How pricing works
We don't print prices. A front on a dry block and one beside the water are different jobs. We write yours after a walk-through, and these are the questions it answers.
What decides the price
The size and height of the front, how much prep the surface needs, rust on metal, how many coats and colors, and how many nights it takes.
What the estimate includes, and what it doesn't
It lists surfaces, repairs, coats, products and sheens, colors, protection, the night schedule, cleanup and payments. It leaves out rot or failed material found after the old paint is off; that is written up and priced first.
What happens at the visit
The foreman or Fumiko walks the front with you, probes and photographs it and asks when you close and open. It takes about an hour and doesn't change by the job.
Night work
Crews working nights are paid differently, so night labor is a line of its own. Ask for a daytime figure beside it if you want to compare.
When you get the number
A written estimate arrives within a few working days of the visit, before any deposit and before anything is scheduled.
If the job changes
If we find damage once the old paint comes off, we stop, show you and write the price. Nothing extra happens without your yes.
The estimate
What a written estimate should say
Ask any painter for these lines. Ours are on every estimate.
| A vague one | A written estimate | |
|---|---|---|
| Surfaces | A vague one"Paint the front" | A written estimateEach wall, door, rail and frame listed |
| Prep | A vague one"Prep included" | A written estimateRinse, scrape, rust, prime and caulk named |
| Coats and products | A vague one"Quality paint" | A written estimateProduct, sheen and number of coats per surface |
| Night schedule | A vague one"We'll fit you in" | A written estimateNights, hours and the rain plan |
| Extras | A vague oneLeft unsaid | A written estimateWhat is not included, and how changes are priced |
| Payments | A vague oneA large amount up front | A written estimateA schedule tied to stages of the work |
Pricing questions
Does night work cost more?
It can. Crews working nights are paid differently, and the estimate says so in a line of its own, so you can compare it with a daytime price.
What does the estimate include, and what is extra?
It lists surfaces, repairs, coats, products and sheens, colors, protection, night schedule, cleanup and payments. Rot, failed substrate or extra colors found after the old paint comes off are written up and priced before we continue.
What if paint fails later?
Tell us and send a photo. We come and look. What the work is covered for, for how long and what is excluded is written in your agreement; ask to read it before you sign.
Get a written estimate
Tell us when you close and open. We will walk the front and send the estimate in writing.