Villagers' fury as property developer is given permission for new build home to become holiday let as council lifts strict 'no Airbnb' rule

By PATRICK HARRINGTON, UK NEWS REPORTER Published: 13:12, 8 July 2026 | Updated: 13:14, 8 July 2026 Residents of a Dorset village are furious after a property developer was granted permission to turn a new-build into a holiday let - despite a strict no Airbnb rule. Town planners for the picturesque coastal village of Langton Matravers had banned second homes and holiday lets from a new housing estate after the area became one of Britain's worst for unaffordable homes. Developers Old Malthouse Purbeck Ltd were allowed to build the 19 new houses on the basis that each would be lived in as a primary home. But they then applied to the council for permission to turn one of the houses into a holiday let, arguing that the newbuilds were not selling. Villagers were in disbelief when Dorset Council agreed to the change of use, and accused the local authority of 'rolling over' to the developers. Fearing this would set a precedent, Peter Golob, vice chairman of the parish council, warned: 'What Dorset Council have done is open the flood gates.' Langton Matravers is on the desirable Isle of Purbeck, where property prices have risen in the past 20 years to an average of £447,000.  This has been blamed on the high number of second homeowners buying up property and pushing local families out of the area. Second homes in Langton Matravers, Dorset, have in the past been targeted with graffiti Stones were painted with words such as 'Greed', reflecting the frustrations at increasingly unaffordable housing A new estate of 19 houses in the village was originally approved under the condition all would be people's primary homes Some places have had their soul ripped out, turning into 'ghost villages' where many properties lie empty and pubs, post offices and village stores have closed. A 2025 housing survey showed there were 380 households in Langton Matravers with 72 registered as second homes and 18 as holiday homes - a quarter of the housing stock.  So it was welcome news when a strict primary residence clause was attached to the new cluster of 19 houses. But Old Malthouse Purbeck Ltd had other ideas, when they applied to overrule the condition.  They said that giving buyers the option of either living in the homes full time or letting them out as an Airbnb would make them more appealing. After it succeeded, Mr  Golob, said: 'There's no demonstrable need for commercial holiday lets in Langton Matravers - 25 per cent of the residences within the parish are already second homes or holiday lets. 'They were given this information and when asked what number is too much, they've said 'we don't know'. They haven't set a threshold. 'What Dorset Council have done is open the flood gates. 'There will be a deluge of applications. This was a test case. One of the newbuilds has received permission to be sold as a holiday let Langton Matravers is a short drive from the coastline, which boasts beautiful spots such as Chapman's Pool (pictured) 'If I was a developer in Dorset being forced to build for primary residence I would now immediately file a fresh planning application. 'Local people feel we won the argument but Dorset Council didn't want to defend it, they have decided to roll over. Everybody is furious.' The 19 new houses consist of three cottages, seven apartments and nine detached homes with prices ranging from £350,000 to £815,000. In February, another new estate in the village for 15 homes was granted planning permission, again with the primary residence condition in place. But locals fear the developers will now apply to allow them to be used as holiday lets as well. Ben Wilson, a Dorset councillor for South East Purbeck, said: 'Purbeck has a very real housing crisis. The price of a standard property is unaffordable for the vast majority of local residents. 'Young people are leaving, local services are struggling, and the villages are increasingly occupied by AirBnbs and second homes. 'The development is not uncontroversial and it brings with it years of disruption for local residents. 'But for the local community these houses are being built on a promise of sustaining the village and for any of these properties to be anything other than primary residences is to break that promise. 'A holiday let is a seasonally vacant property with no community benefits. 'I'm very uncomfortable with the decision as it was made. When you're building new houses in the Dorset National Landscape, a protected habitat, you need to be able to say it's for a good reason. 'As soon as you start saying these properties can be commercially let you are saying they can be built with profit in mind. 'Dorset Council should have been saying in the interests of the residents of Purbeck, this is not right. 'There's a loophole and these developers have sought to exploit that. I highly expect they will come in with further applications. They were just testing the position. 'We could end up with a development that would be as many holiday lets as people living there. 'People are working hard to keep the village alive and this undermines that.' Ken Parke, planning consultant for Old Malthouse Purbeck Ltd, told the planning committee: 'The housing market is slow and properties are not selling; this is due to economic issues outside of the applicant's control.' Planning officer Emma Macdonald said because the application is only for one property, the loss of a permanent home is 'very limited' and it could still be occupied as a principal residence 'should the market demand it'. She said: 'Any other house in Dorset can be let out by Airbnb or another holiday provider automatically. 'Here we are not diverting from the policy about second homes, but we are allowing the flexibility that would be available to any other house owner to use it as a short-term holiday let.' Cllr Andy Skeats said: 'This is a bit of a line in the sand decision. The principle of what we are doing is a dangerous principle. 'That's a fundamental change on the rules of that property, Dorset will get hit with a big cricket bat by this if we just let that go.' Despite councillors voicing concerns, they voted to approve the application to lift the primary residence condition. Purbeck has five of the top ten parishes for second home ownership in Dorset. In the next village over from Langton, Worth Matravers, the figures are worse with only 40 per cent of properties occupied by local residents. It has led in the past to graffiti being scrawled over public buildings and walls calling for 'No More 2nd Homes'.