A single room finished to our standard starts from £3,000. That figure surprises people in both directions — some expect less, some expect more — so this note sets out plainly what a proper price includes, why preparation is most of it, and how to compare quotes that look nothing alike.

Where the money actually goes

In a period London room, the paint is the cheapest part of the job. Over half of every programme we run is preparation: protecting floors and furniture properly, assessing and taking back failing coatings, cutting out and filling cracks so they stay filled, dust-controlled sanding, the correct primers for each surface, and rubbing down woodwork between coats. None of it shows in the finished photograph; all of it decides whether the finish still looks right in five years. When a quote is dramatically lower, this is almost always the part that has quietly disappeared — the painting is priced and the preparation is hoped for.

What a written specification includes

Every commission we take is priced as a fixed, written specification before work begins: which surfaces, what repairs, which systems and how many coats, in what order, over what programme — and what happens at handover. It is never a vague estimate that grows. The specification protects both sides: it makes quality checkable line by line, and it makes surprises impossible. If a price arrives as one line on a page, you are not buying a specification; you are buying an opening bid.

Why period rooms cost more than new ones

Old walls are rarely flat, old woodwork is rarely sound all the way through, and old buildings move. A Victorian drawing room with deep skirtings, panelled doors, a running cornice and a century of previous paint takes considerably more skilled time than a plastered box of the same size — and it rewards that time visibly. The fabric also constrains the materials: lime plaster and historic surfaces need breathable systems chosen for the building, not whatever is on offer. We set out the wider method in our complete guide to decorating a period London home and the detail of the groundwork in what proper preparation involves.

How to compare quotes

Compare specifications, not totals. Ask each firm the same four questions: what repairs are included, how many coats and of what, how the home is protected while you live in it, and what the guarantee is. Our workmanship is guaranteed for twelve months, and we hand over with zero snags as the standard. A decorator confident in their preparation answers all four in writing without hesitation — and the answers will explain most of the difference between the numbers.

The value question

The honest comparison is not this quote against that one, but cost against lifespan. A properly prepared room decorated once in seven years costs less — in money and in disruption — than a cheaply painted one redone twice in the same period, and it looks better every day in between. Premium decorating is not an indulgence priced above the market; it is the market price of work that does not need doing again.

Common questions

Does the £3,000 include materials?

The written specification you receive is a complete fixed price for the work described — surfaces, preparation, systems and finish — with nothing left to be added later.

Is a whole-house programme priced the same way?

Yes — surveyed first, then specified in writing room by room with the order of works, so you know the sequence, the standard and the total before we begin. Start with a free, no-obligation consultation; we reply within one working day.

This piece is part of our complete guide to decorating a period London home.

Start a project with a free, no-obligation consultation — we reply within one working day.