Skimming and decorating in London

WobblyGoblin

Hi there. I've found this site really useful in the past when I've been looking at getting jobs done in the house etc so I thought I'd post my own issue and see if you good people can give me some advice.

Moved recently to c.1930s house in Wimbledon. The house is a bit tatty at the moment (only way we could get something with the space we're after...) so it needs a bit of work. The existing walls are all papered and need redecorating. We are after a smooth finish so we can paint the rooms as we'd rather not have wallpaper.

We've had 2 quotes now and they're both really high. The first guy thought the walls looked fairly good and was quoting to strip paper from walls and ceiling, fill cracks and smooth and then paint (plus preparing and painting skirtings and doors). This was for 2 medium sized rooms and the hallway (sorry, no dimensions on me). He quoted £2,900 +VAT.

The second guy presumed the walls and ceiling would need skimming as the house is old. We took some paper off and the walls were indeed fairly coarse in finish. He quoted £3,200 +VAT but got the quote wrong for the hallway (seemed to be presuming just to re-paint it) so I'd expect a revised quote to be more like £3,700.

Those both seem like a lot to me...

I know that there is a premium to pay on labour in central London but is it really that much? People seemed to be suggesting £600ish per room on this site so I was guessing it would be around £1,800-£2,000 for the lot. Am I just being unrealistic or are the people quoting just taking the p***?

Any help or advice would be great.

ashcarrot

Could you not just strip the walls yourself, fill in the gaps and then see whats needs doing (ie if you can do the rest yourself or need some skimming) to reduce the price a bit?

WobblyGoblin

Some of the advice on here was that stripping the paper yourself could leave the plaster in a worse state and then require more work. However, if it seems that these quotes are about right then that's definitely the way forward, I think.

madeane

Not sure of exact prices in London but that is far more than we would charge in the midlands. I would definately say that you will get it cheaper if you strip the wallpaper yourselves. You are not going to do significant damage doing that, then just pay for skimming. Get more quotes in and check that the people are properly qualified and experienced (get references) many people go on short courses and then hire themselves out to plaster homes, but don't get me started on that one!! I think the figures that people are suggesting seem more near the mark.

Roseberry_2

I'm a P&D based in SW London (KT postcode). Your quoted prices are too high for this area frankly. On an unseen basis I'd expect labour to be iro £450 per medium sized room and anything from £600 to £1000 for hall stairs and landing depending. So your guesstimate of 1.8 - 2k isn't that far out looking at ballpark numbers.

You need to get more quotes in all honesty.

jason_s_2

:eek:Bloody hell :eek: I'll come from winchester and skim your rooms for that:rotfl:.Tell them to jog on and get a few more quotes in,try asking a few companys outside your area to see if they will travel,you may get a cheaper price this way.

Jase

WobblyGoblin

Thanks guys - presumed I needed more quotes but wanted to check whether I was wasting my time or not.

As ever - top advice from people on the site.

Cheers