The cost of renovating the UK’s vacant property stock has risen to £34bn, up 19% year-on-year, according to new analysis by BuildLoan.
The figures come as BuildLoan launches a new funding option to help would-be buyers fund renovation projects previously seen as unmortgageable.
According to BuildLoan, the average cost of renovating an average uninhabitable property is around £70,000 but can hit £95,000 for long-term vacant properties. There are around 360,000 long-term vacant properties in the UK, up 15% from 2025, according to BuildLoan’s analysis of ONS data.
Closing the gap
However, buyers looking to invest in renovation projects have previously had to rely on bridging loans to finance properties for which a mortgage was untenable. Instead, Buildloan has launched a range of seven renovation products for such properties – closing the gap between residential mortgages, bridging and heavy renovation finance, it says.
The range, funded by the likes of Chorley Building Society, Furness Building Society and the Stafford for Intermediaries, is suitable for lighter, non-structural works, the company says.
Chris Martin, head of product development and lender relationships at BuildLoan, said: “Our analysis suggests the number of long-term vacant properties in the UK has increased since 2025, having already risen steadily for a number of years. That represents a huge, untapped resource for the housing sector – one that could potentially help solve the housing crisis. The problem has always been that there was never a mortgage designed for properties that would be regarded by most lenders as uninhabitable.”
“To be classed as habitable, properties need to have a working kitchen, bathroom and running water, although valuers often deem a property uninhabitable or unsuitable for a mortgage for other reasons.
“Mortgage brokers are taught that if a house isn’t habitable, it isn’t mortgageable. That’s no longer true. We can fund these renovations. Given how little progress we have made on building new homes over the last fifty years, renovating vacant properties should be part of the equation as we look to tackle the housing crisis.”
