Just bought your new home, or are you up for some renovation after years? The exterior of your 2-story home looks all dull and faded. So, the solution is to get it painted with fresh new paint.
You can change the outlook of your home exterior with just a fresh coat of paint, brighten the facades, emphasize the intricate architectural elements, and whatnot!
But wait! You have no idea how much it costs to paint a two-story house exterior! The paint cost, the supplies, labor cost, etc. To not exceed the budget and make a mess of the expenses, you need to have a standard estimation of the total cost.
It would be best if you had remodeling, and here you have the complete guide on the expenses for painting your 2-story house exterior. Come on, check it out!
Table of Contents
Factors to Consider
Before jumping into the costs, you need to check a few factors of the house that’ll lead you to the ultimate expenses.
Height
For a two-story house, the height varies from 16′ to 30′
Condition
The facade texture and condition are significant factors of consideration. The coarser the exterior surface, the more paint it needs. For instance, a smoothened surface with a sand finish would require a lot less color than a synthetic stucco surface that will absorb a lot of paint.
Accessibility
Accessibility indicates shutters, pipes, openings, AC units, rails, etc. that makes it easier or more challenging to do the paint job. Some houses have minimal lines, bushes, shutters, etc., making it very easy to reach the whole surface of painting without the need for extra props other than ladders. Less accessibility indicates a more incredible difficulty level which increases the labor cost or supply cost in total.
The Usual Cost Of DIY Painting
Whether you hire a professional for the painting job or opt for a DIY, there’s an average estimation cost. The average price for painting the exterior of a home can vary from $500-$2000. The cost can differ based on if the facade is of wood, trim, or stucco. Smaller homes can cost you about $500 minimum, while larger houses can cost you about $700. If your home has intricate trimming or stucco finish, it can even cost as much as $2,000
To get a better idea, let’s see how you can determine the square foot cost of your house exterior.
Cost Per Foot
If you think the exterior square feet estimation will be equal to the interior square footage, then you are wrong. To figure out the cost, you need to calculate each of the wall siding areas separately. Please take out the measurements of the height and width of each wall, multiply them and add the areas together to find the total area. You should consider extra features of the houses and material complexity as well.
Depending on the factors, the average per square foot can differ from $1.5 to $4.5 when taking professional help. Let me break down the average cost for different sq.ft area.
- For 800 sq. ft – The cost varies from $(1400-3000)
- For 1000 sq. ft – The cost varies from $(1500-3400)
- For 1500 sq. ft – The cost varies from $(2300-5550)
- For 2000 sq. ft – The cost varies from $(3500-7000)
- For 2500 sq. ft – The cost varies from $(4000-10,000)
Estimation of Labor And Supplies
If you are not doing it yourself, you’ll need to think about the labor and supplies cost. This includes estimating the cost of paint, tape, masking film, licensed handyman labor cost, etc.
List of products you’ll need for painting the house-
- Paint gallons
- Primer cans
- 24-inch masking film rolls
- Tape rolls
- Caulk
- Safety props like ladders or even lifts
- Brushes and rollers
- Gloves and other accessories
Paint and primer cost: For instance, If you have a 2000 sq. ft area to cover. And a gallon of paint provides about 400 sq. ft coverage, then you’ll need 5 gallons of color and 5 gallons of primer. A quality gallon of paint costs an average of $25. So, the paint cost would be $250.
Supply cost: For the other supplies, you’ll need about five 24-inch masking film rolls and ten tape rolls, caulk, etc. On these prep items, you’ll be spending about $150.
Labour: Now, to finally hire a handyman at the labor rate of $30 per hour, he may take about 50 hours to complete the total work. That’s about $1500 for the labor cost.
So, if we add up all these costs, the calculation stands at $1900 for 2000 sq. ft with a decent painting quality.
Read more: How Much Does It Cost to Paint a 12×12 Room?
Hiring a Professional
No wonder why hiring professional costs you so much; the necessity of props like ladders, scaffolding, the difficulty level for a two-story house painting, insurance, etc. I’m sure you didn’t know about these, let me break it down for you-
- Professional painters will undoubtedly use high-end paints that cost more. The reason is they want to leave a better-than-standard result, so they need all the high-quality stuff.
- To give it a stunning finish, they will spackle-caulk every sq. ft of the house exterior. They will also opt for two-tone painting requiring more masking and tapes.
If any of the workers get injured, the licensed contractors have to pay their medical bills.- When you get help from a professional, remember they have both license and insurance, making them even more expensive. When considering a 2-story house, the risk for injuries is high, so remember that cost too.
- Finally, don’t forget the transportation cost of the painting truck that’ll bring your handymen, paint, and supplies.
Cost For DIY Vs. Handymen Vs. Professional Painters
DIY:
As you’ve read above, it will cost you around $500-$1000 for a 2-story ordinary finish house. Yes, the cost seems relatively minimal, but the effort might take away your breath. It will also cost you hours and hours of your precious time.
Handymen:
You don’t always need to spend thousands and thousands of cash hiring pro painters. You can get good work done by the licensed handymen as well. They have an hourly pay rate ranging from about $20-$30, depending on their skills.
Professional:
They will surely give you a five-star quality paint job, but the cost will be the maximum. If you have a reasonable budget, my recommendation would be to opt for the professionals because they will leave a good impression on the house, but for future needs, the house will have a more excellent value.
Tricks and Tips On Saving Money
-The best option to save as much money as possible is to do all the work by yourself.
- If you are signing up for a professional finish, then make sure to get multiple bids from several professional companies to see which costs less with a better experience.
- To avoid extra labor costs like medical bills, make sure to provide them with enough ladders and an easily accessible way to the surface.
- When you’ve hired a handyman, you can assist him, which will save hours for him, and money from your pocket.
- Do not forget to make a proper estimation and have a fixed budget for the project before starting it.
I guess it’s all good now. You know what to do, how to fix your budget, and what to go for!