Liverpool City Council is offering grants of £5,000 to £20,000 to bring long-term empty homes back into use, with successful owners required to let at Local Housing Allowance rates and accept council nomination rights for three years.
Liverpool ties grant cash to compliance and lower rents
The council’s Empty Homes Grant Scheme has more than £7 million behind it and aims to return 365 vacant properties to use. To qualify, a property must have been empty for at least 12 months, free of financial charges and not linked to council tax arrears or housing offence enforcement action.
Owners who take the funding will need to meet compliance standards before a tenant moves in, including clearing Category 1 and 2 hazards where relevant, providing gas and electrical certification, securing the right selective or HMO licence and supplying an EPC where required.
For landlords, this is not free money with no strings attached. The trade-off is clear: public funding in return for lower rent levels tied to LHA and tighter council oversight during the nomination period.
Selective licensing wards will get priority
Liverpool says grant applications will be prioritised when necessary for properties in selective licensing wards. That creates a direct link between empty homes policy and the city’s wider enforcement model, even before any decision on what follows the current licensing scheme after 2027.
This follows Landlord Knowledge’s earlier report on Liverpool’s licensing review, which showed the council was already weighing the future shape of landlord oversight. The grant scheme now shows how Liverpool is also using funding and nomination rights to steer standards and affordability in parts of the private rented stock.
There is a practical upside for some landlords. Owners with stubborn empty stock may find the grant helps bridge refurbishment costs and shorten the path back to income. But the economics will suit some properties far better than others, especially where open-market rents sit well above LHA rates.
Landlords looking at the scheme should also compare it with wider financing pressures in empty-home renovation. Grants can reduce upfront spend, but they do not remove compliance, licensing or longer-term rent constraints. The council’s Empty Homes Grant Scheme page sets out the conditions in full.
What this means for landlords
- If you’re holding a long-term empty property: this could cut refurbishment costs, but only if LHA-based rents still make the numbers work.
- Watch for: licensing and safety conditions that need to be met before occupation, including EPC, gas and electrical paperwork.
- Bottom line: Liverpool is pairing grant support with control over lettings terms, so landlords need to assess the full deal rather than the headline cash.
Editor’s view
For the right property, this is useful support. But landlords should price the scheme on net yield after works, licensing and LHA rent levels, not on the grant amount alone.
Author: Editorial Team – UK landlord & buy-to-let news, policy, and finance
Published: 16 May 2026
Sources: Liverpool City Council
Related reading: Liverpool weighs city-wide landlord licensing expansion
