Dean decorates rental property in Abington for landlords and letting agents, from single terraced lets to HMOs and flats in converted buildings, 1.6 miles north-east of Northampton town centre. The focus is quick, durable repaints between tenancies and keeping shared halls and kitchens in a state that holds up to inspection.
A rental market shaped by HMOs
Abington’s terraced streets around Abington Avenue, Adams Avenue and Cedar Road include shared housing and flat conversions. In April 2023 Northampton Town Council’s planning committee considered an application to convert 110 Adams Avenue into five flats, objections to a five-person HMO on Cedar Road where HMOs were already registered at three nearby addresses, and the change of 107 Abington Avenue from an HMO back to a single home. Wikipedia also records old warehouses in the district converted to flats. The result is a mix of individual lets, shared houses and small blocks, each with different decorating needs.
Licensing, the HMO SPD and what that means for paintwork
West Northamptonshire Council started an additional HMO licensing scheme for smaller HMOs of three or four occupants on 24 February 2025, alongside Northampton’s 2019 HMO planning guidance. Licensing is about property standards and management rather than colour schemes, but tired communal areas, damaged plaster and flaking woodwork are the kind of condition issues that stand out on a visit. Landlords often time a refresh of shared spaces before an inspection or a re-let. We cannot advise on compliance itself, but we can make sure the decorated surfaces are sound and clean.
| Area | What tends to wear | What we use |
|---|---|---|
| Shared hall and stairs | Bike and bag scuffs, handrail grime | Scrubbable emulsion, satin woodwork |
| Shared kitchen | Grease, steam, splash marks | Kitchen-grade wipeable emulsion |
| Bathrooms and shower rooms | Condensation, mould spots | Mould-resistant bathroom paint after treatment |
| Let bedrooms | Blu-tack marks, furniture knocks | One neutral colour for easy touch-ups |
Turning a property round between tenants
The gap between one tenancy and the next is usually short. Our approach, set out in more detail on the main landlord and letting agent decorating page, is to tell you plainly which rooms need full coats and which only need filling and touching in. In a Victorian terrace that has been let for years, that often means the hall, stairs and kitchen get the full treatment while bedrooms get spot repairs. Keeping to a single standard neutral across a portfolio means future touch-ups match without buying a new colour each time.
Properties moving the other way need a different brief. When an HMO is converted back into a family home, as recorded for 107 Abington Avenue, the old fire-door signage, extra locks and patched walls from partitioned rooms may have to be made good before a full redecoration. We can quote that as a staged job alongside your builder.
Older terraces bring a few extra jobs that are easy to miss: hairline cracks in lath-and-plaster ceilings, gloss yellowing on original skirtings, and window boards stained by condensation. We point these out at the quote stage rather than finding them halfway through.
Access when you or your agent hold the keys
If you live outside the area and work through an agent, we can collect keys, work to an agreed start and finish date and send photos of the finished rooms. Where tenants are still in the building, such as an occupied HMO where only the communal parts are being painted, we agree working hours in advance and keep exits clear. Parking on the terraced streets is on-street only and often tight, so we plan arrivals and deliveries accordingly. For general budgeting, see our painter and decorator cost guide, and for the other services we offer here, our Abington area page.
Last updated by Dean, DH Painter & Decorator.
