Shane Filan’s house not sold, despite reports
SHANE Filan's Co Sligo mansion has not been sold, an estate agent said today.
However, Ken Draper of Sherry FitzGerald Draper in Sligo refuted the claim the ex-Westlife singer's home has a new owner.
"We are expecting
instructions
on this property but we certainly haven't even placed a value on it yet," he said.
"Due to the nature of the sale it will be required to be sold on the open market."
It understood father-of-three Filan and his wife Gillian moved all of their possessions out of the house last week ahead of a January 15 deadline.
They now live in Surrey where he has been declared bankrupt.
Friends say it cost Filan €3m to build the property which included landscaped gardens, a pond and a stream.
A businessman once offered him €10m for the home at the height of the boom.
It's understood the house will be put on the open market at the end of this month for around €1.3m.
It cannot be sold until after a creditors' meeting takes place in Dublin on January 22.
More than €18m is owed to creditors from the building company owned by Mr Filan and his brother Finbarr, €5M of that to Ulster Bank and Bank of Ireland.
Putting it behind them: Shane Filan and his wife Gillian headed out for a day in London, as creditors met in Dublin to discuss their bankruptcy
Bankrupt Westlife star Shane Filan and wife Gillian put
money woes behind them for
romantic day out
He's had a difficult year after been forced to file for bankruptcy when his property business collapsed.
But it seems that former Westlife star Shane Filan is moving on from his money woes, after being spotted out and about with wife Gillian in London on Friday.
Seemingly in good spirits, the couple grabbed some takeaway coffee from Starbucks before heading out for the day, proving that they were putting their difficult year behind them.
According to new information in the Irish Independent the UK insolvency service allowed Filan to keep the ring, which is valued at $48,600. Befitting a platinum-selling pop star the ring is no simple
gold band but is instead described in official documents as "a gentleman's platinum two-row channel-set 31.41 carat baguette diamond wedding ring
Former boyband star Shane Filan has been left with only the ring on his finger following bankruptcy
Keeping his ring: Shane has been allowed to keep his wedding band, after filing £18 million bankruptcy debt
Shane Filan’s mansion goes on the market
THE mansion that formerly belonged to bankrupt Westlife star Shane Filan has been put on the market.
The Castledale house in Carraroe, Co Sligo – once home to singer Shane (33), his wife Gillian and their young family – has a price tag of €990,000.
This is a far cry from the estimated €4m the house cost to build.
The move comes as the father-of-three continues to deal with
debts of up to €23m.
The well-known singer – who is rumoured to be releasing a solo album this year - was declared bankrupt in the UK last June.
He now lives in a €2.5m house in Surrey with wife Gillian and their three children Nicole (7), Shane (4) and Patrick (3) as he works through his financial problems.
The detached house has five bedrooms and six bathrooms and has been listed by Sherry Fitzgerald Draper with a guide price of €990,000 – although it’s expected to go for more than that.
Shane built the house from scratch in 2004 after being given the land by a relative and it’s estimated that he splashed out
up to €4m on building it.
The Bank of Scotland is owed €3.85m on the home.
Covering an
area of nearly 10,000sq ft and set on almost five acres of landscaped gardens, the waterfront home with a natural stone finish includes a bar and an entertainment lounge as well as a cinema area and a sun-room.
It is controlled by electronic gates with trees and shrubs blocking it from the road.
BANKRUPT Shane Filan has turned to America in a bid to recoup his missing millions. Hush Hush can reveal
the former Westlife star is currently holed up in Nashville. The Tennessee city may be known as the capital of country music, but Shane is busy there with some of the world's top songwriters in a bid to top the music charts as a solo artist.
"He is delighted with what he has accomplished so far and there will be a bidding war in the coming months to sign him up," says a pal. Insiders hope Shane will become the Irish answer to Michael Bublé.
The likeable Sligoman lost his €10m fortune from Westlife due to investments with his brother in the property market.Their company reputedly has
debts of €23m.
Bankrupt
Last June he was declared bankrupt in the UK, where he has moved home with his wife Gillian because of its more lenient insolvency laws, which means he will be able to
start over again after a year.
Last week Shane's plush home in Co. Sligo was put on the market for €990,000, a huge drop from the €10m a businessman offered during the boom. The mansion, which cost €3m to build in 2004, is being sold following a creditors' meeting last month. It's a spectacular fall from financial grace for the 33-year-old, who appeared to have it all.
Shane Filan will lose a fortune on his plush Sligo house
Not only was he an idolised member of Westlife for 13 years - during which they sold 43 million records - but Shane was also lucky in love and wed his childhood sweetheart Gillian Walsh. Despite his fame, he remained grounded and didn't splash the cash too much. The exceptions were his Sligo home and James Bond Aston Martin, which was sold for just under €400,000 at an auction to try and clear his
debts.
Shane set up his firm Shafin Developments Ltd in 2004 with his brother Finbarr and snapped up several
investment opportunities in the west, which were paid for by large bank loans. But the bubble burst and so did Shane's investments, including a planned 90-house estate in Dromahair, Co. Leitrim, and a major housing and office complex in Carraroe, Co. Sligo.
Shane also took out loans for a string of personal investments, including student apartments in Sligo and several rental properties in housing estates. A mortgage was also taken out on a 60-hectare farm near Dromahair, which was bought for €1.3m in 2009. In a further blow, a boutique owned by Shane and his sister Mairead shut in 2009 with losses of €1m.
Let's hope that the people Shane are working with in Nashville have the magic touch so he can become a multi-millionaire once again.
Former Westlife star Shane Filan has signed a solo record
deal, just months after being declared bankrupt.
The Irish singer has already begun recording his album in Nashville in the US, which will be released by London Records at the end of the year.
His chart-topping group split last year with a series of sell-out stadium shows after a 14-year career during which they notched up 14 UK number one
singles.
Filan, 33, was declared bankrupt last summer, only a few days before Westlife bowed out with their farewell show at Dublin's Croke Park. His Irish-registered property company had already gone into receivership, thought to be as a result of the country's economic problems.
Filan said he was excited by his new
deal, adding: "One of the things that pleases me the most about this record is that I've been given the opportunity to write my own songs. I'm so excited for people to hear them."
Westlife were noted for the many cover versions they took into the charts.
Filan's bandmate Nicky Byrne was a contestant on Strictly Come Dancing last year, while colleague Kian Egan has been a presenter on ITV's This Morning.
Filan's manager, Louis Walsh, said: "This is a fantastic new deal for Shane."
Shane Filan is going it alone!
The Westlife star has confirmed news that he’s signed a solo record deal and is planning to release his first album later in 2013.
The Irish hunk will be working with record label Universal London and has already started work on the new material, which will be his first since his long running man band split last year.
Shane is looking forward to producing and writing his own songs and said in a statement:
“I am so excited to be joining London Records, Universal Music and being back in the studio in London and Nashville recording new songs has been amazing. One of the things that pleases me the most about this record is that I’ve been given the opportunity to write my own songs. I’m so excited for people to hear them!”
Manager Louis Walsh meanwhile added: “This is a fantastic new deal for Shane, we are thrilled to be part of the team at London Records.”
Filan’s fans reacted very positively to the news and he has been bombarded with encouraging tweets all day. They included:
GAAAH @ShaneFilan IS RELEASING A
SINGLE IN SUMMER AND AN ALBUM LATER THIS YEAR, AND HE’S WRITTEN SONGS HIMSELF AND I’M SUPER EXCITED
I hope @ShaneFilan visits down under when his solo career takes off. That’s a concert I wouldn’t want to miss. Can’t wait for the 1st
single @ShaneFilan I can’t wait to actually be blasting Shane’s new
single!!!
#FilanFiday xx
Shane responded to his fans writing:
“I’m speechless guys !!! Thankyou so much .. Hand about to fall off from RTs
Love to every single one of ye? Follow @LondonRecords for news!”
Former Westlife member Shane Filan has signed to London Records as a solo artist.
He's started recording his debut solo album in Nashville as well as the UK. It will be released towards the end of this year.
Shane says ”I am so excited to be joining London Records, Universal Music and being back in the studio in London and Nashville recording new songs has been amazing. One of the things that pleases me the most about this record is that I've been given the opportunity to write my own songs. I’m so excited for people to hear them!”
Louis Walsh, Filan’s manager said: “This is a fantastic new
deal for Shane, we are thrilled to be part of the team at London Records.”
London Records President Nick Raphael commented: “We are over the moon to have Shane on our roster. I already feel that the strength of the song writing shows Shane at his most creative."
As part of Westlife, Filan sold over 50 million records worldwide and have accumulated 14 No.1
singles, the third highest in UK history - a feat that won them the accolade of the UK's top-selling album group of the 21st century in 2010
They also won The Record of the Year (the only music award based on public votes in the UK) a record-breaking four times and in 2012, the Official Charts Company listed Westlife 34th amongst the biggest-selling
singles artists in British music history.
Filan will release his new album on London Records later in 2013.
Shane Filan from Westlife has signed a solo record
deal with London Records and you can expect his debut album by the end of the years. Recording sessions have already kicked off in Nashville but he’s also recording in the UK.
Louis Walsh will manage Shane’s solo career. With over 50 million record sales as part of Westlife, everyone is really excited about hearing the new material as Shane has been writing plenty of songs.
(above) Shane pictured with Jo Charrington, SVP A&R, London Records/ Louis Walsh / Nick Raphael, President, London Records
It's been a good week for Shane Filan, not only has he sold his house but he has signed a new record contract.
The Westlife singer has had more than his fair share of bad luck recently, as he was declared bankrupt after his property development firm went bust.
But now things are on the up again, as the singer has sold one of his properties for almost 1 million Euros at
auction. The period home and an adjoining plot of 146 acres of land was purchased by farmer James Irwin for 910,000 Euros. The farmer certainly got a good bargain, as the price was just a tenth of what Shane paid for it only a few years ago during the housing boom.
In a separate sale, Shane's older brother Liam snapped up 3.6 acres of land that is next to Shane's home in Carraroe, County Sligo, for 50,000 Euros. The property itself is still on the market with a value of 900,000 Euros, way below the 3 million Euros Shane paid to build it, and far less than the 10 million Euros he was once offered for it.
The news of the sale came as Shane signed a new contract with London Records to release his first solo material after spending over a decade in Westlife.
Shane says in a statement, "One of the things that pleases me the most about this record is that I've been given the opportunity to write my own songs. I'm so excited for people to hear them!"
It will all come to some relief to Shane, who is believed to have up to 23 million Euros
debts. He now lives in England with his family, and it is thought he will clear his bankruptcy debts in June.
