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

Not "are you insured?" — anyone will say yes. Ask for the certificate of insurance (COI) naming their general liability policy, and if you want to be thorough, ask the insurer to send it directly. If a crew member falls off a ladder on your property, or paint ends up on your neighbor's car, an uninsured contractor's problem becomes your problem. A legitimate contractor produces a COI without hesitation; a fake one changes the subject.

A real proposal lists every surface being painted, every surface being excluded, the prep steps included (wash, scrape, caulk, prime), the products by name, the number of coats, and the carpentry line items — in writing, before work begins. "We'll take care of everything" is not a scope. Verbal promises are unenforceable and unmemorable; the written scope is what protects you when there's a disagreement in week two.

"We use Sherwin-Williams" tells you almost nothing; Sherwin-Williams makes everything from contractor-grade paint to premium coatings, and the price and lifespan differences are enormous. You want a specific product name — Latitude, Duration, Emerald Rain Refresh, or equivalent — and it should be written into the scope. A contractor who says "premium paint" without naming it has left themselves room to use whatever's cheapest that week.

This question sorts contractors faster than any other, because caulk is the easiest place to cut corners invisibly. Builder-grade acrylic caulk fails in 2–3 Texas summers; urethane elastomeric sealant flexes with our clay-soil foundation movement and heat cycles for the life of the paint job. The material difference on a whole house is under $100. If they can't name their caulk, they're using the cheap stuff — and failed caulk is how water reaches your wood.

The groundline and roofline take the most punishment in North Texas, and skipped primer there is the most common reason repaints fail early. Ask which surfaces get primed and whether it's in the written scope. "We prime where needed" is acceptable only if the proposal defines what that means.

A written workmanship warranty — with a term, coverage definition, and claims process — means the contractor expects to exist long enough to honor it. "Just call me if there's a problem" is not a warranty; it's a hope. In DFW, legitimate warranty terms typically run 1 to 5 years depending on the coating tier.

Some companies sell the job and then auction it to whatever subcontractor crew is available — meaning the person who impressed you at the estimate will never see your house again. Ask who runs the crew, who your point of contact is during the job, and who does the final walkthrough. There's nothing inherently wrong with subs, but accountability evaporates when nobody who made you promises is on site.

In painting, a large upfront deposit mostly protects the contractor from you — and funds the guys who take deposits and disappear, which happens in DFW every single year. Materials for a paint job aren't custom-ordered like cabinets; there's little legitimate reason a painter needs thousands of dollars before starting. The strongest answer is no deposit at all, payment on completion after your approval — that contractor is betting their money on their own workmanship.