What a property manager actually needs from a painting vendor
Not the lowest hourly rate. A vendor who takes five days on a two-day job just cost the owner an extra $150 to $300 in vacancy — usually more than the price difference between painters. Speed, consistency and paperwork are what cheap means when the work repeats across a portfolio.
So the offer here is built around the six things that make a turn a work order instead of a negotiation:
- Fixed unit pricing. Per-unit or per-square-foot rates agreed in advance, which also makes owner billing clean.
- A standard colour program. One or two approved colours and sheens per property, documented, so a unit can be touched up years later without repainting whole walls.
- 48 to 72 hour scheduling, confirmed within one business day.
- Honesty about touch-up versus repaint. After a twelve-month tenancy most units need touch-up and one accent wall, not a full repaint.
- COI and W-9 on file before the first job, with the management company named as certificate holder.
- Photo documentation delivered with the invoice, so you can show the owner what was done.
Why one vendor for painting and cleaning changes the maths
On a turn, the interior paint and the move-out clean are two visits from two companies that have to be sequenced correctly — cleaning solvent on paint that is dry but not cured leaves marks.
One vendor means one mobilisation, one invoice and one company responsible for the sequence. On duplexes, townhomes and small multifamily the saving compounds: while the interior crew turns the unit, the same crew washes the exterior, the entry and the walkways, and the unit photographs dramatically better for the listing.
What does turnover painting cost?
Walls-only repaints of typical units generally run $1.50 to $2.50 per square foot of floor area, with touch-up visits significantly less. Portfolio clients get a fixed rate schedule rather than a quote per unit, which is what makes each turn a work order.
Full detail on timing and scope is on the apartment turnover painting page.
Drywall repair and paint, in the same 48 hours
Most turns need something fixed before they need painting: door-handle holes, corner bead damage, a wall a piece of furniture went through. We handle drywall repair and texture matching with the same crew, in the same window.
The alternative is a drywall contractor on Tuesday and a painter on Thursday, which is two extra vacant days on every unit that needs a repair — which is most of them.