How Much Does It Really Cost to Paint Your Home?

Did you know January is one of the best times to paint the interior of your home? Not only is the new year a great time to breathe new life into your humble abode, but winter is also the most cost-efficient season to slap a new coat of paint on your walls.

Since the coldest months of the year are traditionally a slow time for painters, you’re likely to get a better deal than you would during the overbooked summer months. Plus, with fewer people buying paint during the winter, home improvement stores often offer discounts.

So if you've been waiting for an excuse to freshen up your home, now's a great time to do it! Whether you want to revamp a single room or the whole house, hire a professional or do it yourself, follow these tips to save big on your interior paint job.

Hiring a Professional to Paint a Room

The cost to hire a professional to paint an average-sized room (10X12) ranges from $380-$790, not including ceilings, trim or the cost of paint. Here are the three major factors that will determine cost when it comes to hiring a pro to paint a room in your home:

Room Size: Before you start considering colors, be ready to provide your painter with the room's square footage so he can estimate how much paint he’ll need. To calculate your painting surface area, add together the length of every wall in the room and multiply by the height of the room from floor to ceiling. Then use the same calculation (length x height) on the windows, doors, trim and baseboards, and subtract those numbers. A larger room equals higher costs. A tip to keep in mind: One gallon of paint covers about 400 square feet — and you’ll be charged for the number of paint cans needed, among other factors.

Textured Walls: A textured wall will need more paint than a smooth wall to ensure that the surface is completely covered. Painters generally estimate about 300 to 350 additional square feet of paint to account for texture. Factor additional surface area into your square footage calculations when seeking professional estimates.

Speed: The time it'll take to finish the job will factor into how much you’ll be paying. Most painters should be able to cover about 100 to 120 square feet of flat surface in an hour, unless they are working on a very large wall. A wood or plaster surface might reduce that amount to 80 to 100 square feet. And don’t forget the time required for a first coat to dry before a second coat may be applied — anywhere from one to 48 hours, depending on the paint.

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Painting a Room as a DIY Project

If you want to paint a room on your own, you can buy paint and equipment for about $200 to $300. Depending on the size of the room, timing can vary from a day to a weekend, so don’t forget to factor that in when you're deciding whether to DIY. Here are a few general steps to follow when painting a room on your own:

• Decide on a color palette by taking home color samples from your home improvement store and testing them out on different spots on your walls.
• Buy supplies — including rollers, brushes in a range of sizes, standard painter’s tape, a drop cloth, a paint tray, paint rollers and a ladder for high areas.
• Remove all furniture from the room to protect it from stains.
• Clean the walls to be painted with a water and detergent mixture.
• Turn off electricity in the room and remove outlet covers and switch plates.
• Put painter's tape over baseboards, trim and edging to avoid drips.
• Paint the first coat; allow it to dry. Apply the second coat. Then touch up baseboards and ceiling trim as needed.

Painting Multiple Rooms

If you decide to paint multiple rooms in your home, know that designers recommend either choosing complementary colors or painting all rooms in the same color. And designers further recommend painting all trim the same white or neutral shade. A whole-house color scheme presents the same cost factors as painting multiple rooms individually: the size of the rooms and time/labor, along with the added cost of different paint colors and types.

At the highest end, paint will cost anywhere between $30 and $60 per gallon and come in three different finishes:

• Flat finishes are the least shiny; they are best suited for areas requiring frequent cleaning like living rooms.
• Semi-gloss finishes have a little shine and can be easily cleaned, making them ideal for trim.
• High-gloss finishes are stain-resistant and are the easiest to clean, making them great for hallways prone to scuffs and scrapes from frequent traffic.

Don't forget that almost any paint job will require a primer, which will cost anywhere from $7 to $15 per can. Count on needing at least two cans of primer, if not more, to cover one wall. Opting for pre-primed paint, when possible, can help you reduce costs and save time.

Find a local painting professional to get a custom estimate.

Photo credit: Charles & Hudson via Flickr