Updating post from Reddit.
I have a rental property, it’s pretty nice but the stairway is constantly absolutely filthy , full of scrapes and tyre marks on the walls and stuff like that.
We had it painted at a cost of around £1,500 and after two months it looked exactly the same (with washable paint but no point in the end as the cleaners don’t bother cleaning it anyway).
Is there some kind of wall covering that is fully bombproof and wipe clean- maybe a vinyl wallpaper or something?? That doesn’t look tacky and gross?
you are fighting a pointless fight.
the issue here is no one else cares as much as you.
money down the drain
provide a bike store or ask the council too then put in the lease no bikes inside
Tiles?
I don’t think this would work on walls and ceilings of a stairway! Thanks for the suggestion though
> absolutely filthy, full of scrapes and tyre marks
> ceilings
What exactly is causing the damage to the surfaces? Are you allowing tenants to store bicycles in their rooms? What’s happening to the flooring in their rooms?
It’s a communal area, there are four flats in total. People do bring bikes upstairs, I don’t blame them because they get stolen otherwise and it’s a mixture of tenants and owners- no way can we stop people doing it.
But that’s not necessarily the worst thing, it’s just generally dirty and I actually have no idea why. Maybe people bringing gross bin bags downstairs and for some reason rubbing them along the wall as they go ???? Search me 😂
So you’re less a landlord and more a freeholder/share freeholder then, or I suppose both
I applaud your efforts to maintain a tidy environment for the occupants of the block. However (noting your efforts already on painting), have you spoken to the cleaners on their efforts?
No matter the paint, or tiling, or metallic or composite or plastic splashback type covering, if your cleaner isn’t paying attention to it then it’s pointless changing things up
I am the Landlord of the flat I rent in the building, and also the director of the Ltd company which owns the freehold (so I organise a lot of stuff including maintenance)
In which case as u/poutineroutine46 put it best: you are fighting a pointless fight
Depending on engagement on this post after 24hrs you might want to consider posting on r/diyuk while changing the face of the question to something along the lines of “what’s the best wall covering…” but honestly a conversation with or change of cleaners could solve this, ceilings are more difficult because I’m yet to meet a domestic or commercial clearner who pays regular attention to them….and if you do post on diyuk make sure to state the build type or ask about consequences, painting the who area in a waterproof paint will invariably impact damp and other aspects depending on ventilation and so much more…I’m starting to think tiling isn’t such a bad idea though lol
Haha, yeah you might be right! Thanks for the sub recommendation. I did think of posting there but this is more a ‘commercial’ ask rather than homey, so yeah you might be right with tiles 😂😂😂 but I’m still not doing it 😂
Given your position in the ownership and reading all your comments, including about the management company, I think you might benefit from detaching your expectations from current contractural obligations in both directions. This communal space is not your home, and whilst you are obligated to maintain its structure you need to sort the contracts (in both directions) so you can maintain the appeal in a way you (and the other directors of the freehold co) are satisfied meets the balance.
There’s no point planning too much if the service charge will never meet it, and equally there’s no point doing too much if any occupant can be careless enough to run tyre marks on a ceiling
Yes…..the cleaners aren’t doing their job. In fact, the management company are criminally negligent and we hope to be rid of them as soon as possible.
I just know that however much the cleaners clean, whoever is making it messy isn’t going to stop (and I bet it’s one person, just don’t know who!)
Is there anything you can put in the hallway as decoration, furniture, to make the place look a bit more fancy? Sometimes when something looks good and expensive people are more likely to keep it looking that way, if something already looks old and tired people are less likely to put effort and care when looking after it.
I lived in a new build as a tenant for 3 years and the reception area/hallways always looked brand new and they had a cute sofa, table, chairs, lamp, tv, heating on in evenings/cold weather, was frequently cleaned hoovered etc, fob entry on front door, inner door, bike room door, so lots of security made it feel expensive. The bin rooms were always meticulously clean, I used to do some painting in there at night as it was so clean and bright with huge LED white lights, looked more like a dentist office than a bin room lol...
Then in other apartments I've lived in or viewed (as currently buying so I've viewed a lot of apartments), the communal areas that often look old and depressed and uncared for have way more rubbish, gross carpets, marks, scratches, general untidiness, post everywhere, even if there's been a new paint job, still kind of look... old and not modern or clean. I viewed an old apartment building and it had cool paintings on the wall and was painted in nice colours like pastel green, blue, cool looking staircase banisters, and it fit the vibe of the old building and it was looked after it was like walking through an art gallery.
Obviously I don't know the space and layout you have but just an idea of what happens. Maybe there's ways to spruce it up.