To paint or not to paint? Need advice

[Brandon Knudtson]

Hello BP community,

So I just bought my first rental property recently and would really like the exterior painted since the previous owner painted half of the back, and left the other half unpainted (an eye sore currently). I know painting exterior can get pretty pricey. A person on a buy/sell/trade site in my market just posted an add on facebook saying they are a union painter (has pictures of their union certs) with 20 years experience but was recently laid off and needs to pay their bills still so is  looking for side work. They are willing to power wash, repair/fill in any cracks in our stucco (which we have a decent amount), and paint the entire exterior for a very reasonable/almost borderline too cheap of a price (half up front and half when the job is complete).

My dilemma being a brand new property owner is, do I trust their sob story (she did send me before and after pics of jobs they have recently worked on) and get the exterior painted for a steal of a price? or do I run as far away from this person as I can? I like to think that people will live up to their word and could be helping them out in a time of need but have read too many contractor horror stories that currently have me very hesitant to hire this person. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Brandon