Interior Painting for Apartment Turnovers
The last tenant left scuffs, marks and a few nail holes. We decide touch-up or full repaint wall by wall and paint in your standard colors.
Turnover Painting
Paint is what the next renter notices first. We repair the walls, then touch up or repaint as each room needs.
Touch-Ups
Where the walls allow it, touch-ups keep the cost down.
Full Repaint
Where touch-ups would show, a full repaint of the room or unit.
Ceilings
Ceilings painted, stains sealed first.
Doors and Trim
Doors, casing and baseboard painted.
Prep
Walls repaired and primed before any finish coat.
Your Colors
Your property's standard colors and sheen, matched every time.
Why Property Managers Send Us Interior Painting
- Touch-Up When It Works
- If touch-ups will blend, we touch up. If they will flash, we tell you and price the repaint.
- Prep Before Paint
- Walls are repaired and primed before any finish coat goes on.
- Your Standard Colors
- Your property's colors and sheen, matched unit after unit.
Before the Paint Goes On
Will touch ups flash?
Every wall is checked in daylight. If touch ups will flash, we price the repaint instead. Touch up or full repaint.
Will the color actually match?
Your standard colors and sheen, unit after unit. Our paint or your stocked paint.
When can leasing show it?
Once the paint is dry and the punch list is closed. The ready date comes with the scope.
Will there be paint on the floors?
What gets covered and how the unit is left goes in the scope. We do not do cleaning.
When to Repaint a Whole Unit Around DC
A full repaint is easier to fit in when fewer leases are ending. Moves peak in August, and the DC housing market slows over the holidays. A unit sitting over winter is the one to repaint. See what painting between tenants costs.
Walkthroughs Scheduled 7 Days A Week
Price the Repaint for This Unit
Send your colors and sheen, or we match the walls. Touch-up or full repaint is decided room by room.
Request a Paint Walkthrough
The paint walkthrough and estimate are free. Each room is written up as touch-up or repaint, with a price, before a brush comes out.
How the Project Runs
- 1We check every wall under daylight to decide touch-up or full repaint.
- 2Wall repairs are finished and primed first.
- 3Walls, ceilings, doors and trim are painted in your standard colors.
- 4We walk the unit in daylight and touch up anything that shows.
How we work
How we decide touch-up or repaint
Room by room, in daylight. A touch-up only blends when the wall is clean and the color and sheen match, so a room that would flash gets a full coat instead of a patchwork.
- Every patch is primed before the finish coat. An unprimed patch shows as a dull spot the first time afternoon sun crosses the wall.
Interior Painting Questions We Get Asked
What does painting an apartment cost in Northern Virginia?
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HomeAdvisor's Arlington data puts typical small painting jobs at $376 to $1,227. A whole unit costs more, and the Northern Virginia guide explains what sets it.
How much does it cost to paint an apartment between tenants?
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It depends on touch-up versus full repaint and how much wall repair comes first. The price is in writing after the walkthrough.
How much does it cost to paint a two-bedroom apartment?
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Published averages put a two-bedroom at about $1,600 and up for walls only, and $2,400 to $7,200 with ceilings and trim. Those are market figures, not our price. Yours depends on touch-up versus full repaint and how much wall repair comes first, and it is priced in writing after a free walkthrough.
Touch-up or full repaint?
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Touch-ups only work when the existing paint is clean and the same color and sheen. Our comparison guide explains how to tell.
Do you supply the paint?
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Yes, or we use your property's stocked paint. Tell us at the start.
How soon can the unit be shown after painting?
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Once the paint is dry and the punch list is closed. You get the ready date with the scope.
How long does it take to paint a vacant apartment?
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A day or two of painting for a typical unit once the walls are ready, and the walls are what set the clock. Patches have to dry and be primed first, and a room getting two coats waits between them. A unit that needs only touch-ups takes far less. Your scope gives the ready date for the unit.
Do painters patch nail holes and small wall damage as part of a turn?
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We do, and it is the first line on the paint scope. Nail holes and anchor holes are filled, dents are finished smooth, and every patch is sanded and primed before the finish coat so it does not show as a dull spot in afternoon light. Bigger damage, such as a door-knob hole or a TV mount pulled out of the board, goes on the scope as drywall repair with its own price.
What paint finish holds up best between tenants?
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A harder sheen on doors, trim and anywhere hands land, and your standard wall sheen everywhere else. Semi-gloss on doors and trim wipes clean instead of needing paint at the next move-out. On walls, the best finish is the one already on your other units, because touch-ups only blend when color and sheen match.
Should painting happen before or after the turn cleaning?
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Before. Paint prep means sanding patches, and that dust settles on every sill and floor, so paint goes first and the cleaners come in after it. We tell you the day the paint is finished, and your cleaning crew can be booked for the day after our ready date.
One color throughout the unit or different colors per room?
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One wall color through the whole unit is cheaper to turn and easier to touch up next time. Any leftover can covers any room, and a hallway patch blends the same as one in a bedroom. An accent wall can help a listing photo, but it costs an extra coat when it is painted back to your standard, so keep it to a single wall if you use one at all.
Should landlords use the same paint color and brand in every unit?
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Yes, if you own or manage more than one. Paint from different brands, or the same color in different sheens, dries to a slightly different look, and that is why touch-ups flash. One color, one sheen and one product across your units lets a touch-up at the next turn blend instead of forcing a full repaint. Send us the spec once and every unit we paint follows it.
What if the new tenant says the paint job looks rushed?
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Call us, and send photos of the walls if you have them. Our painting is covered by the same 60 to 90 day warranty as the rest of the scope, and if a wall we painted shows lap marks, flashing patches or thin coverage, we return to put it right. Before handover we walk every painted room in daylight, which is when those problems show.
Why does paint peel or show streaks in freshly turned units?
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Peeling almost always comes down to adhesion. New paint was rolled over a glossy surface, a greasy kitchen wall or bare compound with no primer. Streaks and dull spots usually come from unprimed patches or a second coat rolled before the first one dried. Both are prep failures, and the fix is to scrape back to sound paint, prime and recoat.
How do you handle smoke or pet odor sealed into the walls?
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Paint alone will not hold it. Smoke film and nicotine bleed through ordinary paint the way a water stain does, so those walls get a stain-blocking primer before the finish coat. Pet odor often lives in the carpet and pad more than the walls, and replacing that flooring is on our side of the scope. Washing the walls is cleaning, which we do not do, so book your cleaners for that step before we prime.
What happens when painters get paint on floors or appliances?
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It is ours to fix, and it should be caught before handover. Our final daylight walk covers floors, counters and fixtures, not only the walls. If a drip turns up after we leave, send a photo and the unit number and it goes on our punch list. Damage we cause to a property is what our business liability coverage is for.
Should a turnover painter carry insurance for work in rental properties?
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Yes. Ask for business liability, which covers damage to the unit or the building, and workers' compensation, so a fall from a ladder in your unit is not your claim. We carry both and send the certificate with the proposal, made out to whoever you name.
Can a painting company keep up with month end turn volume?
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Only if it books the walkthroughs before the units empty. Send us unit numbers and move-out dates as notices come in, and we walk them together, price each one separately and give each its own ready date. Units that share one color and sheen go faster, because there is no color change to cover. Property managers who want a set turnaround per unit can put their turns on our Turnover Program.
How do property managers check paint quality before move in?
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Walk the unit in daylight with the blinds open and look along each wall, not straight at it. Unprimed patches show as dull spots, and thin coverage shows as the old color ghosting through near corners and outlets. Check the ceiling over the tub, the door edges and the trim along the floor. We make that same daylight walk against the scope before we hand the unit back.
Can a unit be painted tomorrow before a weekend move in?
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Sometimes, when the unit needs only touch-ups or one coat over clean walls and our schedule has room, but we do not promise next-day painting. Patches need drying time before primer and paint, and the price comes in writing before work starts. Call as soon as the move-in date is set and we will tell you straight whether it fits.
Who can paint multiple units on short notice at month end?
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Call us with the unit numbers and the move-in dates. We book the walkthroughs together, price each unit on its own and tell you which ones we can paint in time. We do not offer same-day service, and if a unit will not make its date we say so plainly, so leasing can plan around it.
How fast can a painter fix up a unit a tenant is about to view?
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As fast as the walls allow. Touch-ups on clean walls are quick, while a patch has to dry and be primed or it shows at the viewing. Call with the showing time. We are open 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM every day, and a walkthrough can be next day when the calendar has room. If the work cannot be finished before the viewing, we say so rather than rush a patch that flashes.
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