TAX changes have led to a fall in the number of holiday homes in England, research by campaign group Generation Rent revealed today.

The total number of second homes and holiday lets peaked at 347,000 in 2024 and fell to 336,000 in 2025, following measures allowing councils to raise council tax on second homes and tightening tax breaks for holiday lets.

Over 70 per cent of English councils now charge a 100 per cent second home premium.

The decline ends a decade of drastic growth that made it harder for renters in holiday hotspots to find homes, campaigners said.

In 2015, there were 39,000 holiday lets registered for business rates and 245,000 second homes on council tax.

By 2022, these numbers had grown by roughly 35,000 and 12,000, respectively — fuelled by platforms like Airbnb, the pandemic, and tax advantages.

Generation Rent is calling on the government to give councils powers to license holiday lets and limit their numbers, warning that without tighter regulations communities will keep losing homes to tourism.

Deputy chief executive Dan Wilson Craw said: “Everybody needs a secure home they can afford, but in many parts of Britain, short-term holiday lets have been driving families out of their communities as landlords have switched from tenants to tourists.

“The recent policy changes appear to have started an encouraging decline in the number of holiday homes, though it seems that some owners have responded to the second homes premium by switching their tax status back to holiday lets.

“That means there is still more work to do to bring homes back into residential use.

“Holiday homes continue to rise in some areas, and councils still lack the powers they need to strike the right balance between local people and holidaymakers.”