If someone still lives in the property

If someone you lived with has died, and you are now the only person living in the home who is liable to pay council tax, you may be able to apply for single person discount.

If the property is now unoccupied

If someone has died and their home is now unoccupied, it is exempt from council tax.

To apply, you must be an executor or administrator of the person’s estate and provide us with:

  • The deceased person’s name and address
  • The council tax account number of the property
  • The date they passed away
  • The number of occupants left living in the property
  • The name, contact number and address of the person dealing with the estate (if it is a solicitors, provide their name and address)

The exemption lasts from the day they died until six months after the grant of probate or letters of administration are issued. Or it stops immediately if:

  • someone moves in
  • the property is sold
  • ownership transfers to someone else, such as a beneficiary

If this happens, you must contact us straight away so that we can cancel the exemption.

Jointly owned property

You can't apply for this exemption if the property was jointly owned, as the other person would still be liable to pay council tax as the owner of an empty property.

3 February 2023