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Ken Sheehan

landlord in west london

2186 Profile Views

About Me

renting property in west London (Ealing area) for too many years to mention.

my expertise in the industry

Banking , IT and now landlord

Ken's Recent Activity

This is laughable from Niamh o Regan. I rent property in west London and in Ireland (Cork). Yes we are regulated. No fault evictions banned but you can sell. That's what is happening here now. The government have now resorted to giving me a tax incentive to remain for the next 5 years in the form of an increasing tax credit by year 5. Things are desperate here... Last time I rented a room in a house , within days I had 320 applicants. Landlords are running for the hills, PM has just stepped down and like UK we are staring at possibly a left leaning government led by Sinn Fein, god help us. All this started when we had a section 24 equivalent during the recession when as in the UK now repossessions started. Landlords are selling up in droves here. I unloaded 4 properties myself in the last few years in Ireland. Most of my tenants in London stay long term, averaging over 5 years.

From: Ken Sheehan 04 April 2024 09:27 AM

🤣🤣 I have had dogs eat doors, left unattended during the day and suffering separation anxiety. Who makes this stuff up ?

From: Ken Sheehan 08 March 2024 08:14 AM

The problem for existing landlords longstanding with capital appreciation having accumulated is how to migrate to a limited company without suffering a large capital gains tax bill. No solution as far as I am aware exists to mitigate this. Any expert opinions welcome ?

From: Ken Sheehan 15 January 2024 08:34 AM

Reverse section 24 would be a far bigger help and reinstate 10% wear and tear allowances would have a huge effect to stop evictions

From: Ken Sheehan 16 November 2023 10:09 AM

Absolutely agree entirely. Section 24 destroyed buy to let. It was tried in Ireland and not only reversed but budget next week likely to have a reduced tax rate for small landlords. It's crazy to interfere in the residential buy to let market. If you are making a loss with house prices falling there is only one option.

From: Ken Sheehan 07 October 2023 12:00 PM

Rents are rising sharply in west London now. Landlords leaving the sector in droves. RRB,ending section 21, section 24, selective licencing, maintenance costs, inflation, paperwork including government booklet, deposit protection, prescribed information and t&C, inventory, agents fees and not forgetting void expenses. Hands up who wants to be a landlord ?

From: Ken Sheehan 02 October 2023 08:49 AM

As a landlord, it brings shame. No wonder there are reforms coming along with selective licencing. Hopefully, people like this leave the sector.

From: Ken Sheehan 18 September 2023 09:28 AM

Sense will prevail in time. Section 24 will be undone as too many landlords will exit. Same thing happened in Ireland and in the next budget there are flagged incentives for landlords (in Ireland) but starmer and Rishi will have to get off the Xanax.

From: Ken Sheehan 10 August 2023 10:00 AM

This article should tell us something we don't know. Ealing council has now introduced selective licencing at £750 a pop. I'll bet very similar statistics in Ealing.

From: Ken Sheehan 01 August 2023 07:10 AM

I believe it is section 24 causing the distress as interest rates rise. Anyone with large borrowing on tracker or variable is getting hammered. A 20% credit for your interest at these rates is completely insufficient .This allied with the strong possibility of an anti landlord RRB and likelihood of a labour government incoming will make landlords sell up.. Selective licencing is on the rise, all combining to get landlords selling

From: Ken Sheehan 07 July 2023 08:23 AM

I have to agree. Rising interest rates coupled with section 24 will kill at lot of interest in BTL. My rents in west london are rising sharply and now selective licencing at 750 a pop for 5 years for all BTL in borough of Ealing. EPC problems arrive in the not too distant. it will only be when Government recognise BTL as a business that landlords can fully engage in proper reliefs and pension contributions etc. otherwise, there is a real crisis coming.

From: Ken Sheehan 18 March 2023 16:23 PM

Rent Controls do not work! It is currently in Ireland (Rep) where I also let and limited to 4% every 2 years. This year alone sales of buy to let are up 58%. last week there was a queue of over 100 prospective tenants in Dublin for a 2 bed house at €1700 pcm. Bargain !! The Deputy PM Leo Varadkar has admitted in the upcoming budget they will have to incentivize landlords to stay in the market using perhaps a new tax rate or tax credits.ly we also had an equivalent of section 24 and they soon got rid of that when it had the same selling effect. So, if rent controls come in, unfortunately the rents will rise

From: Ken Sheehan 20 August 2022 17:24 PM

No Pets is one of the covenants in the head lease of the apartment blocks that I have apartments in. I don't know whether this can be unraveled by a new law. interesting times ahead...

From: Ken Sheehan 15 June 2022 11:21 AM

I am a landlord with a foot in each jurisdiction. Ireland is now a basket case with all stick and no carrot. the only respite is stamp duty at 1%. Other than that we have suffered interest allowance restricted to 75% which only changed last year. It attempts to do what section 24 does. Landlords have run for the hills. Rent Pressure Zones which effectively are rent freezes. Anecdotally, registrar doctors couch surfing. Institutional investors free of CGT here, leaving apartments empty to maintain high rents rather than accepting a reduction. We have had a Panorama equivalent (RTE investigates) which has proven the Institutional allegations. Irish Landlords pay Property Tax whereas UK tenants pay council tax. S21 removal will definitely be food for thought for a lot of landlords. That is pretty much what we have in Ireland now.

From: Ken Sheehan 10 June 2022 13:08 PM

Neil, That is not true. I had a similar experience in Ealing and flew from Cork, following day , police met at the property and said Theft as you know is a criminal offence. Police caught him, Harrow crown court and small fine £350 and criminal record to boot. The CPS covered my flight and public transport expenses and the Judge called me in when the case finished and said the court thanked me for making the effort to get there as a witness. all with 6 months. He also spent 4 nights in Acton police station and my furniture was recovered by the police and kept at acton police station !! I could not speak highly enough of the Met in my instance

From: Ken Sheehan 30 April 2021 11:43 AM

I completely agree with Tricia on this. Try renting an apartment from some corporation like KennedyWilson for instance. They charge a premium for the apartments they have. In Dublin They bought cheap in the recession, got a tax break and evicted all the tenants who could not afford the uplift in rent. All of John's article is littered with conjecture, evidenced by "unlikely", "many tenants might feel ", "bigger corporate presence is likely to be a much more professionalised private rental sector". try getting hold of a corporate landlord on a weekend and leave a message on an answering machine while your boiler has broken down! I have let properties in west london for the past 30 years and have no complaints. most landlords are decent and it takes two to tango.

From: Ken Sheehan 26 March 2021 12:13 PM

its always best to get the tenant to provide an Experian report. That way you will have a clear picture of who you are dealing with. Also consider getting relief to go to the high court when this is over. it costs but you get your property back.

From: Ken Sheehan 28 August 2020 13:02 PM

Suzy has a point. Covid19 is the current driver, but once a vaccine is uncovered (hopefully), Brexit , Section 24 , a push to rid of small heavily levered landlords which is shame, and planning allowing commercial to convert without planning to residential will all play a part. Building has stopped which is hindering supply as evidenced by the likes of Taylor Wimpey. all the while there is a shortage of residential property.

From: Ken Sheehan 10 August 2020 12:18 PM

I don't think calling your customers, 'Mugs', is really appropriate Andrew. A lot of them have to rent due to the contract nature of their work. I rent to a lot of registrar medics who move from hospital to hospital for instance annually. Others in IT are in a similar boat for example. I certainly don't subscribe to that view and have been letting successfully for 30 years now

From: Ken Sheehan 19 June 2020 12:16 PM

I wonder how many of us landlords forget to give the CURRENT governments how to rent booklet. I doubt this can be remedied in arrears. Make sure you give the latest copy!

From: Ken Sheehan 19 June 2020 12:00 PM

personally , I have moved to a video instead of a paper inventory and it worked very well for me at the DPS adjudication where curtains were removed and cleanliness at the start was recorded and condition of bathroom and kitchen etc, I would recommend this and attach it via email or WhatsApp and send to the tenant at the beginning. record at the end and compare.

From: Ken Sheehan 09 March 2020 12:17 PM

Yes I have to agree. they will throw anyone in to get a fee. I had 2 bad experiences having been introduced to brothels by a LA. not going back there. I let everything myself now and I live overseas!! I have been letting since the 90's and now no problems. There are plenty of good tenants out there provided they are given something they could be proud of

From: Ken Sheehan 15 August 2019 11:00 AM

I agree, if the tenant cannot afford a deposit then they can’t really afford to rent the property. The DPS has worked really well with my properties.

From: Ken Sheehan 07 January 2019 09:00 AM

mortgage interest relief was fully reinstated to 100% in Ireland from the reduced 75% in its recent budget. New laws are now regulating the Airbnb offering to allow the workforce to access housing. No doubt Hammond will have to follow suit as the short term sector expands in London particularly Airbnb is beginning to remove home from the AST offering. I am a landlord in Ireland as well as west London

From: Ken Sheehan 30 October 2018 10:33 AM

Dan, how is life in your universe? Rents have risen where I let and I have 2 handfuls of property.

From: Ken Sheehan 17 October 2018 09:10 AM

£24 per month is not a lot to compensate for damage to furniture and replacement of items in the rented property if pets were allowed. Equally most purpose built apartments disallow pets residing as written into the header lease as a covenant.

From: Ken Sheehan 25 May 2018 15:07 PM

What is omitted is the fact you can lever a property with a mortgage. Thereby having an investment vehicle growing at inflation or above. So you automatically have for example a. £300k property with an LTV of 66% if you borrowed say £200k. You can’t really do this with a pension as far as I know. Perhaps you could in a self managed one. Meanwhile the tenant is hopefully covering the mortgage!

From: Ken Sheehan 09 April 2018 14:18 PM

They tried increasing taxes on landlords in Ireland also. They are retreating from this now as we have a serious housing crisis. Lots of landlords have sold as a result ; same as U.K.

From: Ken Sheehan 21 March 2018 11:00 AM

Header leases on purpose built blocks of apartments specifically prohibit pets in the blocks. Beyond the landlords control

From: Ken Sheehan 14 February 2018 08:57 AM

This is heady stuff coupled with section 24 changes which include removal of 10% wear and tear and restriction of interest to basic rates by 2020. I let in cork Ireland and Ealing west London. They tried all this in Dublin and cork and we have a massive housing crisis now. Landlords have sold in droves. Homeless figures rocketed. House prices gone through the roof !! When will governments ever learn ? He should get on with a house building program on brownfield in large cities. Playing politics with housing is playing with fire.

From: Ken Sheehan 28 September 2017 09:12 AM

As a professional landlord of some 25 years letting in London Ealing and Cork City Ireland. They tried the same tactic in Ireland by disallowing 25% of the interest allowable and introducing a property tax simultaneously. This along with some emergency taxes as a result of the recession left top rate landlord taxpayers with a marginal rate of 62% tax. What has happened ? A mass sell off by landlords. We now have a full blown housing crisis in Ireland with a new department and cabinet secretary for housing. No new houses being built and record rent rises throughout the country.as a result of poor supply. The cabinet is now considering tax incentives to attract new landlords ! Full circle methinks. certainly some of the predictions in the article will come true.

From: Ken Sheehan 16 June 2016 21:27 PM

I agree the stamp duty is a fixed non recurring cost. The problem begins this year with the abolition of the 10% wear and tear allowance followed on by the erosion of the mortgage interest relief to its extinction. This creates a situation whereby landlords with substantial debt will have to eliminate that debt at the expense of investment in the properties.

From: Ken Sheehan 02 May 2016 13:53 PM

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