How to Choose an Exterior Painting Contractor (Without Getting Burned)

Every contractor will say yes. The follow-up question is the one that matters: can I see a Certificate of Insurance?

A COI is a one-page document from the contractor's insurance company that shows their policy type, the coverage amount, the effective dates, and who is insured. It takes 10 minutes to request from an insurance company and any legitimate contractor should be able to produce one within 24 hours of you asking.

You are looking for commercial general liability insurance at a minimum of $1,000,000 per occurrence. Ideally, the contractor and every crew they send to your home each carry $1,000,000 — giving you $2,000,000 in aggregate coverage. If a ladder goes through your car windshield, if paint ends up on your neighbor's driveway, if a crew member is injured on your property — you want an insurance policy covering the damage, not a contractor making promises out of pocket that they may or may not keep.

This question reveals more about a contractor's financial health and business practices than almost any other.

A contractor who requires a deposit — whether they call it a "materials deposit," a "scheduling fee," a "good faith payment," or anything else — is using your money to fund your job. That means they do not have the working capital to purchase materials and pay their crews without your cash in hand first. In some cases, it means they are using your deposit to finish someone else's project. In the worst cases, it means they collect deposits from multiple homeowners, do poor work or disappear entirely, and you are left chasing money that is already spent.

A well-capitalized painting company buys all materials and coordinates all labor at their own cost, and collects payment only after the work is complete and you have approved it. If a contractor needs your money before they have earned it, ask yourself why.

This is the question that separates a paint job that lasts from a paint job that fails. And it is the question most homeowners forget to ask.

Surface preparation is the most time-consuming, most labor-intensive, and most important part of an exterior repaint. It is also the most invisible — once the topcoat goes on, you cannot see whether the caulk was replaced or just painted over, whether vulnerable surfaces were primed or skipped, whether peeling paint was scraped to a sound substrate or just covered up with a fresh coat.

When you ask a contractor about prep, listen for specifics. A good answer sounds like: "We pressure wash the entire exterior the day before production. We scrape all loose and peeling paint to a sound surface. We recaulk every seam, joint, and penetration with premium urethane elastomeric caulk. We prime the bottom 3 feet of siding along the groundline and roofline and spot-prime any bare wood or replaced boards."

The answer should be a specific manufacturer and a specific product line. Not "premium paint." Not "the best stuff." Not "whatever you want." If a contractor cannot tell you the exact product going on your house by name, they are either using bargain paint and do not want to admit it, or they have not decided yet — which means they are not planning the job, they are winging it.

In North Texas, you want a 100% acrylic exterior coating with UV-resistant pigments, mildewcide additives, and a resin system engineered for extreme heat and temperature cycling. Sherwin-Williams, Benjamin Moore, and PPG all make products at this level. The specific product matters because it determines the expected lifespan, the color retention, the flexibility under DFW's 40-degree daily temperature swings, and what warranty the contractor can offer.

Also ask: how many coats? One coat of a premium product applied per manufacturer specifications over properly prepared surfaces is the standard for a professional repaint where the existing color is similar. If you are making a significant color change — especially from dark to light — two coats may be necessary for full, even coverage. A contractor should be able to explain their coat-count approach based on your specific job, not just default to a blanket answer.

A verbal warranty is worth the paper it is not printed on. "Just call me if anything happens" means nothing when "anything" happens 2 years later and the contractor does not pick up the phone, has changed their number, or has gone out of business entirely.

A real warranty is a written document included in your signed project agreement that states what is covered, for how long, what the exclusions are, and exactly how to file a claim. You should be able to read the warranty terms before you sign the contract — not after the job is done.

Warranty length varies by contractor and by product. In the DFW market, a 1-year warranty on a quality product is reasonable. A 3-year warranty signals a contractor who is confident in their prep and their products. A 5-year warranty on an exterior repaint is at the top of the market and signals a contractor who is using the best available coatings and standing fully behind the work.

Some painting companies do all their own work with in-house crews. Some use subcontractors. Both models can produce excellent results — but you deserve to know which one you are getting, and either way, you need to know who is accountable.

Ask: will the same crew be on my property for the entire project? If they are subcontractors, are they independently insured? Is there a single point of contact I can call throughout the project — one person who is responsible for quality, communication, and follow-through from the estimate to the final walkthrough?

Every legitimate contractor should have before-and-after photos of recently completed projects. If they do not, it means they are either too new to have a portfolio (not disqualifying, but worth knowing) or they are not proud enough of their recent work to document it.

When you look at photos, pay attention to details. Are the cut lines between trim and siding clean and straight? Is the coverage uniform — no thin spots, no drips, no lap marks? Does the surrounding area look clean and undamaged — no paint on the driveway, no trampled landscaping, no overspray on windows? These details reveal a contractor's quality standards more honestly than any sales pitch.

Even better: ask if you can drive by a recently completed project. A photo on a website can be filtered and cherry-picked. A house you see in person on a Tuesday afternoon in Plano tells the truth.

A contractor who has a repeatable, documented process is a contractor who has done this enough times to know what works. A contractor who cannot describe their process step by step is making it up as they go.

A professional process should include, at minimum: a free in-person walkthrough with a written scope of work, a confirmed start date communicated in writing, pressure washing before production, a clear sequence of prep, prime, and paint, at least one opportunity for you to inspect the work before it is finished, and a final walkthrough where you approve the completed job before payment is collected.