Paint a wall in rented flat

[Cottonmop]

I am moving into a new flat soon. Hoping I will stay at least two years (central london). Love the flat, it’s not perfect, but ticks a lot of boxes.

The sitting room walls seem to have been painted by a previous tenant, or professionally. They are orange stripes. There is a patch of darker paint where someone has clearly mounted something on the wall. Which would be fine if we put something to cover it (painting or print).

The trouble is, I find the orange stripes make it hard to find furniture which doesn’t clash. Should I ask to see if I can paint the walls? Obviously DIY but would use good quality paint as I have some lovely farrow and ball leftover.

I've always painted my rentals. As long as you make good when you leave it's not usually an issue. I'd check though cuz my last landlord wanted the rooms back in the colour and finish he had it in before we moved in and it cost me £70 a tin to buy the same stuff 😱

There's no harm in asking; they might say yes, might say no, or might put some stipulation on it i.e. yes but not too dark.
You may need a few coats to cover up the stripes, might be worth using some white emulsion under the F&B first.

When I rented, and as a landlord now, repainting a room in a neutral / pale shade is rarely a problem. What landlords really don’t want is tenants who repaint everything in a shade of red / purple / black which they leave behind and which then takes nine coats of magnolia to cover up. Ask, but it’s unlikely to be refused.

Should be fine, but be prepared to paint orange stripes when you leave

Ask and attach bad photos of the orange wall and info on the paint and paint colour you will be using.