Council bosses in Walsall are set to hit owners of houses lying empty for a number of years - with trebled tax bills.

Walsall Council's cabinet is set to rubber-stamp proposals to hike up charges in a bid to force landlords to bring empty properties back into use sooner.

Under the plan, the authority will double the council tax premium it charges owners whose properties have been laying empty and unfurnished for more than two years from 50 per cent to 100 per cent from April 2019.

For any properties that have been out of use for more than five years, owners will see the current 100 per cent council tax premium doubled from April 2020.

And owners whose properties have been left vacant for more than a decade will see the 100 per cent premium they are currently charged treble from 2021.

Laws, which came into effect in 2013, gave authorities discretionary powers to charge a 50 per cent premium for long term empty properties.

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But new legislation passed last month now enables councils to increase this premium.

Those who are exempt from the new laws are people who have gone into care or hospital, cases where an owner has died and probate has not been granted and situations where a property has been re-possessed or the owner is declared an un-discharged bankrupt.

Walsall Council's project lead Mark Fearn said: "Over recent years Walsall Council have successfully introduced a range of measures to assist and persuade owners of empty properties to bring them back into use.

"Over the last seven years there has been a 44 per cent reduction in the number of properties that have been empty over six months.

"The increase in the council tax premium is just the latest measure to assist with the desired outcome of 'housing provision matches local need and reduces homelessness'."

Walsall Council's cabinet will meet on Wednesday (December 12) and discuss the issue with members expected to approve the changes