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Watch: ‘Heartbreaking’ viral video shows ‘soulless’ empty holiday homes in Welsh village

09 Feb 2022 3 minute read
Rhosneigr beach, Anglesey. © Copyright Robin Drayton and licensed for reuse (CC 2.0)

A “heartbreaking” video showing “soulless” empty holiday homes in a Welsh village has received a viral response.

Dani Robertson shared the video of houses on a street in Rhosneigr, Ynys Môn, which she said “should be alive with the activity of families after school”.

She said she “tried to count” all of the second homes in the tourist hot spot, which has 1,000 residents, but that she stopped when she “hit 100”.

In a Twitter thread, she said something “has to change” because the “entire community has been displaced”, and that “ones nearby are unravelling too”.

Dani backed the Hawl i Fyw Adra campaign, which is calling on the Welsh Government to tackle the housing crisis engulfing rural Wales and make sure that locals are not priced out of houses in their own communities.

She added: “Something has to change. This entire community has been displaced. The ones nearby are unravelling too. What can be done?
There are enough homes here alone to house a good chunk of those in need. Instead they lay here. Empty. Whilst families go homeless.

“These aren’t the grand, big houses on the seafront. These are modest, family homes. The owners even keep the heating blaring when no one is holidaying there, to keep the place dry. What a waste of energy resources when so many are in fuel poverty. ”

‘Ghost’ 

Christopher Jones said: “I walked the streets of Abersoch selling poppies one year. Was told only 3 houses out of 40 on one street were occupied. It’s a ghost town in the off-season. And we let it happen.

Jonathan Simmonds said “That’s heartbreaking, people like to promote the stereotype of towels reserving sun beds but this is the very extreme on that spectrum. It’s hard to find the money for a house, let alone a second that you can afford to keep empty.”

Cate Lovett said: “Same where I live in coastal rural Pembs. All empty most of the year, heating on full, and most leave their outside lights on destroying dark sky gazing.”

Alan Davies said: “If folks want to visit beautiful places let them use hotels & B&B’s provide employment & put money into local economy.”

Lesely Williams said: “Reading all the replies about houses being bought as holiday homes – we have to remember that the seller has the option to not sell to the highest bidder, but to someone who is actually going to live there. You can’t just blame the buyer.”

Dr Paul Tubb said: “Same in the Cotswolds; we lived in Bibury with 60% second home ownership which has only increased since we left in 2004. Now most of the building taking place is second home developments.”

Gavin Steven said: “Same on a popular Scottish Island. There are few homes to rent or buy for people wanting to live here. Lots empty as they are 2nd holiday homes.”


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Grayham Jones
2 years ago

It time for Anglesey councils to kick all second homes out of wales 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 start fighting for your children and grandchildren future in wales 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 no more second homes in wales 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 it’s time for a new wales 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

lufcwls
lufcwls
2 years ago
Reply to  Grayham Jones

Yes, get a real job and stick to that.

Carol Loughlin
Carol Loughlin
2 years ago
Reply to  Grayham Jones

*Wales

Mab Meirion
Mab Meirion
2 years ago

I think you will find Rhosneigr is full of builders’ vans at the moment…

M.R.
M.R.
2 years ago
Reply to  Mab Meirion

Builders’ vans? Doing what? We really need to get these communities as they should be, young families, year round contribution to the local economy. The Council Tax should have been raised to 100% for the coming year, unfortunately the second home owners were allowed an opinion. And, the loophole that allows them to change use to business use needs to bed closed with immediate effect.

Mab Meirion
Mab Meirion
2 years ago
Reply to  M.R.

Doing what?…they are doing referbs, conversions, ’emergency electrical work’, change of use, shop to cafe, shop to private, building hotels, blocks of flats, extensions, knock-downs 30’s to modernist, everywhere pinching a yard here, a beach there, playing King Canute…with a budget of millions

Mab Meirion
Mab Meirion
2 years ago
Reply to  Mab Meirion

That was an honest snap shot taken at 3.30pm today of the High Street, it is not an opinion…

Pob lwc
Pob lwc
2 years ago

I wonder if saes landlord hdavies15 will pop up here to defend all those empty houses?

hdavies15
hdavies15
2 years ago
Reply to  Pob lwc

Well misery guts it becomes necessary to respond to your empty headed snipe. I ddechre, dim Sais o gwbwl ond Cymro. Does dim lle i amddiffyn cartrefi gwag yn un lle pan fod angen cartrefi ar niferoedd o fewn yr un ardal. Dyna pam fe penderfynwyd rhenti bwthyn fy ddiweddar rieni pan nas gwerthwyd nol yn 2011. Daeth teulu ag angen cartref ac ma’nhw wedi byw yno ers hynny.

Felly dos a dy syniadau twp Rachmanaidd a gwthia nhw lle nad yw’r haul yn tywynu. Ac os nad wyt yn darllen Cymraeg rhag dy gywilydd. Cer y ddysgu.

Pob lwc
Pob lwc
2 years ago
Reply to  hdavies15

Stay mad, Landlord parasite

Bryn
Bryn
2 years ago

Who sold the land and who built the houses to make all the profit in the first place. Jobs and investment is what will save these areas not taxation or banning, Take your heads out of the sand and look around. Build affordable homes but no one will say how much an affordable home should be, Stop councils selling land to private investors and use it to invest in council housing stock so that people can afford to live in the communities, Easy to pick the streets in popular seaside locations to highlight, is there a second home problem in… Read more »

John Davies
John Davies
2 years ago
Reply to  Bryn

As an English developer who has bought land in Anglesey and built multiple holiday homes, it certainly wasn’t my intention to help ‘ruin’ Wales. I love Wales with a passion but I agree with the sad sentiment here and mostly I agree with Bryn… all the land/buildings I have purchased has been from Welsh land/property owners from your own villages. The last plot I purchased was from a Welsh gent who had lived in the village for most of his life, and he even gave us his full support in obtaining the necessary planning permission. The blame shouldn’t lie completely… Read more »

Y Cymro
Y Cymro
2 years ago

This what occurs when holiday homes turns a once vibrant village into a ghost town. Tragic.

Ed Jones
Ed Jones
2 years ago

Whilst undoubtedly sad (Llanrwst is, sadly, becoming eerily similar), posting such a video could perhaps lead to problems if robberies were to occur and said video is given as the reason as to why the properties concerned were targeted.

Gill Jones
Gill Jones
2 years ago

The ridiculous statement today from Suzy Davies that the tiny pilot scheme to monitor the effect of second homes in just one small region now needs a longer time-scale before any progress on discussion of the effect of second homes on the local housing problem can be considered – and so Rome continues to burn! Also today, the manager of a National holiday park complaining of a staff shortage (600 job vacancies on just one of their sites). Now when some idiot does the joined-up thinking he/she should be able to work out that tourism work vacancies and holiday homes… Read more »

Ex Wales
Ex Wales
2 years ago

Grew up in Wales went to school in Wales, Ancestry says my DNA is 100% Welsh moved to England to vibrant community. Cannot understand why anyone would want to buy a holiday home in Wales. What’s there

Paul
Paul
2 years ago
Reply to  Ex Wales

Not you.

Paul
Paul
2 years ago
Reply to  Ex Wales

There seems to be a type of ‘Welsh born Never Wales’ person whose pure dripping hatred for their country of birth leaves even that of English supremacists trailing in their wake.

Ex Wales
Ex Wales
2 years ago
Reply to  Paul

Are they still Welsh or are they not the right sort of Welsh.

lufcwls
lufcwls
2 years ago
Reply to  Ex Wales

Not Welsh.

Wrexhamian
Wrexhamian
2 years ago
Reply to  lufcwls

Ignore him. He’s the BritNat anti-Wales troll who regularly crops up to denigrate the country, using a succession of fake names to create the illusion that there’s more than one of him. His pet hates seem to be the Welsh language and the campaign for controlling the housing market in the Bro Gymraeg. However, his main aim in life seems to be to provoke a response that he can label “xenophobic”.

Olwen Jones
Olwen Jones
2 years ago
Reply to  Ex Wales

Afraid you are geering up for sarcasm.

Olwen Jones
Olwen Jones
2 years ago
Reply to  Ex Wales

Beautiful scenery,plenty of history,lovely walks /.Obviously you do not appreciate the finer things in life that are free!!!!

Dyn Cwm Rhymni
Dyn Cwm Rhymni
2 years ago

Tai Cymru drops Cymru.
It’s about time that the Senedd do what they are paid to do. Represent the nation of Wales and protect the Welsh people and culture from external exploitation. Digon yw Digon.

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