19th August 2017
Following on from last week’s question regarding flooring, I thought it would be best to cover all areas in the property.
It can be tempting to decorate your investment in your own colour choices, however, this is a mistake many people make, and it can cost you prospective tenants. Instead, create a blank canvas and make it easy for your tenants to personalise the space. If they can make themselves feel at home, they’ll be more likely to stay. Your choice of paint colour doesn’t have to be all white or magnolia; these colours are great when you’re on a budget and won’t be charging a lot of rent, however, if you’re trying to attract a different kind of tenant, or want to charge a little more, there are many other neutral colours you could try.
If you like a certain type of paint but don’t want to break the bank, why not paint the walls in magnolia, with a different neutral coloured feature wall? Or paint the space above a dado rail magnolia and save the other colour for the bottom half? Whatever you decide, I would recommended you try and stay away from bright colours and wall paper, as these could put a perfectly good tenant off renting your property, if it’s not to their taste.
When choosing your paints, if you have the budget, try and buy types that will provide the most durability with a long-life span for your tenants. For kitchens and bathrooms, especially in apartments, it’s a good idea to buy paint with added mould protection and this is a common area where condensation can build up. For the rest of the house a silk paint is nice, or try using a specialist paint that’s more easily wiped clean. Skirting boards and woodwork will be fine in a white gloss emulsion.
For the ultimate in durability, look for paints that contain latex or acrylic, they take knocks and scrapes better than other varieties, and with so many people moving furniture in and out of rental properties, it’s likely there’ll be a few of these. Once you’re done painting, save any leftover paint, buy extra tins, or make a note of the brands and colours of the paints you’ve used, including which rooms you used them in, as this makes it much easier to repaint after a tenancy or allow your tenants to touch up any scuffs themselves.
Remember that no matter what paint you choose, you will never meet everyone’s taste, and you will still get the odd comment that they do not like it. But, keeping the colours neutral will help eliminate decoration take as a reason not to take your property.
For any further advice on this please contact me for more free helpful tips.
Richard Bond
Lettings Manager
