Investor · Houston, TX · Member since 2013 · 61 posts · 26 votes
I have an inherited tenant from a property I purchased from a tired landlord.
The tenant is great: pays on time, takes care of his own maintenance, also agreed to pay higher rents to match market prices, etc.
He's a smoker though and the whole place reeks and has stains from his 20+ years living there.
I would like to keep him in the property for as long as possible. I want to refinance the house with a long-term lender and need a good appraisal. To get a higher appraisal amount, I would like to repaint the house in order to make the house cleaner.
Is there a solution that would fix the smoke/nicotine stained walls and keep it from being stained again? Or should I just paint over it with a cheaper paint for the appraisal and then get a more permanent solution when he moves out?
What kind of paint would solve the smoke and nicotine smell? I've heard of a stain-blocking latex paint. Can anyone speak to this?
Jupiter, FL · Member since 2014 · 95 posts · 32 votes
11y
The oil based primer will cover the stains but do nothing with the odor. If thats the issue you use a paint like harmony which absorbs odors. There are other options for the odor but again its kinda difficult with the unit occupied. Nice job with the long term tenant.
Investor · Pawleys Island, SC · Member since 2015 · 324 posts · 385 votes
11y
whatever you do, don't just paint over it.
The very first house I brought with my husband was a foreclosure. The previous occupants must have been chain smoking in it for a decade. You could see where the picture frames were on the nicotine stained walls.
We scrubbed them and kiltzed and painted. Some still bleed through. It would look like someone spilled Coke on the wall. I would wipe it and it would reappear some time later.
Rental Property Investor · Fredericton, New Brunswick · Member since 2013 · 7k+ posts · 4k+ votes
11y
All,
There seems to be emerging research indicating that scrubbing and painting may not be effective over the long term - as @Anna Buffkin noted, the residue comes back (desorbs).