A house is defined as unoccupied, if it is included in the dwelling stock and there is no officially registered occupant. Vacancy is first and foremost an administrative matter. Part of these unoccupied dwellings are used as second homes or rented out to tourists. Another part is in fact occupied, but the occupant is not included in the municipal population registers, for example, because people cannot, do not need or are not prepared to register, e.g. foreign diplomats and migrant workers or if the house is illegally occupied. Back to article