Tip on Pricing out the Painting of Your Old Home

If you own a very old house in the Maryland area and you are looking to have a painting company repaint the exterior or interior, we have a little tip that will help you save time and make a more informed decision on who to hire. The tip is rather quite simple: decide on how far a paint company should go when it comes to prepping the surfaces and determine an approximate cost of what you are willing to spend. Older homes typically require a lot of sanding, filling, caulking and even wood replacement. The cost for repainting old homes (especially historic properties) can quickly get expensive. By determining a general idea of cost (ballpark) and your expectations, you can save yourself a lot of headache as you know that the painters will hopefully be bidding the project more equally.

Let me give you an example: We recently received a phone call for a man in downtown Frederick who had a home that was over 100 years old. This homeowner received a referral from several neighbors about a particular painter in the area who did a decent job on their exteriors. Instead of hiring the paint company, he got 3 more bids. We happened to be one of the companies that got to bid on the old downtown property. He told us he did a lot of research before selecting us to bid on the project. He wanted high quality results and one of the best products on the market used. Our estimator asked the man before he bid the project what his "expectation" would be for such an old home. In other words, he could spend a small fortune replacing the old wood, using chemical strippers to strip old paint, full primers, etc if his level of expectation was VERY high! We told him that we bid our projects on the Painting and Decorating Contractors of America (PDCA) industry standards and their own "Levels of Prep." There are 5 levels of prep with #5 being completely restored and looking brand new. Of course, if a homeowner wants Level #5 prep and finish on his or her home, the cost would be astronomical but would look fantastic. Our estimator got the impression that the man was going to settle for Level #4, which is still very expensive and makes an older home look extremely good. It basically means lots and lots of preparation without stripping all painted surfaces.

When we submitted the final bid, which was close to $20,000, the man responded that he was just going to use the cheapest bid he got, which was the referral from his neighbors. He said he did not want the extra prep or details involved in the painting of his exterior and would settle for less. The end result is this: if we knew he wanted a basic paint job, our cost would have been a lot less. However, because it was such an old home and needed a lot of work, we had to probe and ask for a possible budget and what expectations the owner had when we were done. A level #2 or #3 would work just fine on a home like his. The only difference is the overall appearance and the possibility of a repaint sooner than later.

In short, the next time you are considering getting your house painted, don't be afraid to tell the estimator of any company what you really want. It helps the estimator give you a price that is more reasonable and meets your expectations. If you leave it up to the painter alone, you will continue to spend hours and hours wondering why your 3-5 bids are not equal. Hallco Enterprises loves to do quality work. So when you call us, we are assuming you want the best, which is why our estimates are worked up as quality preparation and using the best in paints. Just let us know up front, and we'll take care of you!