Looking for a painter is hard, especially if you are on a budget. Painting costs vary from region to region and are difficult to calculate. Don’t worry, there is a way to estimate your painting costs and fit them into your budget. Remember you can only estimate the costs; various situations may arise that will increase predicted costs. Include some extra money in the budget for unexpected situations.

How to Estimate the Cost of Painting a House:

The pricing model for painting jobs are measured in square footage. Trim pieces are measured by linear feet and doors are measured by individual units. Before estimating, include the price of the painting, materials, and labor. Add them in after the estimate.

1. On a piece of paper, diagram columns or sections of your house that are being painted. An example would be wall, doors, etc. Use this diagram to record measurements.

2. Measure each room (exterior or interior) and the type of painting (walls, ceilings, etc.) separately.

3. For ceilings, deck, fences, and walls, multiply the width and height to calculate the square footage. For trim pieces such as baseboards, measure the length and adds them together.

4. Add results of the type of painting together for the entire painting job.

5. Find a pricing guide for your area for a type of painting job and create an estimate of the job. For doors, the prices double if painted on both sides.

6. Mark up the estimate by 20%, which is the common painting company markup.

These steps can hopefully give you an accurate estimate of your paint job. To locate a local painting service, use TalkLocal. If the estimate is way over your budget, consider holding off on the non-essential parts of the paint job or wait until your budget can accomodate it. You can also try haggling the price with different painting services.

This entry was updated on Monday, June 8th, 2015 at 12:20 pm. This entry was originally posted on Monday, August 13th, 2012 at 2:00 pm and is filed under Painters. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.