To not put the house back to what it was?

[QuantumDog2]

I've rented the house I live in currently for nearly 9 years. When I moved in it was a new build and we were the first to live here, so obviously a buy to let. The walls were all trade paint magnolia and the carpets were cheap, exactly the way new builds are presented as standard.
Over the years I've decorated it and made some improvements like extending the patio and I spend £1400 on new flooring for the lounge because the carpet was worn out by that stage and looked grotty.
Now I'm leaving as I've bought somewhere with my partner, but contractually apparently I have to return the property the way I found it. I'm 6 months pregnant now and don't fancy donning my overalls and climbing ladders to paint. What would you do? I feel like after 9 years here and the time and money I've spent on the place (although my choice totally) I shouldn't really be penalised, but I expect I will lose my deposit?

When my nextdoor neighbours had a similar issue they told their landlord that they would gladly allow him to withhold the deposit to cover the cost of repainting but they would be removing all of the improvements they had made.

As many of the improvements were listed in the particulars advertising the property and were shown in the photos the landlord wasn't too happy about that and became much easier to deal with

THIS*

Just leave it OP, it'd need a repaint after 9 years anyway. The landlord has made a tidy profit over the years. You'll probably lose your deposit, but who doesn't after 9 years? You may get a bill for making good, you could probably go to small claims if you wanted to, as could the landlord. Chill. Good luck with the move and baby

I’m a landlord. I’d expect to do some updating after nine years so I wouldn’t be fussed. The flooring and patio are a bit different. I can’t understand if you got their permission or not.

@Gilmorehill she said she did somewhere in the thread near the beginning.

I'm also a landlord and no way should they be charging you for repainting after nine years, that's called betterment and it's not allowed. Our rental property is repainted far more frequently than that and we've never taken it from a deposit, even when there's been marks on the walls.

In most rented places the tenant accepts responsibility for internal decoration so it probably isn't relevant that the landlord has not repainted the inside. Spending on structural improvement or installing flooring in rented property is the tenant's choice. All you've done is increase the value of the property without being able to expect any financial benefits from the expenditure. We had to repaint our shared ownership house even though the walls were all neutral. We had to remove our climbing plants too. Good luck.

I’m definitely Team Quantum here!
It sounds like you’ve turned this house into a beautiful home for yiu and your family over the last almost decade.
You’ve greatly improved it, and that can only be a plus for the landlord, and I think you deserve your entire deposit back.
Is it advertised on RightMove? I’m assuming their are photos to show the prospective tenants?
As someone else said, way up thread, I’d be really disappointed if I’d viewed a beautifully and tastefully decorated place - and I love love love Denim Drift - only to be confronted on moving in day with a magnolia horror!
Fingers crossed for you!

Whatever the paint situation ends up being- you should definitely take any fittings you’ve paid for if you still have the cheap originals to put back (you mentioned curtain poles?) .

I did this for every rental I was in for light shades and curtains.

Why don’t you negotiate, but do it nicely.
Say “I’d be happy to leave my light fittings/curtain poles/floor if you don’t ask me to repaint, especially given after 9 years you’d have to repaint anyway” Then see what they say.

I work for lots of landlords - who are these savages still using magnolia! Everything is white and grey these days surely.
One landlord I know private rented a home he has (he's actually a HMO landlord with 7 houses) but this particular house was his actual home so didn't want to change it. He had tenants in there for 11 years and they'd changed it alot but he didn't expect them to change it because they'd been good tenants for those 11 years.

His Home at one point I mean! Obviously not when he rented it out.

Apparently the director of the lettings company will be contacting me. I'm sticking with no viewings until the matter is discussed and an agreement reached though.
I'd contact the landlord directly again, but I know she'll just ignore me. So I'll try and sit tight and see what the agent or LL come back and say.

Absolutely no way landlord can charge for repainting after 9 years. Go to arbitration through the tenancy deposit scheme and they won’t award them a penny for this given the time frame. Patio and new flooring I’m not too sure on - likely that the length of time you’ve rented for go hugely in your favour so I’d advise you pay zero to your landlord and go through arbitration. For context I’ve been both a landlord and tenant in recent years and have used the arbitration process on both sides. As a landlord I’ve only deducted minimal amounts (for dirty oven and blocked drains, cat damage to carpet) across numerous tenants and never anything for long term tenants. Repainting and re flooring after 9 years is a cost of maintaining a rental property. Good luck and congratulations on buying your own place - the freedom is lovely

Is that the right thing to do, not bother trying to approach the LL again? Or do I just send one message stating my case and leave it at that? I really don't want to get in to an argument or cause more aggro for myself or them.

All this discussion about how much you've spent and how much better it looks and how the people viewing it like it etc etc are all completely irrelevant.
At the end of the day what matters is what it says in your tenancy agreement/ moving in inventory and any written communication between you and the landlord/ agent/

The inventory will likely show magnolia walls and your tenancy agreement will likely reference 'returning the property to the same cleanliness/decorative state' as when you moved in.
If it doesn't meet those criteria, and especially as the landlord has evidence that they requested you return it to cream paint, then they will likely win a claim to cover the cost of redecorating the property from your deposit. The TDS deal with facts and evidence, not emotions and opinions about whether denim blue looks nicer in the hall .

I would budget on losing all your deposit, and you only have yourself to blame to be honest.

See what your tenancy agreement says about your responsibilities and your landlord's.

I’d point out at no point have they ever offered to pay a penny towards the flooring and that untill a suitable end goal is reached you shall be choosing to have quiet enjoyment of the property and shall not be doing any viewings with the improvements you have supplied and paid for.

It really doesn’t matter what it says about viewings you are within your rights to refuse them all regardless of what the tenancy says.

You’ve got nothing left to lose now op. All that stands is the deposit.

Willing to lose it then your all good. Willing to remove everything you’ve done and restore back to factory standards your all good.

@Jng1

All this discussion about how much you've spent and how much better it looks and how the people viewing it like it etc etc are all completely irrelevant. At the end of the day what matters is what it says in your tenancy agreement/ moving in inventory and any written communication between you and the landlord/ agent/

The inventory will likely show magnolia walls and your tenancy agreement will likely reference 'returning the property to the same cleanliness/decorative state' as when you moved in.
If it doesn't meet those criteria, and especially as the landlord has evidence that they requested you return it to cream paint, then they will likely win a claim to cover the cost of redecorating the property from your deposit. The TDS deal with facts and evidence, not emotions and opinions about whether denim blue looks nicer in the hall .

I would budget on losing all your deposit, and you only have yourself to blame to be honest.

Alrighty then. I've stated throughout that I'm not bothered about the money. I don't know who pissed in your Cheerios this morning but it wasn't me.

By lose it I mean your deposit.

If you’d been there 3 or 4 years I’d agree it needs to be returned to the original state but for Ll to assume no responsibility for painting in 9 years is mad so I actually agree that it comes under wear and tear (so long as it’s a decent standard). My dad rented an apartment for a year and the occupier asked to paint it white (it was freshly painted cream having been done professionally). They were supposed to be long term tenants so dad said fine. They moved out 6 months later and it turned out they had only painted as high as they could reach and not even straight just all jagged at the top. They didn’t get their deposit back.

The hall colour is absolutely lovely.

I think you probably need to repaint the kids's rooms to a neutral, but I'd leave the rest and see what happens.

You should have bought a big rug and rug pad to go over the carpet, and you need to return the painted hall and kids' bedrooms to cream.

Do you have friends or family who could do a painting party for you?

@QuantumDog2

To add, I've contacted my landlord directly after the managing agents reminded me about repainting when I handed in my notice to leave. The landlord said everything back to plain cream walls please. At that point I told them I probably will not be doing this as I think they have a right to know. I tried to explain about being pregnant and not having time, but the bottom line is really that I can't be bothered. 🙈

In which case you are being very unreasonable!