@mailprocessing Thanks for the warning - would you say the same even for a very tight hallway where the walls will be constantly scuffed up by hands, clothes, grocery bags etc? In this case I'm wondering if showing up the imperfections might be a small price to pay for practicality i.e. being able to wipe down the walls

There is the imperfection of natural age and use, and there is the imperfection of poor workmanship. I don't think I would mind those of age nearly as much as I would the highlighting of a poor drywall job in new construction, for example.

Use only matte for walls and ceilings. Many mattes now are washable and scuff proof. We painted our entire house inside with Behr matte Scuff Defense Ultra Stain Blocking Paint and Primer for walls and ceilings; satin for doors and moldings. Great paint, easy to apply, looks wonderful! Matte does hide wall imperfections. Prior to painting, we fixed all nail pops and cracks, and then primed those areas. When we painted over those areas with the matte, you could not tell where the repairs were done. We even received a 10% military discount from Home Depot for the paint and supplies ( I am a retired Captain of the US Air Force).

Having just been to an open house where there was very poor DIY drywall work covered in eggshell, I say go with matte. It was so glaringly obvious that it was distracting. On one smooth wall there was a very clear patch of spackle...I was really surprised how it ruined the DR and made me appreciate that my husband has gotten much better at fixing such things, LOL. We have flat finish and paints have improved so much that I don't find it difficult to remove scuff marks.

I just buy a quart a paint every few years to touch up wall as needed.

I would not even use eggshell in a hallway. I would use a premium paint that is washable. If a stain does not wash off, I also keep a jar of touch up paint and small brush in my laundry room.

I don't think the OP lives in NA and IMO maybe do another layer of lining paper and see if that fixes the rough walls it works to cover cracking plaster so give it a shot. You could also try wallpaper in the hallway

I think your right Patricia. Sounds like this may not be a NA poster. If they are planning on painting over the lining paper I would suggest doing a primer coat first. There’s no telling what type paint may have been used so just prime it to be safe. You may want to prime it if you wallpaper over it too.

Another thing to consider is the texture of the lining paper. Normally I would never suggest eggshell but if there is still a slight texture( although lining paper has more of a non woven texture) this can affect the look of the paint. Depends on how many coats of paint are on it and if it was coated with an oil based primer. As it has already been painted it won’t be as absorbent but it can still affect the look of your finish!