Interior decorating in Northstowe after handover
The figure was 56.4%, with another 6.9% in shared ownership. Many new owners live with the developer's finish for a year or two, then call a decorator once the first cracks have shown along ceiling joints and around door frames. That timing makes sense, because the filling only needs doing once.
We rake out and fill those cracks, sand with Mirka dust-free sanders and replace the thin trade coat with two full coats. For busy hallways and family rooms we often suggest Little Greene Intelligent Matt Emulsion, which is washable and touches up well.
Colour in a house that came plain
Graham paints tester pots in several places, because a shade on a chart can look very different in a north-facing room. We've carried a full Farrow & Ball scheme through a home in Waterbeach, and the Waterbeach colour scheme case study shows how it turned out.
Flats were only 7.5% of Northstowe homes in 2021, so most of our work here is in houses with stairwells, landings and several bedrooms to plan around.
Northstowe at a glance
- 13 milesby road from our Landbeach base, about 18 minutesOSRM routing
- 1,019householdsCensus 2021
- 72%of homes are owner-occupiedCensus 2021
- 10%of homes are privately rentedCensus 2021
- 1%of properties were built before 1919VOA Council Tax stock
- 8%are flatsCensus 2021
How we approach interior decorating
For Northstowe's newer houses we start with the cracks: raked out, filled and sanded flush, then spot-primed. Walls get a light key and two coats of a durable emulsion, ceilings first. Primed but unpainted joinery, common on new doors and skirtings, is undercoated and finished in satin or eggshell. We cover floors and tidy every evening. The full method, products and FAQs are on our interior decorating page.