Everyone seems to be getting in on the Groupon-like “deal of the day” promotions. The latest is home improvement contractors. Here is one for an unbelievable deal on having your house painted.
Only $899 to paint a whole house? How is that possible when it costs thousands to paint most homes? For one, they limit the size of the home that can be painted for that price to those that are 1600 square feet or less. That disclosure is very clear.
There is, however, a surprising catch in the fine print.
*MOUSE PRINT:
Nothing like promoting a price for a paint job that doesn’t include the paint!
I’ve never received a painting estimate that included paint. It’s always labor + paint.
I agree with Mike! Type and color of paint is a personal choice and I would prefer to buy my own if I plan on having the labor done by someone else. Paints vary greatly in price and there’s no way a paint company can give a flat price on them. Pricing labor based on previous projects are much easier. This is no difference than me buying my own guttering or roof vents or other home improvement projects at Home Depot and paying them to install them. Personally, I think this is a great deal!
Contractors will estimate how much paint will be needed and give you an option of letting them purchase or you. Usually their “add on” for getting the paint and transport is still cheaper with their contractor rates than getting it yourself.
No contractor I know would ever include the cost of paint in an estimate. I have worked in the home improvement business for the past 30 years and we never quote with paint as there are just too many options for the customer. Just think about this and you will understand how unfair you have been by assuming this is a rip-off. I usually like this site, but I will now reconsider my feelings on your reporting.
Edgar replies: We paint our townhouses every six years, and all the estimates we get always include the cost of paint. So from my experience, NOT getting a complete quote is the uncommon situation.
I agree that usually the contractors do not include the cost of paint. I think we might be a little rough on Mr Consumer though. I enjoy this site, it’s very informative. So Mr C posts something he thinks isn’t right. In his experience he didn’t know it’s common to not include the paint in the estimate. It’s not the end of the world. The comments can set him straight without stating the site is no good anymore and won’t come to it anymore.
Please let me clarify my comment. We quote the job as to the number of hours required to paint the structure along with any repairs that need to be done along with prices and quantities needed on the different types and grades of paint we use. If the client wants to use/furnish their own paint then we charge a per gallon fee for their paint and also a clause in the contract stating we are not responsible for how well the paint will cover, how much will be needed due to the type of paint or how long the paint will last. Needless to say we have never had a client try to furnish their own paint and have always provided an excellent quote to completion ratio. As for my comment on the site, I do usually enjoy reading it but will be more mindful of what is being said.
@ junek
Wait…What? “…we never quote with paint…”
“…along with the prices and quantities needed…”
Which is it? I’ve always had the quote broken down as you describe in your second statement labour + paint requirement, with it your choice on which paint to go with. Which as far as I’m concerned is exactly what Edgar is demonstrating here, a variation from the accepted practice. If the ad had said 899 labour rate for painting then it would be fine.
I think “we never quote with paint as there are just too many options for the customer” was intended to mean $paint isn’t lumped together with $labor into a single $paint+$labor number. “we never quote with paint” was poorly phrased; “paint is itemized separately as there are just too many options for the customer” would have been clearer.
Would it have killed this contractor to state “Labor only, paint extra” somewhere on the ad?
Now if I only had a 1600 ft^2 home that’s 100 stories high… or is this loophole taken care of in the fine print as well? (Actually it would be suicidal to buy this coupon then because the job will bankrupt the contractor and I’d have to deal with a mess of my own making.)
I agree that Contractors will estimate how much paint will be needed and give you an option of letting them purchase or you and Also contractors should have the paint sample portfolio with prices also included with transport.