierarchies of evidence?, Family Practice, 15,
pp319-22.
Egan, M., Petticrew, M., Ogilvie, D., Hamilton, D. (2003) New roads and human
health: a systematic review. American Journal of Public Health, 93, 9, pp14631471.
ENTEC, Three Dragons, Nottingham Trent University (2003) Delivering Affordable
Housing Through Planning Policy, London: ODPM.
Finch, H., Lovell, A. and Ward, K (1989) Empty Dwellings. A study of vacant
private sector dwellings in five local authority areas. London: HMSO.
Fielder, S. and Smith, R. (1996) Vacant Dwellings In The Private Sector. London:
HMSO.
Findlay, A., Short, D. and Stockdale, A. (1999) Migration Impacts in Rural England.
London: The Countryside Agency.
Ford, J. and England, J. (2000) Data and Literature on Mortgage Interest: State
Provision and Private Insurance. A Source Book, London: Social Research Branch,
DSS.
FPD Savills (2004) UK Residential Research Bulletin Spring. London. Accessed on
1/3/05 http://www.fpdsavills.co.uk/research.asp?srch_text=pied
Gallent, N., Higgs, G. and Tewdwr-Jones, M. (1996) Second Homes in Focus.
Cardiff: Department of City and Regional Planning, University of Wales
Gallent, N., Mace, A. and Tewdwr-Jones, M. (2002) Second Homes in Rural Areas
of England, Wetherby: The Countryside Agency.
Gowman, N. and Coote, A. (2000) Evidence And Public Health: Towards a
common framework, London: The King’s Fund.
Haines, G. (1974) Second homes: a new life or kiss of death. District Councils
Review, 3604.230000.
Henderson, M., Shucksmith, M. and MacDonald, C. (1994) An Evaluation of
Scottish Homes Rural Empty Homes Initiatives. Edinburgh: Scottish Homes.
Hill, M. and Hupe, P. (2002) Implementing Public Policy: Governance in Theory and
in Practice. London: Sage.
Hoggart, K. and Buller, H. (1995) British home owners and housing change in rural
France, Housing Studies, 10, 179-198.
98
Hopayian, K. (2001) The need for caution in interpreting high quality systematic
reviews, British Medical Journal, 323, 681-84.
Humphries, P. (2003) Stonewalled. The Guardian, Wednesday, March 5,
http://society.guardian.co.uk/societyguardian/story/0,,907249,00.html
Jacobs, C. (1972) Second Homes in Denbighshire. Tourism and Recreation
Research Report No.3. County of Denbighshire.
Jenkins, B.(1997) Policy analysis: models and approaches, in Hill, M. (ed) The
Policy Process: A Reader, London: Prentice Hall.
Johnston, E. (2002) Preliminary Consultation Report On Rural Housing Proposals.
Cardiff: Institute of Welsh Affairs (IWA).
Johnston, E. (2003) A Source of Contention: Affordable Housing in Rural Wales.
Cardiff: IWA/Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF)
Joseph Rowntree Foundation (1999) Response to discussion document on rural
England. York: JRF
http://www.jrf.org.uk/knowledge/responses/docs/ruralengland.asp
Kearns, A. and Turok, I. (2003) Sustainable Communities: Dimensions and
challenges. Liverpool/London: Liverpool John Moores University, ESRC Cities
Programme/Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.
Long, D. (2000) Key Issues For Sustainable Communities. Liverpool: European
Institute for Urban Affairs.
Long, D. (2001) A Toolkit of Sustainability Indicators. Liverpool: European Institute
for Urban Affairs.
Long, D. and Hutchins, M. (2003) A Toolkit of Indicators of Sustainable
Communities, London: Housing Corporation.
Maclennan, D., More A., O’Sullivan, T. and Young, G. (1998) Local Housing
Systems Analysis: Best Practice Guide. Edinburgh, Scottish Homes.
Mahon, D. (1973) No Place in the Country: A Report on Second Homes in England
and Wales. London: Shelter.
Mason, J. (1996) Qualitative Researching, London: Sage.
Mays, N. and Pope, C. (1995) Qualitative Research: Observational methods in
health care settings, British Medical Journal, 311, 185-84.
99
Mays, N. and Pope, C. (2000) Assessing quality in qualitative research, British
Medical Journal, 330, 50-52.
Murie, A., McIntosh, S., Wainright, S.. and McGuckin, A.. (1995) Empty Dwellings
in Scotland. Research Paper No.63. Edinburgh: School of Planning and Housing,
Edinburgh College of Art/Herriot Watt University.
New Society, 7th September 1967. A Two-Home Democracy?
NHS Centre for Reviews and Dissemination (2001) Undertaking Systematic
Reviews of Research on Effectiveness. CRD's Guidance for those Carrying Out or
Commissioning Reviews, CRD Report Number 4 (2nd Edition). York: University of
York, NHS Centre for Reviews and Dissemination.
Oakley, A. (2000) Experiments in Knowing, Cambridge: Polity Press.
Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (2003) Sustainable communities: building for the
future. London: ODPM.
Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (2005) What is a Sustainable Community?
http://www.odpm.gov.uk/stellent/groups/odpm_communities/documents/page/odpm_comm_035991.hcsp
Petticrew, M. (2001) Systematic reviews from astronomy to zoology: myths and
misconceptions. British Medical Journal, 322: 98-101.
Pilkington, E. (1990) Burning issue, ROOF, April and March.
Popay, J., Rogers, A. and Williams, G. (1998) Rationale and standards for the
systematic review of qualitative literature in health services research, Qualitative
Health Research, 8, 3, 341-51.
Pyne, C.B. (1973) Second Homes. Caenarvonshire County Planning Dept.
Rowe, M. (2002) A council tax on both your houses. Regeneration and Renewal,
5th July 2002.
Shorten, J., Brown, C. and Daniels I. (2001) Are Villages Sustainable? A review of
the literature. London: Countryside Agency.
Shucksmith, M. (1981) No Homes for Locals? Farnborough: Gower.
Shucksmith, M. (1996) Review of Scottish Homes Rural Policy. Edinburgh: Scottish
Homes.
Shucksmith, M. (2000) Exclusive Countryside? Social inclusion and regeneration in
rural areas. York: Joseph Rowntree Foundation.
Soley, C. (1990) Seconds out, Roof, March and April, 1990
100
South West Economic Planning Council (1975) Survey of Second Homes in the
South West. London: HMSO.
Tewdwr-Jones, M., Gallent, N., and Mace, A. (2002) Second Homes and Holiday
Homes and the Land Use Planning System. Cardiff: Welsh Assembly.
Thompson, H., Petticrew, M., Morrison, D. (2001). Health effects of housing
improvement: systematic review of intervention studies. British Medical Journal,
323, 187-190.
The Observer (2002) Country Going to the Dogs, 12th November.
Tuck, (1973) Merioneth Structure Plan. Subject Report 17: Second Homes.
Merioneth County Council
Wallace, A., Croucher, K., Quilgars, D. and Baldwin, S. (2004) Meeting the
challenge: developing systematic reviewing in social policy Policy & Politics,
32,4,55-470.
Welsh Assembly (2002) Local Housing Market Analysis: An advice note to Welsh
Local Authorities from the Welsh Assembly Government. Cardiff, Housing Strategy
Branch, Welsh Assembly.
White, D. (2001) Evaluating evidence and making judgements of study quality: loss
of evidence and risks to policy and practice decisions. Critical Public Health, 11.1.
Williams, A. M. and Hall, C. (2000) Tourism and migration: New relationships
between production and consumption. Tourism Geographies, 2,1,5-27.
101
Appendix One
Databases searched
Searches conducted between July - December 2003
Limits
English language only
England, Scotland or Wales or Northern Ireland or United Kingdom or Great Britain
Database
Database checklist
Version/service
ASSIA
EconLit
1969 - 07/03
1969 – 11/2003
Hansard
International Bibliography of the Social Sciences
1951 – 29/07/03
PAIS
1972 – 07/2003
PLANEX
Current
SIGLE
1980 – 06/2003
1980 – 06/2003
Sociological Abstracts
1963 - 06/03
1963 – 06/03
Social Science Citation Index
1981 – current
Social Sciences and Humanities Indexes Conference
Papers
CSA
14/08/03
02/12/03
ARC2
18/08/03
02/12/03
WWW
BIDS
01/08/03
ARC2
18/08/03
WWW
06/10/03
ARC2
04/08/03
02/12/03
ARC2
16/07/03
02/12/03
MIMAS
14/08/03
MIMAS
01/08/03
No of Hits
32
13
60
30
378
50
69
165
91
98
29
12
116
17
An initial search was carried out on all the above databases during July. It was later
decided to broaden the search to include empty or affordable dwellings. The search
was carried out on the more sophisticated databases (ASSIA, EconLit, SIGLE and
Sociological Abstracts). All results were then entered into a reference manager
library.
102
103
Appendix Two
Search strategies
1.
ASSIA: Applied Social Sciences Index and Abstracts 1987 - current
(searched 14/08/03)
(((Great Britain or United Kingdom or Wales or Scotland or England or Northern
Ireland)) AND ((rural near housing)))
OR
((((second* or holiday or vacation or season* or summer or winter or recreational or
occasional))) AND (((propert* or dwelling* or residen* or let or lets or house* or
home* or accommodation or cottage*))))
OR
((self cater*))
OR
(rural hous*)
OR
(((England or Scotland or Wales or Great Britain or Northern Ireland or United
Kingdom or UK)) AND ((((secondary home* or second home*)) OR ((holiday home*
or holiday let or holiday lets)))))
OR
(empty) AND (home* or house* or dwelling* or propert*)
32 records were downloaded.
Search 2 (1969 – 11/2003 searched 02/12/03)
(plan* near hous*) AND (rural or country*) AND (United Kingdom or Great Britain or
England or Scotland or Wales or Ireland)
OR
void dwelling*
OR
(affordable hous*) AND (rural or country*)
13 records downloaded.
104
2.
Econ Lit 1969 - 2003/07 (searched 18/08/03)
#26 ((vacation home) or ((second home*)) or (vacation homes) or ((summer
resident*) or (winter resident*) or (seasonal resident*)) or (rural property) or (holiday
homes) or (holiday lets) or (holiday let) or (incomer*) or (country hous*) or ((holiday
home*)) or (cottage)) and (England or Scotland or Wales or Northern Ireland or
Great Britain or United Kingdom or UK)
#25 (vacation home) or ((second home*)) or (vacation homes) or ((summer
resident*) or (winter resident*) or (seasonal resident*)) or (rural property) or (holiday
homes) or (holiday lets) or (holiday let) or (incomer*) or (country hous*) or ((holiday
home*)) or (cottage)
#24 (England or Scotland or Wales or Northern Ireland or Great Britain or United
Kingdom or UK) and ((vacation home) or ((second home*)) or (vacation homes) or
((summer resident*) or (winter resident*) or (seasonal resident*)) or (rural property)
or (holiday lets) or (rural economy) or (holiday let) or (incomer*) or (country hous*) or
((holiday home*)) or (cottage))
#23 (vacation home) or ((second home*)) or (vacation homes) or ((summer
resident*) or (winter resident*) or (seasonal resident*)) or (rural property) or (holiday
lets) or (rural economy) or (holiday let) or (incomer*) or (country hous*) or ((holiday
home*)) or (cottage)
#22 (England or Scotland or Wales or Northern Ireland or Great Britain or United
Kingdom or UK) and ((vacation home) or ((second home*)) or (vacation homes) or
(rural property) or (rural economy) or (incomer*) or (national park) or (country hous*)
or ((holiday home*)) or (cottage))
#21 (vacation home) or ((second home*)) or (vacation homes) or (rural property) or
(rural economy) or (incomer*) or (national park) or (country hous*) or ((holiday
home*)) or (cottage)
#20 England or Scotland or Wales or Northern Ireland or Great Britain or United
Kingdom or UK
#19 rural economy
#18 incomer*
#17 national park
#16 country hous*
#15 cottage
#14 vacation home
105
#13 vacation homes
#12 rural property
#11 holiday homes
#10 holiday lets
#9 holiday let
#8 holiday
#7 holiday home
#6 (holiday home*)
#5 (second homes)
#4 (second home*)
#3 (summer resident*) or (winter resident*) or (seasonal resident*)
#2 (summer or winter or seasonal)same resident*
#1 (summer or winter or seasonal) resident*
60 records downloaded after eliminating false hits.
Search 2 (1969- 11/2003 searched 02/12/03)
#9 #8 and #2
#8 (affordable hous*) and (rural* or country*)
#7 void dwelling*
#6 #5 and #2
#5 #1 and #4
#4 rural or country*
#3 #1 and #2
#2 Britain or United Kingdom or England or Wales or Scotland or Ireland
#1 ( plan* near hous* )or( plan* near home* )
30 records downloaded.
106
3.
Hansard (searched 01/09/03)
(http://www.publications.parliament.uk/cgibin/dialogserverTSO?DB=ukparl&FILE=searchJS&DATETYPE=ANY)
‘holiday home’
‘second home’
‘holiday house’
‘holiday lets’
‘vacation homes’
‘self catering’
‘incomer’
‘rural housing’
‘holiday cottage’
‘seasonal home’
Due to the limited search facilities of Hansard it was not possible to build a complex
search strategy for this database. All terms acted as though truncated e.g. home
retrieved home & homes, house retrieved house and houses. All searches
produced some false hits however the results from the income search were all false
hits as they concentrated income tax and income.
The 378 results from these searches are not included in the Endnote library but
instead are included in a separate folder, Hansard.doc.
4.
International Bibliography of the Social Sciences 1951 – 12/08/03
(searched 14/08/03)
(vacation & (home* , house* , propert* , dwelling* , let , lets , accommodation ,
cottage) )
(holiday* & (home* , house* , propert* , dwelling* , let , lets , accommodation ,
cottage) )
(second* home* or second* house* or second* propert* or second* dwelling* or
second* let or second* lets or second* accommodation or second* cottage)
(occasional home* or occasional* house* or occasional
propert* or occasional
dwelling* or occasional let or occasional lets or occasional accommodation or
occasional cottage)
107
(vacant & (home* , house* , propert* , dwelling* , let , lets , accommodation ,
cottage) )
(empty & (home* , house* , propert* , dwelling* , let , lets , accommodation , cottage)
(rural home* or rural house* or rural propert* or rural dwelling* or rural let or rural
lets or rural accommodation or rural cottage)
(self-cater) & (accommodation)
(rural housing) & (Great Britain or England or Scotland or Wales or Northern Ireland
or United Kingdom)
Due to the limitations of this database it has not been possible to conduct a
sophisticated search strategy, many of the results contained false hits. The above
search was run as a series of individual searches. A total of 50 records have been
downloaded.
5.
PAIS 1972 – 07/2003 (searched 18/08/03)
#22 (United Kingdom or UK or England or Wales or Scotland or Northern Ireland or
Great Britain) and (rural housing)
#21 (( (vacation adj home*) )or ( (vacation adj house*) )or( (vacation adj property) ))
#20 (( (holiday near let) )or( (holiday near lets) )or( (holiday near cottage) ))
#19 (( (holiday adj let) )or( (holiday adj lets) )or( (holiday cottage) ))
#18 (second near dwelling*)
#17 (( (holiday near home*) )or( (holiday near house*) )or( (holiday near property) ))
#16 (( (holiday adj home*) )or( (holiday adj house*) )or( (holiday near property) ))
#15 (( (second adj home*) )or( (second adj house*) )or( (second near property) ))
#14 ((country hous*) or (summer residen*) or (vacation home*) or (second* home*)
or (rural propert*))
#13 country hous*
#12 country hous*
#11 incomer*
#10 holiday cottage*
#9 holiday let*
#8 holiday home*
#7 rural propert*
#6 seasonal residenc*
108
#5 winter residenc*
#4 winter residenc*
#3 summer residen*
#2 vacation home*
#1 second* home*
69 records downloaded.
6.
SIGLE 1980 – 06/2003 (searched 04/08/03)
#1 ((second* adj (home* or house* or dwelling* or let or lets or propert* or residen*
or cottage* or accommodation)) and (((Great Britain or United Kingdom or UK or
England or Scotland or Wales or Northern Ireland) not (New South Wales or New
England))
#2 (holiday* adj (home* or house* or dwelling* or let or lets or propert* or residen* or
cottage* or accommodation))
#3 (vacation near3 (home* or house* or dwelling* or let or lets or propert* or
residen* or cottage* or accommodation))
#4 ((summer or winter or seasonal) near4(home* or house* or dwelling* or let or lets
or propert* or residen* or cottage* or accommodation))
#5 (recreational near4 (home* or house* or dwelling* or let or lets or propert* or
residen* or cottage* or accommodation))
#6 (occasional near4 (home* or house* or dwelling* or let or lets or propert* or
residen* or cottage* or accommodation))
#7 (empty adj (home* or house* or dwelling* or let or lets or propert* or residen* or
cottage* or accommodation))
#8 (vacant adj (home* or house* or dwelling* or let or lets or propert* or residen* or
cottage* or accommodation))
#9 (country near3 (home* or house* or dwelling* or let or lets or propert* or residen*
or cottage* or accommodation))
#10 (rural near3 (home* or house* or dwelling* or let or lets or propert* or residen*
or cottage* or accommodation))
#11 (self cater* or self-cater* )
#12 ( rural housing )
91 records downloaded.
109
Search 2 (1980 - 06/2003 searched 02/12/03)
#8 #7 and #2
#7 affordable adj hous*
#6 void dwelling*
#5 #3 and #4
#4 Great Britain or England or Scotland or Ireland or Wales or United
Kingdom(35250 records)
#3 #1 and #2
#2 rural or country*
#1 plan* near hous*
98 records downloaded.
7.
Sociological Abstracts 1963 – 2003/06 (searched 16/07/03)
#1 ((Great Britain or Britain or England or Scotland or Wales or Northern Ireland or
United Kingdom) and (rural hous*)
#2 (( self cater* )or( self-cater* ))
#3 ( incomer* )
#4 (( holiday cottage* )or( holiday accommodation ))
#5 (( holiday home* )or( holiday house*) or ( holiday dwelling* ))
#6 (( holiday let )or( holiday lets )or ( holiday propert* ))
#7 (( second home* )or( second house* ) or( second dwelling* ))
#8 (( vacation home* )or( vacation hous* )or( holiday hous* ))
#9 ( country hous* )
#10 (( rural retreat )or( country retreat ))
#11 ( rural and (get adj away) )
#12 ( country and (get adj away) )
#13 ((Great Britain or Britain or England or Scotland or Wales or Northern Ireland or
United Kingdom) and (( ((seasonal or summer or winter) ) in AB )and( ((house or
home* or let or lets) ) in AB )
#14 (( recreational )and( (house* or home* or let or lets or dwelling* or propert*) )
and ((Great Britain or Britain or England or Scotland or Wales or Northern Ireland or
United Kingdom)
110
#15 ((Great Britain or Britain or England or Scotland or Wales or Northern Ireland or
United Kingdom) and (((occasional)near(house* or home* or let or lets or dwelling*
or propert*) )
#16 ((Great Britain or Britain or England or Scotland or Wales or Northern Ireland or
United Kingdom) and (( empty )and( (hous* or home* or dwelling* or propert*) )
#17 ((Great Britain or Britain or England or Scotland or Wales or Northern Ireland or
United Kingdom) and (((vacant)and(hous* or home* or dwelling* or propert*) )
#18 ((England or Scotland or Wales or Northern Ireland or United Kingdom or UK or
Great Britain) and (((summer residents or (seasonal resident* or (((secondary
home) or (second home*) or (holiday home*) or (vacation home*) or (rural
accommodation) or (rural property))
11 records downloaded.
Search 2 (1963- 06/2003 searched 02/12/03)
#9 #7 and #8
#8 Britain or England or Scotland or Wales or Ireland or United kingdom
#7 affordable near (hous* or hom*)
#6 #4 and #5
#5 Britain or United Kingdom or England or Wales or Scotland or Ireland
#4 #2 and #3
#3 rural or country*
#2 plan* near hous*
#1 void dwelling*
12 records downloaded.
8.
Social Science Citation Index (SSCI) 1981 – present (searched
16/07/03)
#1 TS=(vacant OR empty)
#2 TS=(property or dwelling* or home* or house* or residen* or accommodation or
let or lets)
#3 #1 AND #2
#4 TS=((vacant OR empty) SAME TS=(property or dwelling* or home* or house* or
residen* or accommodation or let or lets))
111
#5
TS=(Great Britain OR Northern Ireland or Scotland or England or Wales or
United Kingdom or UK) NOT TS=(New England or New South Wales)
#6 #4 and #5
#7
TI=((vacant OR empty) SAME TI=(property or dwelling* or home* or house* or
residen* or accommodation or let or lets))
#8 TS=(rural or country*)SAME TS=(communit* or resident* or local*)
#9
#8 AND #5
#10 #2 and #9
#11 TS=(vacation or holiday or seasonal or recreational or occasional or second* or
absent* or summer or winter)
#12 TS=(property or dwelling* or home* or house* or residen* or accommodation or
let or lets) SAME TS=(vacation or holiday or seasonal or recreational or occasional
or second* or absent* or summer or winter)
#13 #12 AND #5
#14 TI=(property or dwelling* or home* or house* or residen* or accommodation or
let or lets) SAME TI=(vacation or holiday or seasonal or recreational or occasional
or second* or absent* or summer or winter)
#15 #14 and #5
#16 TS=(self cater* or self-cater* )
#17 TI=(self cater* or self-cater* )
116 records were downloaded.
9. Social Sciences and Humanities Indexes Conference Papers (SSHICP)
1990- 2003
Searched 01/09/03
Search 1
#1 TI=(rural and hous*)
#2 TS=(Great Britain or England or Scotland or Wales or Northern Ireland or United
Kingdom)
#3 #1 and #2
#4 TS=(rural AND hous*)
#5 TS=(rural same hous*)
#6 #5 and #2
112
#7 #4 and #2
#8 TI=(rural and hous*)
#9 TS=incomer*
#10 TI=(self SAME cater*)
#11 TS=(self same cater*)
#12 TS=((vacant or empty) same (propert* or dwelling* or house or houses or home
or homes or accommodation))
#13 TI=((vacant or empty) same (propert* or dwelling* or house or houses or home
or homes or accommodation))
#14 TS=((holiday) same (house or houses or home or homes or let or lets or cottage
or dwelling or propert* or accommodation))
#15 TS=((holiday) same (house or houses or home or homes or let or lets or cottage
or dwelling or propert* or accommodation))
#16 TI=((holiday) same (house or houses or home or homes or let or lets or cottage
or dwelling or propert* or accommodation))
#17 TS=((second) same (house or houses or home or homes or let or lets or cottage or
dwelling or propert* or accommodation))
#18 #17 and #2
#19 TI=((second) same (house or houses or home or homes or let or lets or cottage
or dwelling or propert* or accommodation))
#20 TS=((occasional) same (house or houses or home or homes or let or lets or
cottage or dwelling or propert* or accommodation))
#21 TI=((occasional) same (house or houses or home or homes or let or lets or
cottage or dwelling or propert* or accommodation))
#22 TS=((recreational) same (house or houses or home or homes or let or lets or
cottage or dwelling or propert* or accommodation))
#23 TI=((recreational) same (house or houses or home or homes or let or lets or
cottage or dwelling or propert* or accommodation))
#24 TS=((rural) same (life or living))
#25 #2 and #24
#26 TI=((rural) same (life or living))
#27 #2 and #28
Search 2 (1981- current searched 14/08/03)
#1 TS=(holiday*) AND TS=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
113
#2 TI=(holiday*) AND TI=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#3 TI=(second*) AND TI=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#4 TS=(second*) AND TS=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#5 TS=(second or secondary) AND TS=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or
Let or Lets or Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#6 TS=(second) AND TS=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#7 TS=(second) AND TS=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*) AND TS=(UK or United Kingdom or
Great Britain or England or Scotland or Northern Ireland or Wales)
#8 TS=(UK or United Kingdom or Great Britain or England or Scotland or Northern
Ireland or Wales)
#9 #6 AND #8
#10 TI=(second) AND TI=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*) AND TS=(UK or United Kingdom or
Great Britain or England or Scotland or Northern Ireland or Wales)
#11 TS=(Second house* or second home* or second accommodation or second let
or second lets or second dwelling* or second propert* or second residen* or second
cottage*)
#12 #11 AND #8
#13 TI=(Second house* or second home* or second accommodation or second let
or second lets or second dwelling* or second propert* or second residen* or second
cottage*)
#14 #13 AND #8
#15 TS=(second) SAME TS=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#16 TI=(second) SAME TI=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#17 TS=(vacation) SAME TS=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets
or Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
114
#18 TI=(vacation) SAME TI=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#19 TS=(seasonal or summer or winter) SAME TS=(House* or Home* or
Accommodation or Let or Lets or Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#20
TI=(seasonal or summer or winter) SAME TI=(House* or Home* or
Accommodation or Let or Lets or Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#21 TI=(empty) SAME TI=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#22 TS=(empty) SAME TS=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#23 TS=(vacant) SAME TS=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#24 TI=(vacant) SAME TI=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#25 TS=(rural) SAME TS=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#26 TI=(rural) SAME TI=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
Search 3 (1981 - current searched 14/08/03)
#1 TS=(holiday*) AND TS=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#2 TI=(holiday*) AND TI=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#3 TI=(second*) AND TI=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#4 TS=(second*) AND TS=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#5 TS=(second or secondary) AND TS=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or
Let or Lets or Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#6 TS=(second) AND TS=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#7 TS=(second) AND TS=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*) AND TS=(UK or United Kingdom or
Great Britain or England or Scotland or Northern Ireland or Wales)
115
#8 TS=(UK or United Kingdom or Great Britain or England or Scotland or Northern
Ireland or Wales)
#9 #6 AND #8
#10 TI=(second) AND TI=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*) AND TS=(UK or United Kingdom or
Great Britain or England or Scotland or Northern Ireland or Wales)
#11 TS=(Second house* or second home* or second accommodation or second let
or second lets or second dwelling* or second propert* or second residen* or second
cottage*)
#12 #11 AND #8
#13 TI=(Second house* or second home* or second accommodation or second let
or second lets or second dwelling* or second propert* or second residen* or second
cottage*)
#14 #13 AND #8
#15 TS=(second) SAME TS=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#16 TI=(second) SAME TI=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#17 TS=(vacation) SAME TS=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets
or Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#18 TI=(vacation) SAME TI=(House* or Home* or Accommodation or Let or Lets or
Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#19 TS=(seasonal or summer or winter) SAME TS=(House* or Home* or
Accommodation or Let or Lets or Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
#20 TI=(seasonal or summer or winter) SAME TI=(House* or Home* or
Accommodation or Let or Lets or Dwelling* or Propert* or Residen* or Cottage*)
Due to the restrictions of the database when saving the strategy, 3 different
searches were carried out. Once false drops had been eliminated 17 records were
downloaded.
116
117
Appendix Three
Websites searched
Searched prior to 23rd April 2004
Chartered Institute of Housing
www.cih.org
Housing Corporation
www.housingcorp.gov.uk
National Housing Federation
www.housing.org.uk
Local Government Association
www.lga.gov.uk
Empty Homes Agency
www.emptyhomes.com
Local Government Information Unit
www.lgiu.gov.uk
Office of the Deputy Prime Minister
www.odpm.gov.uk
Cabinet Office
www.cabinet-office.gov.uk
Social Exclusion Unit
www.socialexclusionunit.gov.uk
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
www.defra.gov.uk
National Parks
www.anpa.gov.uk
Campaign to Protect Rural England
www.cpre.org.uk
Campaign for the Protection of Rural Wales
www.cprw.org.uk
Communities Scotland
www.communitiesscotland.gov.uk
Scottish Executive
www.scotland.gov.uk
National Assembly for Wales
www.wales.gov.uk
Northern Ireland Housing Executive
www.nihe.gov.uk
Countryside Agency
www.countryside.gov.uk
Shelter
www.shelter.org.uk
Housing Net
www.housingnet.co.uk
Housing UK
www.housinguk.org
Council of Mortgage Lenders
www.cml.org.uk
Action with Communities in Rural England
www.acre.org.uk
Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors
www.rics.org.uk
England Rural Affairs Forum
www.ruralaffairs.org.uk
English Tourism Council
www.englishtourism.org.uk
National Rural Enterprise Centre
www.ruralnet.org.uk
Rural Housing Service
www.ruralhousingscotland.org
Northern Ireland Assembly
www.ni-assembly.gov.uk
All National Park websites
118
Social Policy Research Sites
Joseph Rowntree Foundation
Regard
University Research Units
Arkleton Centre for Rural Development Research, Aberdeen University
School of Architecture and the Built Environment, University of Westminster
Department of City and Regional Planning, Cardiff University
Centre for Comparative Housing Research De Montfort University
Countryside and Community Research Unit, University of Gloucester.
Centre for Regional, Economic and Social Research, Sheffield Hallam University
Department of Land Economy, Cambridge University.
Department of Urban Studies, Glasgow University
Centre for Rural Economy, Newcastle University
University of Nottingham Online Planning Resources
119
Appendix Four
Journals handsearched
Hand searching completed 23rd April 2004. All checked from January 2002.
Housing Studies
Roof
Journal of Rural Studies
Sociologia Ruralis
Environment and Planning A
Environment and Planning B
Environment and Planning C
120
121
Appendix Five
Local Authority contacts
Letter/email sent to rural district authorities requesting any additional material on
second/vacant homes (letter sent 22nd April 2004). List compiled from FPD Savill
analysis of second homes as proportion of housing stock based on 2002 data.
Authorities with proportion of second homes greater than three were sampled for
contact.
Alnwick
Berwick Upon Tweed
Caradon
Carrick
Chichester
Copeland
East Devon
East Lindsey
Isle of Wight
Kerrier
Kings Lynn and West Norfolk
North Cornwall
North Norfolk
Penwith
Purbeck
Restormel
Rother
Ryedale
Shepway
South Hams
South Lakeland
South Shropshire
Suffolk Coastal
Tendring
Torridge
West Dorset
West Somerset
122
123
Appendix Six
Studies identified but not retrieved
References not retrieved and reason
Timed out general refers to items that we attempted to get but that did not arrive.
Unobtainable refers to items that could not be found; or borrowed through interlibrary loans. The word ‘untraceable’ might be a better description in some cases.
Alexander, D., Chambers, B., & Kerven, R. 2001, ‘Planning for new housing in the
rural North East’, Town and Country Planning, vol. 70, pp. 307-308.
TIMED OUT
Bennett, S. 1977, ‘Housing need and the rural housing market’ in Community
Development in Countryside Planning, vol. no G. Williams, ed., Department of
Town and Country Planning, Manchester University, Manchester.
UNOBTAINABLE
Bolton, N. and Chalkley, B. 1990, ‘The population turnaround: a case study of North
Devon’, Journal of Rural Studies, vol. 4, no. 1, pp. 57-72.
UNOBTAINABLE (journal details did not match with journal details found on the
internet)
Bond, A. 1985, Housing Problems in Rural Cumbria. Open University.
UNOBTAINABLE
Brown, D.L. and Wardwell, J.M.(eds), 1983 New Directions in Urban-Rural
Migration, Academic Press, New York.
UNOBTAINABLE
Caenarvonshire County Planning Department 1973, Interim Report to Parliamentary
and General Purposes Committee: Agenda Item 1 (4) - Second Homes (18th
January).
TIMED OUT
124
Carmarthenshire County Planning Department 1973, Survey of Second Homes in
Carmarthenshire: a preliminary analysis (January 1973).
TIMED OUT
Carr, J.P. and Morrison, W.I., 1972, A Survey of Second Homes in East
Monmouthshire, Monmouthshire Studies Report No. 7: Planning Research Group,
Enfield College of Technology (Middlesex Polytechnic), Middlesex, Monmouthshire
Studies Report No. 7.
TIMED OUT
Damer, S. 1999, Second homes on Arran. A report to the Arran Council for
Voluntary Service, Arran Council for Voluntary Service Lamlash (GB)
TIMED OUT (permission to copy was needed)
Department of the Environment 1977, Better Use of Vacant and Under-Occupied
Housing, HMSO, London.
UNOBTAINABLE
Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions, 1998, The nature of the
demand for housing in rural areas (Housing research summary No 88), DETR,
Wetherby.
TIMED OUT (full report ID 1020 did not meet the quality criteria)
Department of the Environment, 2003, A classification of rural housing markets in
England, Department of the Environment housing research report.
DUPLICATE OF ID 807 (807 did not enter the review because it was not about
policy or impact)
Emmett, I. 1964, A North Wales Village Routledge and Kegan Paul, London.
TIMED OUT
FPD Savills 2004, The Second Homes Market in England, full report, FPD Savills,
London.
UNOBTAINABLE (the client would not let us have a copy)
125
Housing Corporation, Countryside Agency, & Country Land and Business
Association 2003, Affordable rural housing: opportunities for farmers and
landowners, Housing Corporation, London.
UNOBTAINABLE
Hughes, R. E. 1973, The Planning Implications of Second Homes, , Edinburgh:
Department of Town and Country Planning, Edinburgh College of Art/Heriot-Watt
University.
TIMED OUT
Johnston, E. 2002, Consultation report on rural housing proposals.
TIMED OUT
Lowe, P. 1986, Countryside Conflicts Gower, Aldershot.
TIMED OUT
MacNicol, M. & Alexander, D. 1996, Tackling the BTS rural housing problem: a
report on three seminars, Rural Forum, Highland House, St Catherine's Road, Perth
PH1 5RY1996.
TIMED OUT
Manchester Polytechnic 1982, A Study of the Housing Market in Parts of Dwyfor,
Gwynedd, Department of Governmental and Geographical Studies, Manchester
Polytechnic, Manchester
UNOBTAINABLE
Norfolk County Planning Office 1972, Second Homes in Norfolk, Preliminary Note,
Norfolk County Planning Office.
UNOBTAINABLE
Northumberland County Planning Office 1971, Countryside Recreation - Second
Homes Survey, 1970. A report presented to the County Planning Committee in
October 1971.
UNOBTAINABLE
Pardoe, A. R. ‘Social Implications of Second Home Development in Mid-Wales’,
IBG Conference, Norwich.
UNOBTAINABLE (Inter-library loans looked but could not find it)
126
Passmore, J. 1987, ‘The bastard child of housing?’, Housing Review, vol. 36, no.
(Mar-Apr 87), pp. 46-7.
UNOBTAINABLE
Penfold, S. 1974, Housing Problems of Local People in Rural Pressure Areas,
Department of Town and Regional Planning, University of Sheffield, Sheffield.
UNOBTAINABLE
Scottish Development Department 1971, Second Homes in Scotland, Scottish
Development Department.
UNOBTAINABLE (the Scottish Executive looked but could not find it)
Scottish Homes 1990, Rural Housing, Consultation: a report on Meetings, Scottish
Homes, Edinburgh, Research Report No 12.
UNOBTAINABLE
Scottish Homes 1990, Rural Policy, Scottish Homes, Edinburgh.
UNOBTAINABLE
Scottish Homes 1991, Planning agreements and low cost housing in Scotland's rural
areas, Scottish Homes, Edinburgh.
UNOBTAINABLE
Scottish Landowners' Federation 1998, Rural Housing in Scotland: A New Initiative,
Scottish Landowners' Federation, Edinburgh.
UNOBTAINABLE
Simpson, T. S. 1974, Aspects of Rural Planning, with special reference to Second
Homes in the Lake District, yes no.
UNOBTAINABLE
Smith, J. 1971, Second-Home Ownership in Britain and its planning implications,
Department of Town and Country Planning, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh,
Research essay prepared for BSc (Honours) degree.
TIMED OUT
127
Twine, F. E. & Williams, A. 1993, Resales of Public Sector Houses in Rural
Scotland, Scottish Homes, Edinburgh, 24.
UNOBTAINABLE (a copy was found at Edinburgh City Library, but was not available
for loan)
Welsh Office 1993, Rural Housing, Cm 2375, HMSO, London.
UNOBTAINABLE
Williams, H. 1974, Second Homes, yes yes - 17/03/04 interlibrary loan form sent to
JBM, University of Wales, Cardiff.
UNOBTAINABLE (Inter-library Loans sent a completely different item in response to
our request. This item did not make the final review because it was not empirical)
128
129
Appendix Seven
Data extraction form
Ref ID
Bibliographic details
Study aims
Summarise study’s aims and purpose (research question)
Study typology code
Summary Study Methods
Summarise the main features of the methods used, including sample
sizes, setting etc
Re-verification of inclusion criteria
Prior to 1980?
Yes/no
Is the study related to the UK?
Yes, no, uncertain
Is the study related to rural
community/communities under 10,000
population
Single community – yes, no, uncertain
Different communities – yes, no, uncertain
Relevance to topic
1. The demand for housing/access to
affordable housing; (D)
2. Reputation or image of the
community; (R)
3. Crime and anti-social behaviour;
(C)
4. Social exclusion and poverty; (SE)
5. The accessibility of facilities,
services, employment; (A)
6. The viability of facilities, services,
employment and business; (V)
7. The quality of the community’s
environment; (Q)
8. The quality, design and layout of
housing; (P=physical)
9. The extent of community
cohesiveness; (CC)
10. The mix of the community (M)
Question 1.
Is the study concerned with
effects of EIOPs on rural
sustainability?
Yes, no, uncertain
Empirical research
Is the study ‘empirical’ research?
Yes, no, uncertain
Which dimensions of
sustainability are considered?
- Demand/access to housing
- Community reputation
- Crime/ASB
- Social exclusion/poverty
- Accessibility of facilities
- Viability of facilities
- Quality of environ
- Quality of housing
- Community cohesion
- Community mix
- Other - specify
Question 2
Is the study concerned with
impact of policy that aims to
address effects of EIOPs on
sustainability?
Yes, no, uncertain
Which dimensions of
sustainability is it intended to
address?
- Demand/access to housing
- Community reputation
- Crime/ASB
- Social exclusion/poverty
- Accessibility of facilities
- Viability of facilities
- Quality of environ
- Quality of housing
- Community cohesion
- Community mix
- Other - specify
130
Contextual relevance
If study is prior to 1980-is it relevant to today? Main review or
historical context to review? Yes/No/Uncertain
If considered relevant- please state how and use examples:
Quality Appraisal
Question (E)
Is the research question clear?
Theoretical perspective (D)
Is the theoretical or ideological perspective of the author (or
funder) explicit, and has this influenced the study
design, methods or research findings?
I.e. consumer, feminist, economic rational, etc
Study design (E)
Is the study design appropriate to answer the question?
Context (D)
Is the context or setting adequately described?
Sampling (E)
(Qualitative) Is the sample adequate to explore the range of subjects
and settings, and has it been drawn from an appropriate population?
(Quantitative) Is the sample size adequate for the analysis used and
has it been drawn from an appropriate population?
Data collection (E)(when fieldwork
conducted, how data collected, by
whom etc)
Was the data collection adequately described and rigorously
conducted to ensure confidence in the findings?
Data analysis (E)
Was the data analysis adequately described and rigorously
conducted to ensure confidence in the findings?
Reflexivity (D)
Are the findings substantiated by the data and has consideration
been given to any limitations of the methods or data that may have
affected the results?
Generalisability (D)
Do any claims to generalisability follow logically, theoretically and
statistically from the data?
Ethical standards (D)
Have ethical issues been addressed and confidentiality respected?
Quality Threshold Met?
Yes, No, Uncertain??
Data Extraction
Area(s) under study
I.e. counties, regions, nat parks etc:
Definitions
What definitions of second, holiday, irregular or empty properties has
been used in study? What is included or excluded? E.g. chalets etc
Owner profiles
Extract any information relating to socio-demographic profiles etc of
EIOP owners that study may include:
Property profiles
Extract any information relating to attributes of EIOP properties
included in study, including info about market:
131
Summary of impacts on
sustainability criteria
Extract details and examples from study relating to sustainability
criteria.
Summary of impacts of policy
interventions
11. The demand for housing/access to
affordable housing; (D)
12. Reputation or image of the
community; (R)
13. Crime and anti-social behaviour;
(C)
14. Social exclusion and poverty; (SE)
15. The accessibility of facilities,
services, employment; (A)
16. The viability of facilities, services,
employment and business; (V)
17. The quality of the community’s
environment; (Q)
18. The quality, design and layout of
housing; (P=physical)
19. The extent of community
cohesiveness; (CC)
20. The mix of the community (M)
(Structure) How far does the structure of a policy affect the impact of
the intervention? How was intervention set up? Give details of
scheme, Has this affected its impact?
Methods
Reviewers Comments Strength of
Report
Reviewers Comments on
Weaknesses of Report
Reviewer and Date
(Process) Is there any aspect about the delivery or implementation
of a policy, which influences its effectiveness? (How was scheme
operated? By whom? Etc)
Are there any contextual factors affect the operation of the
intervention (e.g. housing market, location, what other things were
happening that could explain the outcomes)?
(Outcomes) What impact does the policy have upon addressing the
effects of empty or irregularly occupied properties on rural
communities?
What impact does the intervention have upon the how empty or
irregularly occupied property are used?
(Give details of any intended or unintended outcomes of the
policy intervention)
How have studies tried to isolate effects of EIOP or policy
interventions, from other factors such as rural in-migration etc?
132
133
Appendix Eight
Studies not passing quality criteria
Crouchley, R. (1976) Towards a Model of the Spatial Distribution of Second Homes in
the UK. Dissertation. MSc Town Planning, Cardiff University.
This study attempts to present a framework to help in an objective way, identify the factors
that will affect the spatial distribution of second homes to aid planners in making design
and policy decisions.
This represents a well-conducted dissertation for a Masters degree, and shows a thorough
understanding of the research process. However, as the author acknowledges, it has
many limitations in the modelling of weak data and little confidence is conveyed in the
findings for the purposes of this review.
Thompson, P. (1977) An investigation of second homes social research
methodology. Diploma Thesis. UWIST. ?place?
This study examines the methods of investigation into social effects of second homes,
particularly the use of cost benefit analysis. It advocates the use of using the semantic
differential technique to determine attitudes.
This thesis demonstrates an understanding for research methods and techniques sufficient
for a Diploma, but due to inadequate data collection was unable to conduct sound
statistical analysis.
Crofts, R.S. Self-catering Holiday Accommodation: the role of substitution. In
Coppock, J.T. (ED.) (1977) ‘Second Homes: Curse or Blessing. Oxford, Pergamon
Press.
This study had two aims: 1) to discuss the problems arising from the existence of different
types of self-catering accommodation including built second homes, caravans and chalets;
and 2) to show that the problems caused by second homes can be partially resolved by
substituting alternative supplies of self-catering accommodation.
Aims are clear and background and issues are of merit. The conduct of the research from
sampling, data collection and data analysis is poorly reported and does not infer
confidence in the findings that are often unsubstantiated by the data presented. (See
Chapter Three for comments on quality of methods reporting in general).
134
Ireland, M. (1987) Planning Policy and Holiday homes in Rural Cornwall. In Bouquet,
M. and Winter, M. (Eds) ‘Who from their Labours Rest? Conflict and Practice in Rural
Tourism. ? place? Avebury.
Its apparent aims are to examine the views and behaviour of local people most affected by
holiday development in a case study area in Cornwall.
This study inadequately conveys confidence in how the study was designed, participants
sampled, data collected or data analysed. (See Chapter ** for comments on quality of
methods reporting in general).
DTZ Peida Consulting (1998) The Nature of Demand for Housing in Rural Areas.
London: DETR
Study examines the operation of private and social housing markets in rural areas; the way
these market affect housing access, affordability and need; and identifies issues for rural
housing policy.
Comprehensively examines different facets of demand in rural areas, which is lacking in
some studies, highlighting the important contribution to external demand of permanent inmigration for retirement and commuting. However, although the issue of second homes
was raised occasionally, the study insufficiently examines empty or irregularly occupied
properties. Authors suggest second homes were hard to identify and second homeowners
were a hard to reach group using the methods employed.
Jenkin (1985) Towards a policy package for second homes in Anglesey. University
of Wales Dissertation Diploma in Town Planning
The aims of the study were to review the impact of policy packages to address second
homes in Anglesey, North Wales.
This study makes some interesting points regarding the reduction in public and private
rented housing locally as home ownership expands, contributes to the housing problems of
low-income households. However, the study demonstrates understanding of the r search
process and topic sufficient for Diploma, but does not convey confidence in many stages of
the research to meet the quality threshold for this review.
Gallent, M., Tewdwr-Jones, A (2000) Rural Second Homes in Europe: Examining
housing supply and planning control. Aldershot, Ashgate
The aims of this study were to compare the experiences of second home ownership in the
UK with that in Europe.
The book is based upon the Gallent, Higgs and Tewdwr-Jones literature review
commissioned by Gwynned council, supplemented by some fresh empirical data based in
Scotland. The book is well considered and empirical evidence of merit. However, there
are insufficient details presented regarding the collection of this empirical evidence by
which the quality and conduct of the research can be established. It is therefore unable to
go forward into the review. (See Chapter Three for comments on quality of methods
reporting in general).
135
Appendix Nine
Summaries of the studies included in the review
Study details and aims
Bielckus, C., Rogers, A. and Wibberley, G.
(1972) Second Homes in England and Wales.
Wye College, Countryside Planning Unit,
School of Rural Economics and Related
Studies.
Main focus
Methods
Definitions
Second homes
Postal survey and interviews
with local planning and rating
authorities to provide a sample
frame of second homeowners
and views of planning depts
towards second homes. Survey
of second home owners in 4
case study areas. Postal
survey of sample of second
home owners to assess the
social and economic
characteristics.
A property which is the
occasional residence of a
household that usually lives
elsewhere and which is primarily
used for recreational purposes
Survey 530 second
homeowners identified by rating
registers (64% response rate);
approached 31 estate agents,
(5 interviews, 10 written
responses); Field survey 7
parishes, discussions with local
gatekeepers (i.e. Shop owners,
ministers, police).
A dwelling intended mainly for
leisure or holiday purposes and
was not the usual or permanent
place of residence of the owner.
To derive quantitative estimates of extent of
purchase and renovation of old rural and coastal
properties for occasional use, and assess
demand for second residences in future.
Jacobs, C. (1972) Second Homes in
Denbighshire. Tourism and Recreation
Research Report No.3. County of
Denbighshire.
To identify size, impact and possible future trends
of second home ownership, to assess the costs
and benefits to the county as a whole, and to
suggest a policy towards the establishment of
second homes in countryside.
Second homes
Excludes caravans and rented
homes as author suggests
difficulty in assessing the
purpose of use. Highlights
problems distinguishing what is
second and first home.
No attempt is made to define
second homes in questionnaire
or letter; because pattern of use
might vary widely it was thought
unwise to delineate second
homes too narrowly. The
definition was rather implicit from
the responses.
Case study
areas
Sustainability
criteria
addressed
England & WalesNorth East Essex;
SW Devon;
Southern
Lakeland; West
Central Wales.
Viability of
facilities; built
environment;
quality of housing;
commuity
cohesion;
community mix;
Wales Denbighshire
Housing markets;
Viability of
facilities;
Community
cohesion; Policy
responses.
136
Tuck (1973) Merioneth Structure Plan.
Subject Report 17: Second Homes
Second homes
To examine the distribution and use of second
homes in Merioneth and attempt to assess the
costs and benefits arising from them.
A sample postal survey of
second home owners identified
by combination of rating
registers and fieldwork in three
parishes with help of local
people.
A dwelling used by a family
primarily for recreation and
leisure purposes as distinct from
a first home which forms the
normal domicile of the family
from which they travel to work or
school.
Wales - Merioneth
Councty (later
became Gwynned
UA)
Housing markets;
viability of facilities;
community
cohesion;
community mix;
policy responses
Wales Caenarvonshire
Housing markets;
community culture;
viability of facilities;
environment;
community
cohesion,
community mix;
policy responses
Author notes that many static
caravans often used as second
homes, but report restricted to
permanent dwellings or semipermanent developments such
as chalets. Accommodation
used primarily for letting on a
commercial basis for holiday
homes is excluded.
Pyne, C.B. (1973) Second Homes.
Caernarvonshire County Planning Dept.
To examine the types of property used for second
homes, the way in which they are used, the costs
and benefits related to them and some
characteristics of owners. In addition to consider
policy options available.
Second homes
Survey of 890 second home
owners (response rate 34%)
using rating registers, LA data
on improvement grants, and
sample of people whose rates
bills sent to address outside the
county.
A second home is a dwelling
used by its owners and possibly
other visitors for leisure or
holiday purposes and which is
not the usual or permanent place
of residence of the owners.
A holiday investment property is
a dwelling owned either locally or
outside the county and not
permanently occupied but let to
holidaymakers solely on a
commercial basis. In addition, a
club, institute or company holiday
property will also only be used by
club members or company
employees and clients.
Their survey excludes properties
permanently occupied by local
residents or owners are within
the county and investment
properties let on a solely
commercial basis.
137
De Vane R. (1975) Second Home Ownership:
A case study. Bangor: Bangor Occasional
Papers Number 6,
University of Wales Press.
Second homes
To investigate the extent and nature of second
home ownership in Gwynned, and attempt to
measure the economic impact of second home
ownership by examining second home owners
expenditure in the area.
Used rating registers, local
knowledge and own enquiries to
establish second homes and
surveyed owners of properties.
Sample survey undertaken in
number of parishes to derive
expenditure data, used
economic model multiplier to
estimate contribution to local
economy.
Any static accommodation unit,
which may be owned, leased or
rented, and which is available for
the exclusive use over a twelvemonth period of a family unit
whose normal daily journey time
is minimised at another
residence.
Wales - Gwynned
Viability of facilities
May include private houses, flats,
chalets, static caravans and
houseboats. Will exclude hotels,
inns, boarding houses and
touring caravans.
Ashby, P., Birch, G. and Haslett, M. (1975)
Second Homes In North Wales. Liverpool:
Dept of Civic Design, Liverpool University.
Second Homes
Used secondary data from four
studies to provide regional
picture, and new empirical work
using fieldwork involving
interviews with local residents
and 18 village second
homeowners and 48 holiday
chalet second homeowners in
October half term.
No definitions given
WalesAbergynolwyn and
Trawsfynydd,
Gwynned
Housing markets;
viability of facilities;
environment;
community
cohesion;
community mix;
Second homes
Postal questionnaire to 11000
second homeowners living over
25 miles away using La rating
registers.
A dwelling that predominantly
used by their owners rather than
let on a series of short tenancies
and are sufficiently permanent in
structure to be identified as
separate heridtaments.
England Counties of
Cornwall, Devon,
Somerset, Dorset,
Wiltshire,
Gloucestershire.
Housing markets;
viability of facilities;
policy responses.
To assess extent of second home ownership in
region and compare experiences of local
communities of built second homes and second
homes located within a holiday village.
South West Economic Planning Council
(1975) Survey of Second Homes in the South
West.
To ascertain the number, distribution and
characteristics of second homes in SW; to
investigate the determinants of growth and
predict future growth; to assess the economic
effects of second homes; to determine
implications for policy.
This includes houses, flats,
bungalows, chalets, beach huts
even if bought for retirement or
were the homes of people with
tied accommodation elsewhere.
It does not include any of these
dwellings if used as holiday
lettings which are part of the
stock of tourist accommodation
rather than housing stock. It
does not include static or touring
caravans.
138
Downing, P. and Dower, M. (1977) Second
Homes in Scotland. Dartington Amenity
Research Trust.
Second homes
To clarify trends in ownership of second homes;
assess the potential demand, and factors
affecting supply, of second homes; appraise
socio-economic, environmental and other
implications of second homes; to assess range of
policy responses.
Bollom, C. (1978) Attitude and Second Homes
in Rural Wales. Social Science Monographs
No.3. University of Wales, Board of Celtic
Studies.
Secondary data sources, using
govt and market research data;
fieldwork in seven local case
study areas in 1974 with follow
up study in 1976.
A property owned, long-leased or
rented on a yearly basis or longer
as an occasional residence of a
household that usually lives
elsewhere.
Scotland - Assynt,
Skye, Oban,
Largs, Galloway,
Strathspey,
Angus.
Housing markets;
viability of facilities;
environment;
Community
cohesion; policy
responses
Wales Penmachno and
Cwm Penmachno;
Rhiw; Croesor;
Llansannan.
Community
cohesion
Includes built properties such as
houses, cottages, bungalows,
chalets, flats and static caravans
and permanently moored
houseboats (although no
houseboats were found).
Second homes
To examine the attitudes of people affected by
second home development and the degrees of
interaction between second home owners and
native people in the areas which received them.
In addition aimed to quantify ‘excessive social
costs’.
Postal survey of second home
owners in four case study
areas. Face to face interviews
with local residents and second
home owners in case study
areas, using method of
semantic differential to evaluate
meanings people attach to
terms used.
Bennett, S. (1979) Rural Housing in the Lake
District. Lancaster University
A property which is owned,
leased or rented and which is
available for the exclusive use,
over a twelve month period, of a
family unit whose normal daily
journey time is minimised at
another residence
No caravans or chalets were in
the case study area.
A second home is a property
which is the occasional residence
of a household that usually lives
elsewhere and which is primarily
used for recreational purposes.
(derived from Wye
College/DART)
England - Lake
District
Excludes holiday cottages.
Shucksmith, M. (1981) No Homes for Locals?
Farnborough: Gower.
To examine whether locals were priced out of the
local housing market and assess the effect of
local occupancy controls on new development
Second homes
and sources of
external
demand
Survey of estate agents;
analysis of local house price
data from local paper 19701978
No definitions offered
England- Lake
District
Housing markets;
Policy responses
139
Davies and O’Farrell (1981) An Intra-regional
Locational Analysis of Second Home
Ownership. Cardiff: Dept of Town Planning,
University of Wales.
Second homes
Look at spatial distribution of second homes over
time.
Detailed analysis of rating
registers 1960- 1977; field
survey of village, including local
enquiry; mapping and coding of
all second homes and holiday
homes in parish
A second home is a dwelling unit
that is used by its owner for
recreational purposes for part of
the year and does not serve as a
permanent place of residence.
Private dwellings must be
permanently constructed, nonderelict, fixed dwelling as
identified in rating register.
Wales- Cemaes,
West Wales
Housing markets
England - North
Norfolk
Housing market;
viability of
facilities;
community
cohesion;
community mix;
policy respones
England - Lake
District
Housing markets;
community
cohesion; policy
responses
A holiday home is a dwelling unit
that is not used by its owner for
recreational purposes, does not
serve as a permanent place of
residence, but is rented out for
recreational purposes.
Caravans and boats were
excluded as study aimed to look
at location, which in these cases
would not be fixed.
Coleman R. Second Homes in North Norfolk
in Moseley, M.J. (Ed.) (1982) Power, Planning
and People in Rural East Anglia. Centre for
East Anglian Studies, University of East
Anglia.
Second homes
Survey of second homeowners
117, permanent residents 47,
and interviewed 15 estate
agents and some local
businesses.
This excludes mobile and static
caravans, trailers but includes
holiday homes if not let for whole
year or managed by agents.
Unclear whether chalets are
included.
To examine aspects of supply and demand,
motivation for purchase, effects on land values,
economic, social, cultural effects, locational
aspects and role of developers, estate agents
and planners in second home markets.
Capstick, M. (1987) Housing Dilemmas in the
Lake District. Lancaster: Centre for NW
Regional Studies, University of Lancaster.
To examine the current housing demand, supply
of land and residential property in lake District
after local occupancy controls deleted from
Structure Plan.
A property that is owned by a
household with their usual
residence elsewhere. It must not
be mobile and must form part of
the usual housing stock.
Second homes
in context of
other housing
pressures
Secondary data sources such
as Census, employment/labour
market statistics, parish housing
waiting lists, housing stock data;
consultation with key players;
Interviews with estate agents
and four district councils or
housing associations
No definitions given.
Draws distinction between
second and holiday homes but
unclear whether chalets or
caravans are included.
140
Finch, H., Lovell, A., Ward, K (1989) Empty
dwellings: A study of vacant private sector
dwellings in five local authority area. London:
HMSO
Empty homes
Survey of local authorities and
local agencies in five case
studies. Survey included
analysis of 30 vacant properties
in each area, and also ten
owners in each area were
traced and interviewed.
Private sector voids identified
from the rating register
England - East
Lyndsey, Lincs.
Empty Homes
Collection and analysis of
background papers and reports;
analysis of schema data;
qualitative interviews with a
number of agencies,
landowners and tenants. Study
covered 14 of the 20 properties
currently covered by the grant.
Followed the definitions set out in
the scheme relating to eligibility
for grants, type of tenants on low
incomes.
Unclear about properties and
authors recommended that all
the definitions be made more
explicit.
Tayside
Empty homes
Review of recent research and
statistical material on vacant
property in Scotland;
consideration of vacant
properties in other EU countries;
postal survey of vacant
properties in 9 districts; three
case studies to provide insight
into extent and causes of vacant
properties.
No definition given
Scotland –
Postal survey
Scotland Dundee,
Sutherland,
Aberdeen, Kyle
and Carrick,
Hailton, Moray,
Nithsdale,
Kilmarnock,
Loudon
Case study areas
Moray/Inverness;
Nithsdale; Dundee
No definition given
Scotland - Skye
and Lochalsh;
Sutherland;
Sterling; Wigtown
Provides qualitative data on why dwellings in
private ownership become empty and remain
empty. It also looked at some of the different
initiatives for reducing private sector voids.
Henderson, M., Shucksmith, M., MacDonald,
C. (1994) An Evaluation of Scottish Homes
Rural Empty Homes Initiatives. Edinburgh:
Scottish Homes
To investigate the Rural Empty Homes Initiative
piloted in Tayside, and to consider solutions to
problems identified.
Murie, A., McIntosh, S., Wainright, S. and
McGuckin, A. (1995) Empty Dwellings in
Scotland. Research Paper No.63. School of
Planning and Housing, Edinburgh College of
Art/Herriot Watt University.
In order to assist Scottish Homes to draw up
comprehensive strategy to encourage the reuse
of vacant properties, study aimed to examine why
property in private sector left vacant, provide
estimates of vacant numbers, and consider policy
initiatives that would bring them back into use.
Shucksmith, M. (1996) Review of Scottish
Homes Rural Policy. Edinburgh: Scottish
Homes.
To review the performance of Scottish homes
rural policy, focussing on overall impact of
investment and activities in rural areas.
General rural
housing and
Housing markets;
policy responses
141
Damer, S. (2000) Scotland in Miniature?
Second Homes on Arran. Scottish Affairs
Issue 31, Spring, pp 37-54.
Second Homes
Postal questionnaire of all
owners on island identified from
council tax register and
interview with small sample.
No definitions given
Empty homes
Desk review of 217 projects
supported so far; face-to-face
interviews project leaders, local
authority officers; telephone
interviews with RSLs, landlords,
tenants, funders; case studies
of 20 projects.
No definition given
Scoping study of 22 local
authorities in Wales; national
data exercise across Wales to
generate second/holiday home
numbers across Wales and
place in context of demographic
change, house prices and
migration; sets context for case
study work in five areas.
Interviews with housing and
planning officials, RSLs, estate
agents. Consultation exercise
with agencies with interest in
subject. Documentary analysis.
A second home is a dwelling
used by its owners and possibly
visitors for leisure or holiday
purposes and which is not the
usual or permanent place of
residence for the owner.
Scotland - Arran
To explore the social attributes of second
homeowners on Isle of Arran and investigate
whether they fit the ‘commonsense’ view of
‘White Settlers’.
Caledonian Economics Ltd, Arneil, J., Nevin,
M., Finnigan, M., Johnston, D., Lees, F.,
Metwe, D. van der (2001) Evaluation of Empty
Homes Initiative. Edinburgh: Scottish
Executive.
To evaluate the Empty Homes Initiative in
Scotland
Tewdwr-Jones, M. , Gallent, N., and Mace, A.
(2002) Second Homes and Holiday Homes and
the Land Use Planning System. Cardiff,
Welsh Assembly.
To establish the number and location of second
and holiday homes in rural communities;
establish effect on local housing markets and
availability of affordable housing; identify positive
role of planning in meeting rural housing needs;
identify negative impacts of planning system in
meeting local needs.
Second and
holiday homes
in context of
rural housing
markets
Housing market;
viability of
services;
community
cohesion
Policy responses
Problems with defining empty
properties found as many
originally identified were in fact
occupied.
A holiday investment property
(holiday home) is a dwelling
owned either locally or outside
the local area and not
permanently occupied but let to
holidaymakers solely on a
commercial basis.
Unclear whether chalets and
static caravans are included in
this report.
Wales - Gwynned
(Lleyn Peninsula);
Pembrokeshie
Coast National
Park; Ceredigion;
Brecon Beacons
National Park;
Powys
(Radnorshire)
Housing markets;
social exclusion,
viability of
facilities;
community
cohesion,
community mix,
policy responses.
142
Gallent, N., Mace, A. and Tewdwr-Jones, M.
(2002) Second homes in rural areas of
England. Wetherby: Countryside Agency
To examine impacts of second homes in rural
areas, how local authorities respond, examine
planning and fiscal policy options and
recommend future policy initiatives
Johnston, E. (2003) A Source of Contention:
Affordable Housing in Rural Wales. Cardiff:
IWA/JRF.
To understand local housing pressures and policy
options, community views on housing policy in
rural Wales.
Second
homes/holiday
homes in
context of
changing rural
housing
markets
General rural
housing
Survey of housing and planning
departments in England’s rural
district councils and Unitary
authorities; follow up interviews
with 35 authorities showing high
second home pressure; and 10
case study areas including key
stakeholder interviews
(policymakers, estate agents)
and documentary analysis
A privately owned dwelling
mainly used for vacations: they
are furnished homes that are noones residence. Holiday homes
may take the form of chalets with
restricted occupancy.
Documentary analysis of UDPs,
Local Plans in Wales, Scotland
and England; Interviews with all
Welsh and 3 English National
Parks and Ceredigion in Wales;
On-Line questionnaire (115
responses); focus group experts
LAs, RSLs, NPs; focus groups
tenant groups, young people
and welsh language groups.
No definitions of holiday or
second homes offered.
Unclear whether chalets and
static caravans are included, Not
mentioned in analysis.
References to these issues came
up in discussions with
participants and in
questionnaires but not
distinguished.
EnglandCotswolds,
Exmoor, Isles of
Scilly, lake
District, ew
Forest, Restormel,
South Shropshire,
Ribble Valley,
Suffolk Coast,
York Dales NP.
Housing markets;
Viability of
facilities; Policy
responses
WalesPembrokeshire,
Snowdonai and
Brecon Beacons
National Parks,
and Ceredigion as
control.
Housing markets;
Community
cohesion; Policy
responses.
ISBN : 1 874797 56 0
Published by the
Centre for Housing Policy
University of York
Heslington
York YO10 5DD
Website: http://www.york.ac.uk/chp
Printed by the University of York Print Unit
PRICE £8.00