It is one of the wealthiest areas in Wales, but hundreds of homes in the Vale of Glamorgan are empty.
New figures show almost 850 have had no-one living there for at least six months. And the stats show that more than two thirds of these properties have been vacant for more than two years.
Councillor Lis Burnett, deputy leader of the council, said she was "stunned" by the numbers.
"It's absolutely staggering," she added. "Empty properties are detrimental to the lives of local residents. They are often a magnet for crime and antisocial behaviour. They drive down property values and continue to blight neighbourhoods. They can also be a risk to emergency services.
"A strategy on a way we can tackle it is very welcome."
Vale of Glamorgan Council's figures show the total number of privately owned properties which have been empty for six months or more stands at 846.
Of those, 311 have been empty for more than two years.
According to the figures, the St Augustine's ward in Penarth - where the average house price in the town is more than £320,000 - had the most long term empty homes, with 77 empty for more than six months and 32 vacant for more than two years.
Cowbridge - recently named by the Financial Times as the place in Wales where people have the highest income - and the Baruc ward of Barry each had more than 60 homes empty for more than six months. The Castleland and Illtyd wards of Barry, Llantwit Major, and the Plymouth ward of Penarth had more than 50.
Measures to bring more of the Vale of Glamorgan's empty homes back into use are set out in a draft strategy which the council's ruling body on July 15 agreed to be published for public consultation.
The proposed strategy calls on the council to maintain and improve its empty homes data, provide financial incentives to landlords, prioritise empty homes for enforcement action such as enforced sales and compulsory purchase orders, and to raise awareness of the issue of empty homes.
The strategy says: "A voluntary way forward to renovation and re-occupation is always the preferred option, and officers make all available endeavours to encourage and persuade such progress.
"However, in instances where owners cannot be traced or where exhaustive attempts to encourage and promote progress from known owners prove unproductive, or if there is an imminent risk to health and safety, there is little option but to proceed with a statutory solution."
The draft empty homes strategy will be put to public consultation after the council's August recess.
