Comments on: So You Want to Paint Your Apartment?

By: elizabeth johnson

elizabeth johnson — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 00:25:49 +0000

i want to know if the landlord should paint my apt it been over year he said that his la

By: Susan

Susan — Sat, 16 May 2009 22:43:39 +0000

No comment either just need help. I am in an apartment with EVERYTHING BEIGE in the kitchen from (yes beige) cabinets to beige appliances even to beige (cheap) countertop. I want to add some color and liven it up but not sure how. I was thinking the “self stick” murals and borders but what about the cupboards? I cant paint them and they are so plain. Any suggestions

By: Guest

Guest — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 00:26:39 +0000

being a apt manager,If you asked to have maintenance patch/fix things so you could paint, I would have no problem getting that done. The unit should be painted at least every 5 years. It is hard for us to get in and try and paint around your stuff, so anytime a resident wants to paint themselves, its a BIG help to me. Have you talked to your manager/owner?
good luck to you.

By: Guest

Guest — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 03:11:53 +0000

I know in NY (so most likely other states have similar laws) the landlord is legally required to paint every 3 (I think) years.

By: Guest

Guest — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 02:42:41 +0000

thats not true for every state, actually.

in my state a landlord has to put at least one coat between each resident.

By: Guest

Guest — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 10:57:56 +0000

I’m going 2 hire ——–! 2 do the job….

By: Guest

Guest — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 21:17:18 +0000

No comment…just HELP!
I’ve been living in this apt. for 15 years. It was not re-painted prior to my arrival. I have re-painted the living-room, kitchen, hallway & bath myself, but the bedroom has needed spackling & new paint since I moved in. May I insist that this be done by my landlord? I’m a great painter, but the preparation scares me, & I want it done well. Thanks!

By: Guest

Guest — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 17:34:37 +0000

Depending on the amount of dried grease there is, you may want to try a bleach cleaner or a strong alcohol based cleaner (usually for getting off graffiti or heavy grease.) If you have already tried everything on the market to get it off, try just using a good primer (like KILLZ…check out the blog below!), KILLZ can cover up anything and make it so you don’t have any of that grease bleeding through. You may try two coats of killz if it’s that bad. But in the future, just make sure any grease that get on the walls to wash it off immediately or at least weekly to keep your paint job looking new.

By: Guest

Guest — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 17:26:33 +0000

No. I am a property manager, and know the laws very well. Technically, the landlord does not have to ever do anything to make the apartment updated and look nice, but they will loose good tenants or new tenants by not doing anything.
Tenants really just need to be diligent about keeping their walls clean. By washing scuffs off walls when they happen, or just keeping touch-up paint around, then you don’t have to worry about your walls showing wear over time! Plus it is very costly for a landlord to paint an apartment, with additional fees for one that is occupied ($400-1500+)
Since your wall paint is not something that really affects your ability to safely live in your apartment or affect your daily needs, the landlord is not in any violation of tenants’ rights for not painting your walls every five years. You might want to consider buying a bucket of paint if you intend to live in your place long-term!

By: Guest

Guest — Wed, 23 Jul 2008 16:00:25 +0000

Im a first time painter. I want to paint my kitchen walls,on one side of my wall i have dried grease is there anything i should put on it before painting it.

By: Guest

Guest — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 05:52:46 +0000

Isn’t there a rule of tenants rights that says the landlord has to put a fresh coat of paint on your walls every five years or something?

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 15:45:55 +0000

Don’t paint, KILZ IT, Babycakes!

If you need to paint over a dark color, or even wallpaper use KILZ Primer Sealer. I’ve used KILZ several times and it is great for “painting over” darker colors. Remember though, it is ONLY a primer, you’ll still need to paint your walls again with actual paint. Speaking of paint, use water-based latex to ease and speed-up clean-up. Use “flat” colors for walls and “semi-gloss” or even “gloss” for trim (gloss finishes are washable) In kithcens and baths, where there is water, use “gloss” finishes, too — for ease in cleaning up. I’ve used this technique many times and I ALWAYS get my deposit returned. Get it in writing with the landlord, too. Be clear about what YOU intend to do, and what you expect your landlord to do when you move and get signitures.

Whatta LewLew!

By: Guest

Guest — Sat, 23 Feb 2008 05:13:14 +0000

I did paint the walls of my living space in my previous apartment a few years ago, but upon moving
out, I did return them to the original color. This seemed a bit of a hassle in the end. If I had started sooner maybe it would not have been so bothersome. I was only moving to a different unit in the same complex but I did credit for my full deposit amount.