Interior & Exterior Painting in Los Angeles

Why one bid is half the price of another

Because one of them is not doing the prep. When you compare painting quotes in Los Angeles, the number that matters is not the paint brand - it is how many hours are budgeted before painting starts. Scraping, sanding, filling, caulking, patching, priming, masking and repairing failed substrate is the majority of the labour on a proper job. A crew that shows up and starts rolling will look fine for eighteen months and then peel, flash and telegraph every defect underneath.

Interior work

• Full masking of floors, furniture, fixtures and hardware - not a drop cloth in the middle of the room
• Drywall repair, nail pops, cracks and texture matching before paint
• Caulking at trim, baseboard and ceiling lines
• Stain-blocking primer on water stains, smoke damage and tannin bleed
• Cut lines by hand at ceilings and trim, not taped and hoped
• Two finish coats, with the correct sheen per room - flat or matte on ceilings, eggshell on walls, semi-gloss or satin enamel on trim and doors
• Cabinet and built-in spraying with a catalysed finish
• Popcorn ceiling removal and refinishing

Exterior work in the Los Angeles climate

Our sun is the problem. UV degrades the binder in the coating and south and west elevations fail years before the north side. Correct exterior work here means: pressure washing to remove chalking, scraping and sanding failed coating to a sound edge, repairing stucco cracks with an elastomeric patch that can move, replacing rotted wood rather than filling it, caulking every penetration and joint, priming all bare and repaired areas, and applying a coating rated for high UV exposure. We also spec a lighter body colour on heavily exposed elevations where it makes sense, because dark colours on a west wall in the Valley fail fastest.

What we also handle

• Stucco crack repair and patching - see our stucco page
• Wood rot repair on fascia, trim, eaves and window sills
• Iron and metal railings, gates and security bars, primed to prevent rust bleed
• Garage doors, front doors and shutters sprayed for a factory finish
• Decks, fences and pergolas - stained or painted after correct prep
• Wallpaper removal and wall skimming
• Lead-safe practices on pre-1978 properties

Cost

Interior painting generally runs $2.75 to $4.50 per square foot of floor area for walls, ceilings and trim including prep. Exterior work on a single-storey house typically runs $4,500 to $12,000 depending on stucco condition, wood repair and number of colours. Cabinet spraying runs $2,900 to $7,500. Prep-heavy properties cost more and we show you why with photos rather than just quoting a higher number.

• Full masking and protection of floors, furniture and fixtures
• Pressure washing on exteriors
• Scraping and sanding to a sound edge
• Drywall and stucco repair, texture matching
• Wood rot repair and replacement
• Caulking at all joints and penetrations
• Stain-blocking and bonding primers where required
• Two finish coats in the correct sheen
• Hardware and fixture removal and reinstallation
• Lead-safe practices on pre-1978 properties
• Daily cleanup and final walkthrough with a punch list
• Labelled leftover paint left with you for touch-ups

How many coats?

Two finish coats over correctly primed and prepared surfaces. One coat over a colour change is a false economy and it always shows.

Do you move furniture?

Yes, we move and protect it, and put it back.

Which paint do you use?

Premium lines from Sherwin-Williams and Benjamin Moore as standard. If you want a specific product we will use it.

How long does exterior paint last in Los Angeles?

Seven to twelve years on a properly prepared stucco exterior. South and west elevations always go first. A recoat of just those elevations at year seven or eight is often the smart move.

Do you handle lead paint?

We follow lead-safe practices on pre-1978 properties, including containment and HEPA cleanup.