5 Tips to Save on the Cost to Paint a House

Whether you’ve bought a new place or your home is starting to look a little run down in terms of the paint work, it might be time to paint your house. This isn’t necessarily a cheap and easy undertaking, it can require some serious people power, not to mention the paint price and other materials you might need. In this article, we’re looking at how to save on the cost to paint a house.

Cost of Paint and Materials

Paint and materials can be a very high cost when you are looking to get a paint job. The labor is one thing, but actually, a big home can go through a lot of paint which can cost over $70 per gallon. There are a lot of different brands and places to buy from, if you are buying the paint yourself, be sure to shop around.

Get Competing Bids

It makes perfect sense to get multiple bids which are in competition with each other, to try and ensure that you aren’t being ripped off. It is easy to just get one quote and go for that, but the cost might not be the best. If you are in Las Vegas, for instance, search for house painters Las Vegas wide in order to ensure you are only dealing with the best prices, and best Las Vegas contractors.

As well as competing bids being a good way for you to establish which company to go for, it can give you room for negotiation when you are talking to the companies. Other quotes can provide a frame of reference.

Use a Contract

This is a good way to ensure you don’t end up getting unexpected fees or not getting what was paid for and agreed. A contract will outline what services are going to be carried out, and how much is going to be paid for those services. This way, there shouldn’t be any way the contractor can bolt on additional fees. Most contractors are genuine, but always be wary if you come across one who isn’t keen to put their work down in writing and sign a contract.

Do Some of the Work Yourself

This should be discussed with any contractor that you are planning to work with. Don’t just go ahead and do this yourself, but it may be the case that you can keep costs down by doing some of the work.

For instance, if you are getting the interior of your home painted, if you are able to move furniture in advance and lay down protective surfaces on the floor then it is likely to cost you less in terms of labor hours. This will create less work for the contractors to do.

The more skilled people out there might be able to do more, including sanding and patching if this is required. If you really are confident in your DIY abilities, you can do some of the actual painting, too.

Don’t Wait too Long to Repaint

The longer you wait between repainting, the more work there is to do when it becomes time to. It is recommended that repainting is done regularly, and before the paint itself has had the chance to start to flake. This will mean that you have to do more prep work in order to get an even layer of paint, which isn’t recommended. Also, outdoors, things like shrubs may have the chance to grow and need to be trimmed back more if you wait a long time.

Think Strategically About Color

Paint price can vary depending on which colors you are looking to use. If you are able to use whites and neutrals, you can sometimes pick these colors up a little cheaper than buying extravagant colors. Maybe save these for accent colors as a way to save money.

Also, drastic changes in color or darker colors as a mainstay of your design may require more and more layers or prep work such as primers.

In terms of outdoor painting, the sun beating down on certain colors can also cause them to fade more quickly. Lighter colors tend to be better for this, as well as often being cheaper in the first place.