Landlord doesn't want us to decorate

Jo_R_2

I am just about to move into a new rented house. The landlord has been around a lot, and having chatted to him, he is a really nice guy, very amenable and had been looking for long-term tenants, and we were after settling somewhere so worked out well.

The only thing he's against is decorating, which is something I *really* want to do! The house is neatly decorated, however the wallpaper is really dark (dark blues and greens) in all the rooms and brightening it up would be a real breath of fresh air to the place, as well as glossing skirting boards, door frames etc as they're quite dull.

It seems the landlord had a bad experience with some previous tenants who I gather wanted to decorate and stripped everything off (wallpaper that is:D) and moved out and left it like that:eek: He has said he'd like to see how things go and if we still want to decorate six months down the line then we can do (we're initially on a 12-month contract.) He also mentioned he's worried if we strip the wallpaper off the plaster will start to crumble (the walls are noticeably 'wonky' in places.)

However I'm desperate to brighten it up and I have absolutely good intentions... What can I do - the house is lovely, I just want it to be a little bit brighter!

toby3000

You could offer to redecorate to his choosing when you leave? Or, if you're that keen, say he can deduct from the deposit the cost of redecorating at the end. I have just redecorated my kitchen on the basis that I'll leave it as I found it, but I have had landlords in the past who have refused this.

If you think it's seriously going to affect living there, you could either refuse to take it unless he relents, or ofcourse just do it and risk saying goodbye to the deposit...

dansylvester

I used to rent a house that we were allowed to decorate (or hang ANY pictures from the walls), was a major factor in deciding to move, as we couldnt make it the home we wanted.


This is one of my biggest gripes about renting

toby3000

One landlord refused to allow us to decorate on the basis that the build up of paint would make the rooms smaller. I'm actually not kidding.

theartfullodger

Are you aware of the OFT guidance on unfair terms in tenancies ?? See..
http://www.oft.gov.uk/advice_and_resources/publications/guidance/unfair-terms-consumer/oft356


Unfortunately in this guidance the OFT (Offfice of Fair Trading) say

We take the view that in short fixed term agreements, such as one for a year
or less, a standard term making the tenant liable to redecorate the property
regardless of whether the tenant has done something to make it necessary
may be regarded as unfair. The potential effect of such a term is to require
tenants to return the property in a better condition than that in which they
received it and for landlords to benefit considerably at the tenants' expense.
We do not object to terms requiring tenants to redecorate or pay for
redecoration where they have caused deterioration to the d!cor at the
property beyond what could be described as fair wear and tear.

Funnily enuf it doesn't say you can't re-decorate in your own colours.. but as long as the inventory describes correctly & fairly the walls (e.g. - dark-brown, recently painted, few scuffs) then you probably have to deliver that back...

Cheers!

Lodger

BitterAndTwisted

You could ask the landlord for the manufacturer of the wallpaper and get some to replace it at the end of the tenancy. Once you've stripped the wallpaper off and the quality of the plaster underneath means more work then you'll have to make it good, so you're returning the place in the same condition as you found it.

Geenie

I can see this from both points of view. As a LL, we have had properties really messed up from tenants so called decorating to improve. Despite saying yes, they could paint a place so long as the colours were pale, and the walls were prisitine already, previous tenants painted a cottage in dark red, blues, oranges and yellow, including the inside window frames. It involved a lot of cost, work and time to put right when they left.

I can also see from the tenants point of view that you would want to brighten the room up if dark. The LL has said that he will review the situation in time, so he has not totally ruled out you doing so, and quite rightly wants to see how you are at first. This seems fair to both of you, as you may find after some months that you don't want to stay there after your initial AST.

If he is worried about taking the wall paper off, then it is possible to paint over it if stuck down firmly.

chickmug

Why not ask your LL if you can do one small room so he/she can take a look to reassure them about your standard of workmanship. Then if they are happy progress with more?

BenL

If stripping the wallpaper damages the plaster or it flakes off as your LL is worried about will you be repairing this as well or will you expect the LL to pay a professional plasterer.

I'm not sure of the figures but it is a few hundred £ a room for a plasterer.

before_hollywood

plaster flaking when wallpaper is removed is common isnt it?

JanCee

If the walls underneath the wallpaper are not great then you would be better off painting over the paper. Crown solo is my favourite paint for this, I have done it a number of times and it has always worked really well.

I am sure if you ask again after 6 months the LL will be amenable to your request.