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Home Improvement Painting Tips

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After 30 years of painting houses, I’ve learned that most people simply hate to paint.  But it is a well known fact that painting a home is a small investment which brings large rewards.  Most people think about painting only as a last resort but this is the worse area of your home to ignore if you are planning to place it on the market for sale.

There are several books on this subject and countless TV programs which endorse the idea of painting a house before trying to sell, but this is still often ignored.  Most rationalize that the new home owners will want to chose their own colors anyway after they move in.   This can be a very costly mistake since in reality most home shoppers are looking for the home that is in “move-in” condition and doesn’t require any work.  Lets face it, today with so many homes for sale, the smart seller wants the shopper to remember their home and to feel comfortable on that first visit.  If not, there probably will not be a second visit or an offer to purchase.

There are some simple home improvement painting tips that can help the seller with his painting job.  One of the most time consuming tasks associated with painting a house is ‘cutting in’.  If you can master this job, you’ll no longer hate painting.  Many people think painting is an easy job and they don’t appreciate the challenges of of doing professional style work.  For example, walls and ceilings are almost never the same color, so the painter must paint to the very top of the wall without smearing paint onto the ceiling.  This is what is known as ‘cutting in’ and is easily the most critical part of any paint job.

Most professional painters recognize the benefit of using masking tape on the surface you want to protect.  You’ll find the standard blue colored painter’s tape in just about any home improvement store.  The tape is made to be easily removed and it will speed up any paint job.  The mistake that many new painters make is when using painter’s tape, they feel they can speed through any job and still get professional results.  Again, another wrong assumption on their parts.  An experienced painter will still hold the paint brush at the proper angle and ‘cut in’ by using just the tip of the brush for a professional looking job.  This is the best technique to use along baseboards as well as around windows.  With some practice you might be able to ‘cut-in’ rather then tape all areas.  When you reach this level of skill you’ll find yourself flying through your paint jobs.

No matter the time one has to spend, painting your home before placing it on the market just makes good sense.