A survey by insurance provider Endsleigh has revealed that 43% of tenants would be happy to pay more rent – an additional £149.52 a year, on average – if their landlord permitted them to put a more personal stamp on their property. 

Currently, only 29% of tenants said they have the freedom to decorate their rental property as they wish. 

However, with a quarter of tenants living in a rental property for over three years, and one in five admitting they would be ‘likely’ or ‘very likely’ to swerve inviting relatives round if they were embarrassed by the décor, it’s not exactly surprising that tenants would like more control over what their homes look like.

There are a number of things tenants want to do with their rental property which aren’t currently permitted by their landlords. 

The top five are “paint the walls with colours” (19%), “hang pictures of mirrors with screws” (17%), “hang wallpaper” (19%), “blue-tack pictures to the walls” (9%) and “hang a TV on the wall” (9%).

Only 28% of tenants ask their landlord for permission to decorate. Nonetheless, 76% of those landlords who are asked agree to the request, in spite of it being against the tenancy agreement.

“With it being so difficult to get on to the property ladder, people are now renting for longer, so naturally they are going to want to decorate the property they are living in long-term,” David Hadden, Manager of Landlords and Lettings at Endsleigh, commented.

“Landlords who allow tenants to personalise their property could be favoured over those who don’t and may be able to command a higher rental price. If tenants feel at home in their property they may also have longer tenancies.”