To think people who own multiple homes have helped drive house prices out of reach?

No, corporates is what have driven houses out of reach. Man on the street type landlords maintained competition in the marketplace and ultimately (before the tax changes) kept rents affordable. So much of our housing is now PE owned. Transactions involving 2000 plus homes at a time are commonplace. Developers sell huge portfolios of new homes to these corporates too. None of us will be able to afford a house soon. These models only work because they are so highly leveraged and they need to keep growing the portfolios accordingly (and for house prices to keep increasing).

the impact of people living longer and remaining in their own homes is a much more significant factor than second homes.

Ad to that numbers living alone due to divorce and rise in single households plus policy of reducing social housing.

The very rich who have multiple *empty’ homes, (just to store their clothes, cars and lifestyle) between visits, are such a very low percentage of the population, that the effect is probably minimal.
As others have said, people with a property portfolio, mainly rent their other properties to families.

*even the ‘empty’ ones would have skeleton staff and security.

I can’t get over excited by the property of the rich & famous, they have always existed here and abroad.
I would be more interested in various illegal dodges being closed down and more help and less pedantic hinderance for people doing up homes that have either been empty or been previously occupied by an owner that has (for various reasons) has fallen into terrible repair.

In Ireland they have had a system whereby following a successful application, buyers of empty buildings can submit reciepts to claim an agreed amount within an agreed date. This is designed to help families live and renovate previously empty properties without the overall cost making it totally impossible. To discourage other applicants, buyers have to live in the property for an agreed time, thereafter on a sliding scale the grant has to be repaid.
I expect Irish posters will be able to fine tune the details.

In Britain it would seem, that even if a cowshed with 2 walls and half a roof, and will totally fall into the ground within a few years, planning consent will often demand that you have to conform to certain rules that will double the renovation budget…

I think it's also adult children living with their parents longer and paying them no or very low rents, it's enabled higher prices than would otherwise have been sustainable if kids left home sooner.

No, It is demand that pushes prices up. Ie the number of people wanting a home. It doesn't matter where that demand comes from.

• People living separately, divorces etc
• immigration, whether legal or illegal
• people owning more than one home, for their personal use
• People using family homes for Airbnb
• Non-Brits buying property as an investment and leaving it sitting empty.
• Empty nesters not downsizing because of the cost. (This will be me next year)

All partially to blame.

People owning a house and renting it out are not to blame, because it is still someone's home. Cost is related to demand - or the number of people wanting a home. If there were fewer people, the amount a landlord could ask in rent would drop.

If anyone is responsible for house price rises, its Govts who have allowed in millions of people and failed to build council housing.

BTL wouldn't be a thing, if people who cannot afford to buy, could rent a council house as what used to happen pre 1980s.

No I don’t agree. Every house bought to rent out is also someone’s home it’s just they are a tenant and not a homeowner. There is an argument in respect of holiday homes or houses which are not occupied all year but there are other factors such as a shortage of new property( restricts supply), increase in single adult households (increases demand), transition from 1 income to 2 (in a sellers market this increases prices).

You are right that it’s our choices that drive the market though even if we don’t realise it. Our choices to save for a deposit, out bid another potential buyer, voting choices, objections to local planning permissions, and yes choice to invest in holiday homes but I don’t think the regular buy to let or accidental landlord is to blame.

Most people with more than one house let the others out so they are used all the time. Very very few people have more than one actual home as in, a country residence and a house in town. And they pay capital gains tax on the increase in value of the second house.

Well, of course this is the market. It's the very basics of supply and demand.

No shit!