Painting a house before renting out

[Jennifer Kim]

My new tenant is asking me to repaint the house before she moves in. I'm okay with painting any rooms that need it, but the rest of the house is fine and only need few touch ups. Do I have to repaint for her? Thanks in advance!

[Greg Shelburne]

You don't have to re-paint the house. My experience is that one coat of paint in the main rooms and hallways gives that clean feel and fresh paint smell, even if they don't show much wear and tear. It lessens that "lived in before" feel. Clean carpet and floors, deep clean kitchen and bathrooms. If the competition is stiff in your area, it could make the difference in a good tenant choosing your house or not. I paint all my rentals the same peanut butter beige walls with white trim and keep a 5 gallon bucket on hand. Re-paint it the same color each time and it's much easier and faster to re-coat.