Your home’s paint job, both inside and out, can have huge affect on the curb appeal, character, and value of your home. Painting or staining your home is one of the quickest ways to give a quick facelift with dramatic results. If you’ve ever visited the painting section of your local hardware store, you know how overwhelming the choices can be! Choosing a color is, of course, the most important element to this process, however, your choices don’t end there! There’s type of paint, finishes, surface preparations, maintenance and so much more! Maybe you’re interested in painting a mural – that brings out a whole new set of choices and circumstances – and costs.

Cost of Paint

First, you have to make sure that you and your contractor properly estimate the amount of paint that you need. You don’t want to pay for too much and you certainly don’t want to have to keep returning to the paint store for more paint. Interior paint can cost anywhere from $12-$50 a gallon, depending upon quality. Exterior paint normally runs around $20-$60 a gallon. You absolutely want to get the best quality you can afford so that your paint will last longer. Also, don’t forget you need supplies like primer, brushes, rollers, drop cloths, tape and other supplies. If you’re hiring someone to do this for you, they will have the necessary materials to paint your home, but then you will be paying for their labor which varies from state to state and company to company. Normally, the paint and supplies make up around 15% of the total cost and labor is the additional 85%.  Continue Reading

Surface Preparation

Rotted wood or siding should be replaced, and all loose boards or trim fixed; if extensive repairs are needed, that adds to the cost of the project. Prices will vary depending on the type and extent of the damage. Sometimes your painter can do the smaller repairs, but you may need to consult a professional if your damage is extensive.

Changing from a light to a dark color or vice versa means more coats of paint and can add up to 25 percent or more contractors' estimates.

If your exterior surface is dirty, you may need to hire someone to do power washing. Power washing makes use of a steady and somewhat powerful stream of hot water. The temperature of the water is the key. At the same time, the stream of hot water also comes in handy in killing moss and weeds, and ridding the surface of any mold or mildew that has built up. If there is a lot of gunk and other matter to cut through, a power wash is the way to go.

Labor

Having to paint crown molding, baseboards, wainscoting or other detailed can add to a contractor's estimated price, as can walls taller than the average of 8 feet. The exact extra expense will varies depending on the amount of extra labor required. As mentioned previously, normally, the paint and supplies make up around 15% of the total cost and labor is the additional 85%. Contractors can charge by the hour or by the job. Make sure that when interviewing prospective painters, make sure the contractors are quoting on the same specifications - areas to be painted, number of coats and so forth. You need to make sure that each quote is consistent.

Trompe Loeil and murals

Trompe Loeil is an art technique involving extremely realistic imagery in order to create the optical illusion that the depicted object exists in three dimensions. A mural by definition is a painting that is done directly on a wall regardless of size or paint used by the artist. The cost of the work will vary greatly based on the size and complexity of the mural as well as the skill and experience of the artist.

Tips

Painters' quotes can be lower in winter, early spring or late fall--the off-season--than in peak summer months when there's lot of work available. Ask if there's a discount if the project is done on a fill-in basis, in-between other projects. Also, look for other areas of your home that need painting. If a painter is setting up to do a single room in a home, additional rooms may cost less than the first--it's possible to save money overall by painting everything at once.