Leazes Homes has secured funding from the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) to launch a new scheme which enables them to work closely with property owners to tackle the issue of empty homes in Newcastle upon Tyne.

Through the Empty Homes Scheme, Leazes Homes enters into a lease agreement with the owner and rents the property on their behalf. If required Leazes Homes can initiate a programme of work to bring it up to the Decent Homes Standard, and then bring it back into use as affordable housing.

They then act as a managing agent on behalf of the property owner, finding a suitable tenant, collecting rent whilst also dealing with administration, legal, repairs and maintenance. The owner can still collect a rental amount each month depending on the work required to the property at the outset.

The empty homes rate in Newcastle currently stands at 3.05%, the lowest in the region and below the national average of 3.13%. However, Leazes Homes is working closely with partners including Newcastle City Council and Your Homes Newcastle to reduce this even further as they are targets for vandalism and crime, are more costly to insure and can easily fall into disrepair.

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Bill Midgley, Chair of Leazes Homes, said: "Despite the fact that Leazes Homes works predominantly in the affordable housing sector, we recognise the effect empty homes have on our communities – denying homes to people who need them, attracting anti-social behaviour and devaluing properties in the surrounding area. They are also a wasted asset for the owner which can cost over £7,000 a year. Our new Empty Homes Scheme will tackle these problems.

"Most empty homes in Newcastle are privately owned and one of our objectives is to bring them back into use. Many of these empty properties are currently not suitable to rent. They may have been rented previously, but are now in too poor condition to be re-let. This puts landlords under financial pressure and reduces the supply of housing for rent, which increases the overall pressure within the rented sector within the city.

"We have already been in talks with home owners and there is genuinely a real appetite for this scheme. The feedback we've received tells us that this will make a difference, with many owners already expressing interest. It is a logical step. We are bringing homes up to standard, we are finding homes for local people and it is easing the financial burden for empty home owners."

(CD/GK)