We all have our favorite colors. But when it comes to painting a home for resale, color selection is not about us, but about what buyers find attractive. From a realtor’s perceptive curb appeal makes a home sell faster and at a better price. According to the National Association of Realtors, curb appeal, that is a positive first impression, sells more than half of all houses. Curb appeal gets the buyer out... more

You may be an active do-it-yourselfer, but painting the second story may be intimidating. You may find changing colors invigorating but the prep involved before applying the new color can take more time than you have. You may know that the peeling paint contains lead but may not know how to safely handle and dispose of paint chips. While anyone can call themselves a painter, hiring a skilled professional painter must be... more

We have all heard the stories about the professional painter who comes to a site, eyeballs it, and knows exactly how much paint to buy. Professional painter and author Jack Luts (The Complete Guide to Painting Your Home) claims to always know how much paint will cover the exterior of a home by counting the rooms and hallways inside a home. His single-coat exterior formula is to allow one gallon of paint for each room in... more

When we last visited with Zach and Beth Collins, they were in the middle of a major remodel on their 900 sq ft bungalow. The scope of the work included adding a complete second floor with two bedrooms, a bath, a sitting area, and veranda. In addition, they were adding about 150 sq ft to the main floor, tearing out the existing bathroom and building a new one, adding a full-length front porch. As if remodeling were not enough of a challenge, the couple was also expecting their first child. Beth... more

Both interior and exterior architectural coatings fall into two general categories: latex or water-based paint or oil-or alkyd-based paint. Contractors and do-it-yourselfer’s select latex for its good performance and ease of use. Latex moved from 30% to 35% of paint sales in the 1970’s to over 80% of architectural coatings sold today. While the pigments in latex and oil-based paints are often the same, different... more