Councils could buy up empty properties to house asylum seekers under government plans intended to cut the use of migrant hotels. The proposals would see the government partner with councils to buy or lease empty properties across the country to house asylum seekers amid growing anger about the use of hotels at public expense.
Ministers have proposed pilot schemes which would see the government pay councils to buy or renovate properties which would then be leased back to the Home Office. Chancellor Rachel Reeves has set out plans to end the use of hotels to hold asylum seekers by 2029 although it remains unclear how this will be achieved. She hopes that in doing so, the public purse will save around £1 billion a year.
Government data shows that there are approximately 700,000 empty properties across the UK with nearly 94,000 vacant homes in London alone.
Empty tower blocks, student accommodation and former teacher training colleges are amongst those being considered for use to end the Home Office’s reliance on housing asylum seekers in hotels while their claims are processed.
Currently, there are around 32,000 asylum seekers being housed across 210 hotels throughout the country, more than this time last year but less than in 2023 when 56,000 people were being put up.
The importance of addressing the issue has been underscored by a record number of people making the perilous journey across the English Channel this year, with 24,000 people having made the crossing in 2025.
The Prime Minister addressed the need for action this week as he spoke to the liaison committee.
He said: “A central focus of what we are doing is what can be built, arranged or taken by councils and repurposed. I am impatient for this change to be driven through.
“We have to take over other accommodation, and we have to drive down the asylum lists. There is no alternative…There is lots of housing in many local authorities that can be used, and we are identifying where it can be used.”
The plans to end the use of asylum hotels, could see the government offer five years of guaranteed rents to private landlords, reducing the cost to taxpayers from approximately £145 per night to £14.
But commentators have warned that doing so could reduce the amount of housing available to members of the public and heighten the demand and ultimately the cost.
Angharad Trueman, of charity Propertymark, said: “While schemes like this are potentially appealing to some landlords who might be struggling with increased mortgage costs and amended regulation, as they help provide guaranteed income, they do have the potential to add further pressure to already dwindling supply levels.”