Paint colour for rental property

[Falcon1]

Hey mumsnet. Advice please! I've got a two bed flat in London. I'm trying to smarten it up as it's not been done for a few years. I need to decide on a paint colour. It's currently a very dull off white that I really don't like (decorator chose the colour 5 years ago so no idea what it is). I love Farrow and Ball Shaded White and have that in my own house with white woodwork. I like that it goes with everything and is quite a warm colour. We wouldn't actually use F&B as far too pricey for a rental, but we'd get it colour matched. We're planning to pair it with a greyish carpet.

But now I'm worried it's not neutral enough and most people will want/expect plain white. The thing is, it's a big flat and I worry plain white will look sterile. I need to decide very soon so really hoping people can help! Thank you.

DH’s rental is painted in Dulux Egyptian cotton with white woodwork.

We did a rental with Caluna which is also F and B. We too used a colour matching service to have it made up.

It's a very v sightly lilac grey colour. It looks good with white. The colour seems to look interestly different, depending on the light in the room.

You say London flat so I assumed period conversion. If that's right, definitely go for shaded white, or schoolhouse white for a more subtle look. If it's a newbuild or more modern I might have second thoughts and stick to a crisper white.

Schoolhouse white is my latest rental colour. Repainted from grey this summer and even the painter said it was so much better.

I would recommend going for something just off white that can also be used for the ceilings. It saves time decorating. Also spend money on fully wipeable paint. It's not cheap but works out much cheaper and less disruptive in the long run if walls can be fully wiped down. My decorator was quite surprised when I was happy to pay about 3 times the cost of standard trade paint for something which will be so much more robust but the way I see it, the paint cost is a drop in the ocean compared to labour so if using more durable paint extends time between repaints it's money well spent.

I go for pure brilliant white every time. It covers a multitude of sins & gives maximum brightness & is easily patched. And it looks good with any accessories the tenant has.

F&B ‘Pointing’ is the perfect pale cream/warm white. I get the Johnstone’s colour matched version, it’s brilliant. They do a very good scrubbable version for high use areas. It lights up every room even north facing and matches everything.

As the parent of a young adult desperately trying to find a 2 bed flat to rent with a friend in London as they have started work there, I would say the tenant probably doesn’t care about the shade of white! Frankly it could be orange and they would still take it.

If it's a period conversion, I'd spend the money on Farrow & Ball. Just look for offers on it.

I've got Dulux Timeless all through my Victorian terrace and I still like it.

I did my own house and our rental house in Dulux trade supermatt white. It's a soft, chalky white, gives great coverage and hides any imperfections in the walls. About £47 for 10l at the moment.

Shaded white is lovely and definitely neutral enough. For something even more neutral, I like wimbourne white.

It's a rental, just paint it generic white!

I love Egyptian Cotton too and have it in a rental. It matches the navy with champagne blinds. It's a good neutral if you don't want white.