EXCLUSIVE Row over second home clampdown in Welsh beauty spot: Council warns all new holiday let will need planning permission in bid to tackle 'over tourism' - but locals say move will crash local housing market By Rory Tingle, Home Affairs Correspondent For Mailonline Published: 07:21 BST, 6 August 2024 | Updated: 07:21 BST, 6 August 2024 e-mail View comments A Welsh council's controversial plan to force people to get planning permission for second homes and holiday lets will blight the local economy and 'crash' the local housing market, critics have warned. The Welsh-speaking heartland of Gwynedd in North Wales is a popular tourist spot where more than six per cent of properties are second homes, one of the highest rates in the UK. Councillors are concerned 'over-tourism' is making property prices unaffordable for locals, and last week forced through a move to require homeowners to obtain property permission before converting their properties from September.
Opponents fear the so-called Article 4 direction, which will not apply to existing second homes or holiday lets, could devalue every residential property in the local authority area and deal a hammer blow to the tourism industry. In the upmarket seaside village of Abersoch – popular with wealthy visitors including Bradley Cooper and Bear Grylls - residents told MailOnline the measure was 'madness'. Clothes store owner Suzie Hookes, a 43-year-old mother of two, wants to sell her £500,000 detached house but is worried the council policy could reduce prices across the board A luxury holiday home in Abersoch pictured on Monday when MailOnline visited the village The upmarket seaside village is popular with wealthy visitors including Bradley Cooper and Bear Grylls William Williams, the 74-year-old owner of a garage and general store who's lived at Abersoch all his life, said: 'As a local we are being forced to sell our houses at a knock-down price.
'I know they have to do something but the way they have gone about it is completely wrong. It's only affecting the people who live here, not the holidaymakers. It's penalising people for living in a certain area.
' He warned that banks might not provide mortgages because of the council policy and buyers could face negative equity, but complained local councillors 'aren't listening'. Read More EXCLUSIVE We live in Britain's Airbnb havens, but we're fighting back Clothes store owner Suzie Hookes, a 43-year-old mother of two, wants to sell her £500,000 detached house and said of the council's decision: 'I have worked for what I have got now I haven't got the freedom to do what I want. 'Why should anyone say what you can do with your own house? It's criminal.
The solution is to build some houses or for people to move out and work and then come back.' Gwynedd, which encompasses Snowdonia and some of the most beautiful parts of the North Wales coast, has already targeted second home owners by adding 150 per cent onto their council tax bills. The average first time buyer in the region paid £166,202 in May 2024, compared to £186,764 for Wales as a whole and £238,284 across Great Britain - according to the Office of National Statistics (ONS).
The average rent in Gwynedd was £665 a month in May. Separate ONS data shows the median wage for May was £2,092 - meaning rent accounted for 32% of the average person's monthly income. Your browser does not support iframes.
A general view of Abersoch on Monday. It is located on the Llyn Peninsula in Gwynedd, North Wales, an area of outstanding natural beauty Glenis Bisson, 75, a member of a residents' group opposed to Article 4, said £73,000 had been raised to seek a judicial review But Abersoch estate agent Rhys Elvins insisted the problem in the local area was not a lack of properties, pointing out that there were ' about 80 unsold properties under £200,000 within a ten-mile radius of Abersoch at the moment on Rightmove'. He insisted the council's new policy was already having a 'negative impact' on the local property market by causing uncertainty.
'People don't know what will be passed and how Gwynedd council will look at planning applications - there are still a lot of unanswered questions,' he said. What will homeowners need to get permission for? Homeowners in Gwynedd will not have to seek planning permission if they want to do any of the below - Change of use of a main residence (use class C3) into a second home (use class C5) or short-term holiday let (use class C6) and specific mixed uses; Change of use of a second home (use class C5) to a short-term holiday let (use class C6) and specific mixed uses; Change of use from a short-term holiday let (use class C6) to a second home (use class C5) and specific mixed uses. The changes have been introduced as part of what is known as an Article 4 direction.
They will come into force on September 1 but will not affect anyone who has a property already used as a second home or holiday let. At the moment, it would be possible to use a home for part of the year as a holiday let without getting planning permission. Advertisement Mr Elvins said one potential buyer of a second home had been 'spooked' by Article 4.
'It would harm the village without holidaymakers and second homeowners,' he said. 'Second homeowners spend a lot of money on gardeners, cleaners and other trades.' Some critics have raised concerns that the policy could make it hard for older people to sell their homes in order to pay for care costs.
Others said the lack of industry in the area was the main reason young people moved away, not a shortage of houses. Glenis Bisson, 75, a member of a residents' group opposed to Article 4, said £73,000 had been raised to seek a judicial review. She said: 'I'm furious.
It's a madness policy. None of us has a right to live where we come from.' Councillor Dafydd Meurig, Gwynedd's cabinet member for the environment, defended the policy.
He said: 'Cyngor Gwynedd wants to ensure that local people are able to access suitable and affordable housing locally – that is key to securing the future of our communities. 'Unfortunately, research shows that a significant proportion of people in Gwynedd are priced out of the housing market and that is more evident in communities with higher numbers of holiday homes. 'It is therefore inevitable that the significant number of houses being used as second homes and short-term holiday accommodation is affecting the ability of the people of Gwynedd to access homes in their communities.
'By introducing an Article 4 direction, the council will have a new tool to try to control the impact of second homes and holiday accommodation.' Amber Hall, who lives in neighbouring Conwy, said the Article 4 direction was a 'good move'. Councillor Dafydd Meurig, Gwynedd's cabinet member for the environment, defended the policy as a way to ensure housing in the village (pictured) is more affordable for locals William Williams, the 74-year-old owner of a garage and general store who's lived at Abersoch all his life, said: 'As a local we are being forced to sell our houses at a knock-down price' The 69-year-old insisted second homeowners who took over beauty-spot villages 'should be penalised and made to pay.
' She added: 'I have a daughter who is finding it difficult to get on the property market. Gwynedd had to do something.' But one local woman, who asked not to be named, said outside her home in Abersoch: 'It's appalling that a council can dictate to people, who have a property, who it can be sold to.
'I appreciate it's difficult for local people. But it's a lovely village and supported by tourism. People with second homes bring a lot of business and joy.
'There's no industry around here. There's nothing for people to do other than work in the hospitality trade.' Gwynedd encompasses Snowdonia and some of the most beautiful parts of the North Wales coast.
The new policy will not cover the national park, which is now called Eryri Portmeirion, one of the many stunning villages that line the coast of the Welsh county Bear Grylls Team GB ONS Bradley Cooper Share or comment on this article: Row over second home clampdown in Welsh beauty spot: Council warns all new holiday let will need planning permission in bid to tackle 'over tourism' - but locals say move will crash local housing market e-mail.
