DH Painter & Decorator repaints let and soon-to-be-let houses in West Hunsbury, NN4, for landlords and letting agents. Dean is based in Northampton, about 2.1 miles from the estate, and quotes free for anything from a few tired rooms to a full house refresh.
What the West Hunsbury rental market looks like
West Hunsbury is mainly owner-occupied. The houses that come up are largely detached and semi-detached family homes, many in cul-de-sacs, and the public sources we have checked show plenty for sale but little on private lets. The rented homes that do exist here are therefore likely to be family houses: a three-bed semi, a four-bed detached with a garage, perhaps a bungalow, let unfurnished to a household that will treat it as their home for a good while.
There is also social and sheltered housing grouped around Parsons Meade Community Centre, which is run by Northampton Partnership Homes. Decorating in those homes is arranged through the housing provider rather than by individual residents, and any work commissioned there calls for low-odour paints and clear walkways for older residents.
Preparing a family house between tenants or for sale
With a house like this the question is often whether it will be let again or sold, and the decorating brief is slightly different for each. A refresh for a new tenant is about durability and easy touch-ups. A refresh before sale is about photographs and first impressions. On houses built in the 1980s and 1990s, the jobs that show up most at a changeover are:
- Yellowed oil gloss on skirtings and doors, which we convert to a water-based satin that stays white for the next tenancy.
- Scuffed hallway and stairwell walls, which in the larger detached houses may need a stair platform to reach.
- Conservatories and extensions that have faded or picked up condensation marks.
- Shaded north-facing rooms by the parkland trees, where mould spots on window reveals need treating before repainting.
We’ll tell you honestly which rooms need full coats and which only need touching up. That keeps the work focused, and our guide to painter and decorator costs in Northampton explains what affects the quote.
Working for an owner who is not on site
Many landlords don’t live near their let property, and agents juggle keys for several at once. For an empty house we can collect and return keys through the agent, send photos at the end of each day and leave the property clean and ready for the inventory clerk. Driveways are the norm on the estate, so the van can usually stay on the plot without blocking a neighbour in a tight cul-de-sac turning head.
At the end we leave a written colour record: wall colour, ceiling white and woodwork sheen, with paint names. That means a scuffed wall at the next changeover can be patched with the same tin rather than repainted wall to wall.
Timing matters too. The gap between one tenancy ending and the next starting is often short, so we agree the start date with the agent as soon as notice is served and plan the rooms in an order that lets carpet cleaners or the inventory clerk work behind us. Water-based finishes on walls and woodwork are dry enough for furniture within a day, which helps where a new tenant is already booked to move in.
A specification for a house that will be lived in hard
| Area | Finish we normally suggest |
|---|---|
| Living rooms and bedrooms | One neutral wipeable matt used throughout |
| Hallway, stairs and landing | Scrubbable matt walls, durable satin on spindles and handrail |
| Kitchen and bathrooms | Moisture-resistant or anti-mould paint, especially in en-suites with weak extraction |
| Doors and skirtings | Water-based satin, quick to dry before tenants move in |
More on how we work with landlords and agents is on our main landlord and letting agent decorating page, and the other services we cover locally are on the West Hunsbury area page.
Last updated by Dean, DH Painter & Decorator.
