Rental Property Investor / Construction Manager · Raleigh, NC · Member since 2015 · 201 posts · 103 votes
BP'ers
I am getting a few rental units and I am wondering what sheen and color paint landlords are using in their units. I plan on holding the units for 20-30 years and want to make the best of them. Currently we are using the same color for all units (flat Valspar paint, color = Polar Star).
The reason we are using this color is because it is easy to paint a line between the trim white and walls and I think it looks great on units. I am curious about using flat vs. a different color sheen.
Another item of concern us that the color never covers in one coat and time is money, especially if I am painting the unit myself. I will have to put multiple coats on. Any thoughts to a better paint fit one coat coverage?
Feel free to add into this post if I am missing anything. I appreciate any feedback.
Thanks
Shaun
As a former Sherwin Williams store manager, I always find this conversation interesting.
Flat is the cheapest paint, and hides the most imperfections in the walls giving the most "clean" appearance from the get go.
Satin or Semi on the walls won't keep a tenant from punching a hole in the wall. It will however keep filth from building up in certain areas. However those filth areas are usually near the trim which typically gets semi-gloss.
Flat is the easiest to touch up which if you're going to paint at turn time, you'll have the best chance at touching up.
Bottom line flat is cheapest and easiest to touch up. But generally speaking I'd say it comes down to personal preference. Also, prepackaged colors will touch up better than in-store tinted cans. So if you go to a store like Sherwin Williams, Porter, etc. they will typically have a packaged color that you can use on all your units for consistency.
@Shaun Palmer we use a semi-gloss/satin light grey in our units, similar to polar star. Its very popular and gives the unit a modern feel. You can get a little higher rent with this too. We also use a white gloss finish for baseboards/trim/etc. This is more durable and easier to clean. Generally, the higher gloss the finish, the more durable it will be.
Eggshell in living spaces, semi gloss in kitchens and bathrooms. I use two main colors from Behr. Merino and Quail Ridge. One is a light tan and the other a light gray.
Matt Faix Russell Brazil
It's interesting that y'all are using a sheen with a gloss on the walls. I realize that paints with a high sheen are easier to clean but are also more costly. Are you typically cleaning the walls or reprinting the walls when you are returning a unit?
If I run the numbers, my units are typically around 1000-1300sf. Just painting the walls, you are looking at maybe 5 gallons for the whole unit (trim always gets semi gloss paint). The premium for a semi gloss paint might be an additional $10/gallon when flat is compared to semi gloss which equates to $50. I know it sounds small but is $50 worth it if you end up repainting when you are turning the unit anyway?
I know it sounds like penny pinching but I keep my units nice and in order to keep them very nice (i.e. Granite) every cent counts when it comes to return.
Thanks for the feedback.
I don't watch my spending close enough to know the price difference between different types of paint. I get what looks good, and I get something that's available at Home Depot so no matter where the property is located i can get the paint easily.
It depends on how long a tenant has been there, but we typically don't do a full paint for each turnover. Especially if they've only been there a year and we just did a full paint job before they moved in. We usually clean and do touch-ups for the walls, or possibly repaint certain rooms when needed, but if it's a long term (or dirty) tenant moving out we'll absolutely repaint. It really depends on the condition that they left the walls in. If you screen well and get good tenants, hopefully you won't have to sink a ton of money into the place when turning it over.
Typically paint isn't one of our higher expenses when turning units so we don't track it that closely. Our highest costs are for general cleaning, carpets/floors, repairs, and turnover time. For example, if you rent a unit for $1,000/mo, each day that it's vacant is costing you an additional $33, so take that into account when you are factoring in your time/cost to paint. We try and turn our units as quickly and efficiently as possible.
I've never been a fan of semi gloss on the walls, so I use Sherwin Williams satin on all walls (either Wool Skein or Popular Gray), with semi gloss Westhighland White for all trim/doors.
The incredibly sloppy guys who installed some of my windows managed to get caulking and filth all over the walls one time...I thought I'd have to repaint, but everything came right off the satin finish.
If you have a paint color you like you can color match that number to any paint, at any place that sells paint.
I buy at a big box store contractor grade in 5 gallon buckets, and use the same color # as a Dutch Boy color I liked,, I use Wiskers, a light grey/tan it's beautiful, and depending on room depends on type of paint. Kitchen & bath I use semigloss. Living areas I use Eggshell. and White for trim in semigloss.
As a former Sherwin Williams store manager, I always find this conversation interesting.
Flat is the cheapest paint, and hides the most imperfections in the walls giving the most "clean" appearance from the get go.
Satin or Semi on the walls won't keep a tenant from punching a hole in the wall. It will however keep filth from building up in certain areas. However those filth areas are usually near the trim which typically gets semi-gloss.
Flat is the easiest to touch up which if you're going to paint at turn time, you'll have the best chance at touching up.
Bottom line flat is cheapest and easiest to touch up. But generally speaking I'd say it comes down to personal preference. Also, prepackaged colors will touch up better than in-store tinted cans. So if you go to a store like Sherwin Williams, Porter, etc. they will typically have a packaged color that you can use on all your units for consistency.
I took Russell's advice (after a lot of BP research) and went with his colors. He uses Behr but I went to Sherwin Williams and they have a Behr paint guide where they can take a Behr paint color and replicate the same color using their Sherwin Williams paint.
I recommend using the Super Paint and not the HGTV home. I brought in a 30% off coupon and they told me they wouldn't apply the coupon to the HGTV home because it's "an already low price."
And so I bought the Quail Ridge in HGTV and they ended up giving me the Superpaint at the HGTV Home price because they were out of the HGTV Home base that would work with the Merino (evidently Merino and Quail Ridge use a different base)
I got semi-gloss for both colors and neither appeared shiny.
I must note why I much prefer the Superpaint to the HGTV home - because when I removed my painter's tape off the wall while I was doing baseboard work (I bought the kind that has little stick so it wouldn't remove paint) the HGTV paint (Quail Ridge) did come off with the tape in some areas and none of the Merino had that problem.
Also, with the 30% off coupon the Superpaint and HGTV was similar in price and had I had a 40% off coupon (which Sherwin Williams has at least once a year) the Superpaint would have been roughly $2 more per gallon - definitely worth it.
In one unit I used the Quail Ridge in the bedroom and family room and it turned out very good (I used one coat of paint and touched up anything I missed/that was thin-looking later on). In that same unit I used the Merino in the kitchen and bathroom - the Merino looked great in the kitchen - wasn't loving it in the bathroom and would have preferred the Quail Ridge but I was running low on that color and went with the Merino.
In the other unit I used the Quail Ridge in the bedroom/family room (it's a bachelor's unit so it's the same room) and it looks really nice. In the kitchen and hallway I used Merino and really liked how it turned out. Merino is a great hallway color.
In the bathroom I used a blue paint I chose (they had a somewhat different color pattern in the bathroom using white and blue and I chose a better blue and didn't have to repaint the white because it was not needed). I painted the walk-in closet Quail Ridge (it could have been Merino as well and would have looked nice - perhaps nicer in that color).
Everyone who saw either unit commented on the paint job and colors - for landlords who only paint their units some form of white - they're making a mistake as it's boring and sterile-looking.
The only white I have are the baseboards, window frames, doors, door trim and the ceilings (I used the Sherwin Williams ceiling paint for the ceilings) and I kept the white sections in the bathroom of the bachelor unit.
In my units where the woodwork is painted I use Behr SemiGloss ultra white on the trim. On the walls in rooms where the trim is painted, I use a Valspar neutral warm "greige" color called Oatland Subtle Taupe in a satin finish. I like this grey-beige color because it does not have pink or blue undertones. I prefer a satin finish because flat paint doesn't hold up well to cleaning and semi-gloss is too unforgiving-- every little wall imperfection stands out especially in older buildings with plaster walls. Satin is washable, doesn't highlight imperfections, and doesn't look too shiney. In units with hardwood floors and natural woodwork I use Valspar Asiago, a creamy off-white in satin. It's on the same Valspar color chip as the oatland subtle taupe so it looks good between rooms.
A common misconception is that you can leave blue tape on the walls for days. If you use tape, it's only there as a guide/paint blocker. It should be removed as soon as you finish painting that area.
I put the tape on the wall prior to when I painted the baseboards white. I waited an hour or so after finishing the painting to remove the tape and that's when the tape pulled off some of the wall paint. I had painted the wall days prior so I didn't think it would come off on the tape as it had plenty of time to properly dry. I would venture to guess the painter's tape was prepped on the wall 2-3 hours prior to painting the baseboards so it wasn't on for very long.
I had carpet installed at a rental and the carpet guys were very complimentary about the fresh bvaseboard paint because it didn't get damaged at all. Reason wasn't the brand, it was a 2 week cure...I always try to paint cabinets and doors early.
@Russell Brazil I hope I'm not too late. Russel do you use two colors in the same unit or two colors among all your units. Do you find that you have better 'rentability' and retention with a painted unit?
I have a high visibility duplex in Citrus Heights California. There are many duplexes and rentals next-door. I’m looking for an exterior color that will have a great purple pill as well as draw attention as a quality rental. Are usually go with the base white trim and a color door. Thanks Frank
I had my first rental property for 7 years. I had painted it semi-gloss because I don't like how flat paint gets scuffs so easily. I NEVER had to repaint it. Yes, if one looked closely and at the right angle, the sheetrock imperfections were noticeable. It sure was nice to never have to repaint it though!!
Thanks for all the tips above! I think I will go with eggshell on my new property. :-)
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