Painting is one of the few trades where homeowners routinely get three or more bids, and one of the hardest for them to compare. The numbers can differ by half and the bids look the same: a total, maybe a line about “two coats.” Almost all of the difference is in the prep, which most bids don’t describe.
Write out the prep
A painting website that spells out its prep becomes the standard the homeowner uses to judge every other bid. List it:
- Wash: how, and how long the house dries.
- Scrape and sand: loose paint removed, edges feathered.
- Wood repair: what you do when you find rot, and how it’s priced.
- Prime: every bare spot, with what product.
- Caulk: where, and where never (over rot, across moving joints).
- Finish: how many coats, of what, in what sheen.
Then give them the questions to ask every bidder. It costs you nothing if your answers are good.
Lead-safe, if you paint old houses
Under the EPA’s Renovation, Repair and Painting rule, any paid contractor disturbing painted surfaces in a home built before 1978 must be an EPA-certified firm using certified renovators and lead-safe work practices. The rule applies above small thresholds, more than six square feet per room inside or twenty square feet outside. Many homeowners don’t know this; parents of young children often do, and they choose the painter who explains it clearly.
Help with color
Color is where homeowners stall. A local palette, advice on painting large samples on the house, and photos of finished homes in nearby neighborhoods turn you from a bidder into an advisor. In historic districts, explain the approval process. In Charleston, for example, color changes inside the historic districts go through the city’s Board of Architectural Review process, and painting previously unpainted masonry requires board-level review.
Prices and warranty
Typical prices for an exterior by house type, an interior room and kitchen cabinets give homeowners a frame. A written warranty, with what it covers and for how long, is one of the clearest differences between bids.
Licensing
Painting licensing varies widely. South Carolina, for example, regulates residential painters as residential specialty contractors and requires a bond for jobs over $5,000. Show what applies to you.
What questions should homeowners ask a painting contractor?
- How will you prepare the surfaces, step by step?
- Which products will you use, and how many coats?
- What happens if you find rotten wood?
- Is the house built before 1978, and are you lead-safe certified?
- What does your warranty cover, and for how long?
- Who will be on site, and are they your employees?
Publishing these questions, with your answers, makes your bid the yardstick for the others. Homeowners bring the list to every estimate, and the bids that can’t answer it start to look thin.
How should painters show prices?
Give typical ranges for the jobs you do most: a single-story exterior, a two-story exterior, an interior room, a whole interior, kitchen cabinets. Say what the range includes, like prep, primer, two finish coats and cleanup, and what moves it: wood repair, height, the number of colors, lead-safe requirements.
A painting contractor website checklist
- Your prep process, written out step by step.
- Products, sheens and number of coats named.
- Typical prices by job type.
- A written warranty.
- Lead-safe certification if you work on pre-1978 homes.
- Color help: a local palette, sample advice, historic approvals if relevant.
- Finished homes and rooms by neighborhood.
- An estimate request with photos.
Common mistakes on painting websites
“Quality work at a fair price.” Every bid says it. No mention of prep. It’s where the price difference lives. Ignoring lead-safe rules. On older houses, saying nothing reads as not knowing.