DH Painter & Decorator repaints rental flats, shared houses and terraces in Phippsville for landlords and letting agents, mostly between tenancies. Phippsville lies about 1.3 miles north-east of Northampton town centre, and we plan each job around void periods, tenants in neighbouring flats and access along the Kettering Road side.
What drives rental decorating in Phippsville
Two things shape the rented sector here. First, most of the substantial houses built in the 1880s Phipps suburb have been converted into individual flats, so one building can hold several tenancies, each running to its own timetable. Second, Phippsville ward is inside the Northampton North and Central HMO Article 4 direction made in March 2012, which removed the right to turn a family house into a small HMO without planning permission. The shared houses that already exist are therefore an established part of the area. St Matthew’s parish also notes residents are getting younger as terraced houses come onto the market.
For a landlord, that adds up to frequent, short decorating windows, often in a building where other people are living. It also means the same flat may be repainted every couple of years, so the aim is a finish that is quick to refresh next time rather than one that needs stripping back. The quality of the preparation on the first visit decides how easy every later turnaround will be.
Flat, communal area or whole house?
It’s worth being clear at the start who is paying for what. In a converted villa, the inside of each flat is normally the leaseholder’s or landlord’s responsibility, while the shared hall, stairs and outside walls usually fall to the freeholder or managing agent. We quote these as separate pieces of work and can do them in the same visit if both parties agree, which saves setting up twice.
In an HMO or a let terrace, the landlord usually controls the whole building, so we can plan a rolling programme: one or two rooms when a tenant leaves, the shared kitchen and hall once a year, the exterior when it’s due.
Finishes that survive a short tenancy
- Washable, scuff-resistant matt on walls in bedrooms and living rooms, and a moisture-resistant finish in kitchens and bathrooms
- Water-based satin or eggshell on skirtings and doors, which stays white and dries quickly so rooms can be used the next day
- A short list of standard colours across your portfolio, recorded room by room, so touch-ups match next time
- High ceilings in the villa flats painted in a flat, light finish that hides patching
In the bigger villa flats, the large rooms and deep cornices mean more cutting-in and ceiling work than you’d expect in a terrace of the same rent, and we price that honestly rather than treating every one-bed the same. In the terraces and interwar semis the rooms are smaller, so a full turnaround of a two-bed house can often be done inside a short void.
Keys, voids and access
We can collect keys from a letting agent, work while a property is empty and send photos of finished rooms for your records or a listing. Loading outside Kettering Road frontages is limited by bus stops and traffic, and the terraced side streets have little parking, so we plan deliveries and van parking before the void starts rather than losing a day to it. Where neighbours share the entrance, we agree working hours and keep the common parts clean.
If you’re working out a budget for a void, our decorating cost guide explains what affects the price. The main landlord and letting agent decorating page covers end-of-tenancy work in more detail, and our Phippsville page covers the area as a whole.
Last updated by Dean, DH Painter & Decorator.
