Painting services
Painting services cover interior repainting, exterior repainting, trim and door work, cabinet refinishing, and the surface preparation that makes any of it last. Most of the labor is prep - washing, scraping, sanding, patching, caulking and priming - not the finish coats. If your home was built before 1978, any paid work that disturbs paint falls under the EPA's Renovation, Repair and Painting (RRP) rule and must be performed by a certified firm.
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What painting services actually cover
The word "painting" hides a lot of different jobs. Rolling flat walls in an empty room is close to unskilled work. Repainting weathered wood siding, stripping failed paint from a 1920s porch, or spraying kitchen cabinets to a furniture-grade finish are not. When you compare quotes, first make sure everyone is quoting the same scope of prep - that is where honest bids and cheap bids actually differ.
Prep is the whole ballgame. Paint fails because it was applied over dirt, chalk, glossy surfaces, or moisture - not because the can was the wrong brand. A bid that says "two coats, premium paint" and nothing about washing, scraping, sanding, caulking and spot-priming is not a complete bid. Ask each contractor to write the prep steps down.
Age of the house changes who is legally allowed to do the work. The EPA estimates about three-quarters of U.S. homes built before 1978 still contain some lead-based paint, and firms paid to disturb paint in those homes must be EPA- or state-certified and must use certified renovators and lead-safe work practices. Sanding or scraping old paint without containment puts lead dust into your house. This is not a formality.
There is a narrow exemption: the RRP rule does not cover minor repair work that disturbs six square feet or less of paint per room inside, or 20 square feet or less on the exterior - but window replacement and demolition are always covered regardless of size. Homeowners painting their own pre-1978 home are not covered either, unless they rent it out, run a child care operation, or are renovating to sell.
All painting services
Each one covers what the job involves, what moves the price, and when it is the wrong call.
Picking the right painting job
The judgement calls that decide the bill, before anyone quotes you.
Match the crew to the surface
Flat drywall is commodity work. Old wood, stucco repair, cabinets and high exteriors are not. Ask what percentage of their work is the specific thing you need.
Check lead certification before anything else
Pre-1978 home? Ask for the firm's EPA (or authorized state) Lead-Safe Certification number and verify it. Firms may not legally advertise or perform covered work without it.
Get prep in writing
Number of coats, how they'll handle glossy or chalky surfaces, what gets caulked, what gets primed, and how failed paint gets removed.
Ask who is actually on your job
Salespeople sell; subcontracted crews paint. Ask whether the crew is employed by the company and whether a certified renovator will be on site.
Interior and exterior are different trades
Some companies are genuinely good at both. Many are good at one. Weather exposure and substrate repair make exterior work less forgiving.
The wrong service call is the expensive one
Most people booking painting work are buying a diagnosis, not a job - and the trade you pick decides what diagnosis you get. Book the wrong specialist and you pay a call-out fee to be told it is somebody else's problem.
- Describe the symptom What you can observe, and when it started. Not what you think it is.
- Ask what the visit includes Whether the diagnostic fee is credited against the work is a question with a real answer.
- Get the scope in writing A number with no line items cannot be compared to a second number.
Where these figures come from
Sources last checked
- EPA - Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting Program · retrieved 2026-07-25
- EPA - RRP Program: Contractors · retrieved 2026-07-25
We don't do painting work. We match you with pros who do.
HomeMatchup is a matching service, not a painting contractor. Your job goes to a few local pros who take this work - not a cold-call list.
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