The number of long-term vacant homes in England has risen by 14.5%, despite continued growth in the country’s housing stock.

There were 303,185 long-term vacant dwellings in England on 6 October 2025, up by 38,301 from 264,884 on 7 October 2024, according to the latest dwelling stock estimates from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

The figures also showed that total vacant dwellings in England reached 754,264 on 6 October 2025, an increase of 34,794, or 4.8%, from 719,470 a year earlier.

England had 25.8 million dwellings as of 31 March 2025, an increase of 208,600, or 0.81%, on the previous year.

Of these, 16.6 million were owner-occupied, up by 131,000 on the previous year, while five million were privately rented, an increase of 54,000.

There were 4.2 million social and affordable rented dwellings, including homes owned by private registered providers and local authorities, up by 25,000, while other public sector dwellings fell by 900 to 28,200.

England had a dwelling density of 1.98 dwellings per hectare as of 31 March 2025.

Raymond Connor, chief executive of BuildLoan, said: “The rising number of vacant, and especially long-term vacant, properties in England is concerning, given the scale of the country’s housing challenge.

“But it is also indicative of the opportunity that exists within England’s existing housing stock, if it can be tapped into.

“The majority of the 303,185 long-term vacant properties, which make up 1.2% of England’s total housing stock, are likely standing empty because they require refurbishment before they can be considered suitable for occupation and accepted for a standard mortgage product.

“But there are now light and heavy renovation mortgages available on the market that are suitable for these properties and have the potential to play an important role in bringing these buildings back to life.

“These aren’t mortgage products made for developers, these are mortgages that can help families and young couples looking to take their first step onto the housing ladder to secure both the loan to purchase a property and the funds to carry out any necessary renovations to make it their home.

“Given the scale of the housing challenge, making better use of existing stock should form part of the wider conversation about supply.”