Choosing the right exterior paint is important for homeowners

When painting the exterior of your home, it’s important to make sure you choose the right type of paint for your budget. It’s not just about how much you can afford because paints differ in quality, vibrancy, and warranty. For most people, the fun part is choosing colors, but you should also consider the time you plan to stay in the home, and make sure you choose a paint that lasts as long as you do. Otherwise, you may have to paint again too soon or you could end up overpaying for your painting project. Both can be avoided by properly matching your paint warranty to your length of stay.

How Long Do You Need It For?

So the first step is to determine how long you plan to be in your current home. Here’s some good questions to ask yourself: Are the kids in school and you don’t plan on moving anytime in the next 10 years? Perhaps you’re family is growing, and you’re planning on getting a new home in the next 3 to 5 years? Or, are you moving in the next year? When it comes to paint, you should add 2 years to whatever number you come up with. So if you plan to be in the home for 5 more years, we’ll add 2 to come up with 7 years. By following the 2 year rule, you’ll be covered so your paint will still be in good shape at the time you plan to sell. This strategy provides you some extra protection from mother nature and helps maintains your home value when you decide to move on. It’s also helpful to leave yourself a little wiggle room just in case life, or the housing market, doesn’t go exactly as you planned.

Choosing A Paint Warranty

Expect 7 years from Duration

The major paint manufacturers currently offer paint with different warranty lengths including 3, 5, and 7 years. As the warranty increases in length, so does the cost you pay for each gallon of paint. But the trade-offs are well worth it based on your situation.

For those who hire a painting company, even paints that don’t have an explicit warranty will typically be covered by the painter’s 2 year workmanship warranty. This can vary by painting company so it’s always worth it to double check. Historically, most paint companies haven’t provided anything greater than a 7 year warranty on exterior painting, but there are a few paint companies that will honor up to 10 year warranties.

Homeowner’s Associations Tip

If you live in a community that is managed by a homeowners association, they have specific colors you can choose from. Just get in touch with them to make sure you have the current choices. If you aren’t sure, you can refer to your CC&Rs, or even ask a neighbor. Another sign is that if every home in your community is generally of the same color scheme with only slightly varying differences, there’s a strong chance this is driven by the association policies. Remember to check first! Otherwise, you could be out the time and money – and be forced to do it all over with fines and other means to get you to do it quickly.

Choosing A Paint Brand

Sherwinn-Williams, Dunn Edwards, and Glidden are the most common brands used by professional painters and as a homeowner you really can’t go wrong with any of them. Once you’ve determined how long you need your exterior paint to last, and have chosen colors, then you should compare prices. These brands can be found in most hardware, home improvement, and local paint stores. Click the above links to explore prices and compare.

Ready. Set. Paint.

Whether you’re planning on painting the exterior of your home as a do-it-yourself project, or you’re going to have a residential painter do the work, considering your budget and time you plan to stay in the home will help you select your paint with confidence.

If you’d rather leave this one to the pros, or have questions about warranties or an upcoming painting project, just click below to contact us or to learn more about our painting company. East Valley Painters, serving Sun Lakes, Ahwatukee, Gilbert, Chandler, and east valley cities for the past 30 years.