4 Steps to Pricing Your Painting Jobs

How do I set a price for my painting work? This is one question that I get asked repeatedly by painters who are just starting out. Here are four steps to pricing your painting jobs.

1. Find out what other painters are charging in your area. Do this by phoning some painting companies and finding out their rates. Call a range of different painting companies -- from the medium-sized ones to the smaller one-person operation. Find out how many years of experience they have and the paint finishes they can do.

2. With the range of rates that you've come up with in your research, figure out how your skill-level compares to the information you've obtained. Are there painting skills that you have that the average painter doesn't have? If so, you can skew your prices a little higher.

3. Come up with a base hourly rate that you can live with. You'll probably have to low-ball your hourly rate for the first few jobs, just to land them. That's okay, as long as you're not losing money on the job. The experience and referrals you'll be getting are invaluable.

4. Make sure you take into account the nuisance factors for each job before bidding. This includes dealing with children and pets (who may get in your way while working), high ceilings (ladders, scaffolding) and windows (masking and taping). You'll want to be compensated for these issues.

If possible, try to find out what your client's budget is, but don't base your quotes solely on this figure. Many people have no idea how much a skilled painter costs. So don't undervalue your work.

Setting your prices is a numbers game that should be played wisely. Once you're armed with the information above you can play it with the best of the painting professionals.

To learn more about pricing and bidding on jobs for your painting business StartWallPainting.com You can also download this free report: "5 Surefire Ways to Advertise Your Decorative Painting Business"