Selling house with patterned wallpaper, and lots of holes for pictures

[wanderings]

I have heard that a rule is that you have to make good any walls if you remove fixtures and fittings before selling.

This house has patterned wallpaper throughout, and loads of pictures on the walls. As the walls are solid, it is difficult to hammer nails into them, so many of the heavier pictures have been hung with a rawl plug and screw.

When removing the pictures, is it enough to fill the holes, or will it be necessary to completely re-wallpaper the rooms (bearing in mind the same pattern may be long discontinued)?

[TaurielTest]

I would do neither - leave the screws in place, let the new owners decide. They may want to hang pictures in the same place, and it's very likely they'd rather choose their own wallpaper :D

[Lucylouby]

My dh thought we should remove all the screws out of the walls and fill them in, but I thought we should leave them. People tend to it pictures in similar places and if you keep drilling into the same patch of wall over and over its going to leave it weaker. For example most people hang something over the fire place and would appreciate a screw being in place so they can just hang their picture up straight away. I left the screws where they were and when I popped back to old house to pick up some post, the new lady had got pictures on all my hooks. I'm guessing as time goes on she will move them, but it meant it looked homely quicker. In our new house we are still looking at patched up walls (in a different colour paint) with no pictures as we haven't got round to hanging pictures yet.

[PuntCuffin]

No. You buy 'as seen'. There is no obligation whatsoever to make good.

[PuntCuffin]

Sorry, to add....

If you are removing light fittings, you need to put a basic pendant type light in.

[MarpleMiss]

If you are not a tenant, then you have no need to "make good". The buyer is buying as they find it.

[specialsubject]

just remove the pictures and leave the hooks. This means that the new owners can throw some pictures on the walls, even if they are in the wrong places. When they get round to redecorating, they can sort it all out then.

that's what we are doing, it means we have some pictures up for now. It's fine.

[PigletJohn]

does the house look clean, tidy and respectable? Holes and screws in the wall make a house look neglected.

Otherwise, buyers are certain to want to redecorate it to their personal taste.

[PigletJohn]

p.s.

if you have hole in a wall with a plasplug in it, take the screw out, then put it back just by half a turn (or use a thinner screw) and tap on the screwhead with a small hammer until the plasplug sinks below the surface of the wall. Then turn the screw out.

If you try to pull out the plasplug, it will pull out the plaster and leave a huge and unsightly crater in the surface.

[Forago]

My understanding is that your obligation is whatever is agreed by the 2 parties solicitors after an offer has been accepted and before you exchange - as per what is set out and agreed on the fixtures and fittings list.

So you can get your solicitor to ask theirs what they'd prefer - or just wait and see what they say. I suspect they wont specify. In your situation I'd much rather move into a wallpapered house with the screws still there so I could re-use them if desired or at least know where they are when redecorating (it's not great coming across a filled hole when you are drilling something in and you didn't know it was there)

[minipie]

check your contract. When we sold, there was an obligation in our contract to make good any "damage" caused by removing pictures etc.

So we left the picture hooks in - that way there was no "damage".

I think your buyers will either be the "move straight in" type (in which case they'll be happy you've left the screws) or they'll be the "redecorate immediately" type (in which case they won't care either way).

[MrsSquirrel]

When I bought my house it had all the hooks in the walls, including some as you describe with a plug and screw. Didn't put me off in any way. We now use some of the picture hooks the previous owners left.

As others have said, the new owners will probably redecorate.

[ShadowOfTheDay]

I moved in 20 years ago... still using the original hooks that were left - they are in the right place for pictures, so I would not remove them if we move..