Folkestone & Hythe Housing Crisis: Temporary Accommodation Costs Surge 3,461% as Rents Rise, House Prices Soar, and 943 Homes Sit Empty

Folkestone & Hythe District Council is facing a housing dilemma that is stretching budgets and putting families under strain. The cost of temporary accommodation has exploded, private rents are climbing relentlessly, house prices remain far out of reach for many, and almost a thousand homes in the district sit long-term empty. Together, these trends are creating a perfect storm for residents and councillors alike.

Temporary Accommodation: From Sharp Cuts to Soaring Bills

The Council’s quarterly figures tell a story of instability and sudden financial shock. In the first quarter of 2023/24 (April–June), Folkestone & Hythe spent £30,094 on temporary accommodation for households in need. By the same period in 2024/25, that figure had plunged to just £8,974 — a sharp 70% fall in a single year.

On paper, that reduction might have looked like progress: fewer families in emergency housing, and the public purse saved tens of thousands. Yet in 2025/26, the figures snapped violently in the opposite direction. The gross spend on temporary accommodation for Q1 leapt to £319,580 — an increase of more than 3,461% compared with the year before.

For a district the size of Folkestone & Hythe, that sort of rise is not just uncomfortable — it’s crippling. The cost in the first three months of 2025/26 is more than ten times higher than two years earlier. If that trajectory continues, the Council’s housing budget will be blown apart long before the end of the financial year.

Temporary accommodation is meant to be a short-term solution — hotels, hostels, or privately rented units to stop families from sleeping rough. But the sharp rise shows more families than ever are being pushed into crisis, and staying in temporary placements longer because they cannot access stable housing.

Private Rents Keep Rising

Even as the Council struggles with its temporary accommodation bill, private sector rents continue to rise across the country — and Folkestone & Hythe is no exception.

Nationally, the ONS Private Rent Index shows rents rose by 5.9% year-on-year in July 2025. The average tenant in Britain now pays £1,343 per month, up from £1,268 a year earlier. Although this represents a slight slowdown from the peak of 6.7% recorded in June, it still means renters face significant inflation month after month.

In the South East, the picture is even more acute. The average rent climbed from £1,307 in July 2024 to £1,379 in July 2025, an increase of 5.5%. In Folkestone & Hythe, average rents hit £1,059 per month, up from £1,004 the previous year. For local residents, many of whom work in lower-paid service sector jobs, those increases represent more than just numbers on a graph — they mean choices between housing, food, and heating.

Every percentage point of rent inflation pushes more families into financial precarity. For some, it tips them over the edge and into arrears. For others, it is the factor that forces them into temporary accommodation — the very cost centre now ballooning in the Council’s accounts.

House Prices, Average Earnings & The Affordability Trap

Housing affordability is under siege.

Across England, the median home price in 2024 was £290,000, compared with a median full-time annual salary of £37,600. That equates to a national affordability ratio of 7.7 — well above the “rule of thumb” threshold of five times income.

In Folkestone & Hythe, the position is even starker. By June 2025, the average property price in the district had climbed to £303,000, up 5.1% in a single year. For first-time buyers, the average cost is £247,000.

Now set those figures against local wages. According to Nomis/ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (resident-based analysis), the median full-time weekly pay for Folkestone & Hythe residents is £695.10, which works out at about £36,145 per year.

Divide the average local house price of £303,000 by the typical local annual income of £36,145, and you get an affordability ratio of 8.4. That’s significantly worse than the national level of 7.7, and far beyond what most housing experts consider sustainable.

For households on average pay, ownership is not just difficult — it’s virtually impossible without significant family support or inherited wealth. And with ownership blocked, more households are forced into the rental market, where rising costs push some directly into crisis.

The Long Term Empty Homes Problem

Overlaying all this is a problem that looks, on the surface, like a solvable contradiction. According to 2024 Government Data, there are 943 long-term empty (LTE) homes in Folkestone & Hythe — defined as properties that have been vacant for more than six months. This figure has jumped by 72% from 547, since 2016.

Each of those homes represents a lost opportunity. While families are placed in expensive hotels or nightly-paid accommodation, perfectly usable properties lie idle. Bringing even a fraction of those empty homes back into use could significantly reduce the demand for temporary accommodation — and the spiralling bill that goes with it.

What The Council Is Doing

Folkestone & Hythe District Council insists it is not ignoring the issue. It offers financial incentives to landlords and owners to refurbish empty properties and make them habitable again. Schemes include grants, loans, and other forms of assistance designed to encourage owners to put their properties back on the market.

The Council also points to the delivery of 23 new affordable homes in 2023/24, representing just 6.2% of net housing additions that year — one of the lowest figures in Kent. Campaigners argue that this pace is nowhere near enough to meet demand.

But critics question whether the Council’s efforts match the scale of the problem. With nearly a thousand empty homes, the tools on offer look like a drop in the ocean compared to the needs of households currently being put up at public expense.

The Bottom Line

Temporary accommodation spending is ballooning. Rents are rising faster than wages. House prices are drifting further out of reach. And hundreds of homes sit empty while families are told there is nowhere affordable for them to live.

For Folkestone & Hythe, this is more than a budget line — it is the central social and economic challenge of the decade. Unless the Council finds ways to unlock empty homes, accelerate affordable housing delivery, and keep a lid on rents, the cycle will only worsen. The cost is not just measured in council accounts but in the stability, security, and dignity of local families.

The Shepway Vox Team

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