Ask an expert – Content Hub

To give your home a lift or seasonal refresh, the best option is usually a fresh coat of paint. However, should you fork out money for a professional painter to get the job done, or have a go at doing it yourself? Here, we explore the advantages of hiring an expert.

Advantages of hiring a professional painter

1. Experience

Professional painters have years of experience in the trade meaning that they know everything from how many tins of paint it will take to paint a room depending on its size, how many coats of paint are needed, and if any special measures are needed to prepare a surface for painting.

2. The right equipment

Chances are you won’t have an array of paint brushes, rollers and drop sheets at home. Through hiring a professional home painter you won’t need to waste money and storage space on painting equipment you’ll seldom use.

A fresh coat of paint can increase the value of your property / Source: MKG Interior Design

3. Health & safety

Don’t neglect the idea of safety when painting, especially if your painting job involves heights, ceilings and hard to reach areas. Professional painters have the right type of ladders and harness equipment to paint difficult to reach walls in the home. Painting also involves using chemicals such as solvents to clean up any spillages or paint runs, which can be very dangerous if they make contact with skin or are inhaled.

4. Perfect finish

You may think that the do-it-yourself approach to painting is worth the cost savings of hiring a professional. However commercial painters and home painters are trained perfectionists who will ensure that the job is completed to the highest of standards. It’s certainly worth spending the extra money to achieve a quality finish for your home or business. Professional decorators also know which are the best paint brands and finishes for each type of job, whether you want a matt, gloss, satin or eggshell finish your painter will be able to source the best quality product to achieve the desired look.

Q&A with a professional painter

We spoke to professional painter Hass from DHY Painting And Decorating, based in Mill Park Victoria, to find out more about Australian home painting trends, the most requested painting jobs, popular paint colours and what the best thing is about being a professional painter.

How long have you been painting and decorating for?

Painting is a family trade, my father is a painter, and my great uncle was a painter. I was exposed to painting from a very young age. Every school holiday during high school, I was out with my father and uncle acting as their apprentice.

What are your most requested painting jobs?

My most requested work would be repainting for landlords refreshing their property to release. But we don’t stop there, DHY Painting complete paint jobs for many new homes, repainting for family homes, office repaints, and many other special projects.

What is the most popular colour Australian home owners are painting their walls?

It would definitely be “White on White”.

What sort of paint is best to use for painting exterior walls and fences?

My go-to paint for exterior walls and fences would have to be Taubmans Endure Exterior, or Taubmans All Weather.

For exterior painting Hass recommends Taubmans Endure Exterior or All Weather / Source: Jnaid & Sons

What’s the largest paint job you’ve completed?

The largest commercial paint job I’ve ever completed was painting part of the Chadstone Shopping Centre extension, Australia’s largest major shopping centres. The largest domestic paint job I’ve completed was a 100 square metre home in Eden Park, Melbourne.

What colours do you recommend using when painting your home to be sold?

White! A blank canvas is the most appealing to home buyers.

How many days does it usually take you to complete a paint job?

It usually takes me around 2 days to repaint a 2 bedroom unit. A 3 bedroom home can take 3-5 days to repaint.

What is your favourite part of your job?

My favourite part of the job of being a professional painter would definitely have to be handover time. It is such a good feeling, seeing the excitement on my clients face when we transform their property and give it a new lease of life!

In the current real estate market, high demand and limited land supply gives homeowners an advantage. Ray White agent Thomas Merriman and Service First Property Group specialists, Andre Pang and Oliver Quach share their responses to common questions asked by Australian homeowners.

When is the right time to sell?

Thomas: “I would advise people thinking about selling to regularly keep up to date with the Auction Clearance rates as they typically act as a ‘canary in the mine’ for property market conditions. If the canary dies, leave, if the rates drop dramatically, pause your campaign.”

Andre: “The right time to sell depends on the vendor’s financial or personal situation. Try to avoid public holidays or long weekends during your marketing campaign, but if you can’t avoid it then add another week to your marketing campaign. My clients ask whether or not they should be selling in the winter as there are typically less properties to compete with. Serious buyers never stop looking and as long as you have the correct marketing campaign in place, they will turn up to your inspection year round.”

What kind of properties are in high demand in the market?

Thomas: “Properties where people can add value, either by knocking down and rebuilding or simply renovating – especially a cosmetic reno or a quick ‘flip’ – are the properties that are in highest demand. The Melbourne trend is toward ‘terrace’ style homes and premium apartments. The idea of city living with the feel of a newly built house is a pretty desirable one, providing you have the budget. Attend the first open-home for a property and you will get an idea.”

What are some things to look for in an agent?

Andre: “There are a few ways to discern between an honest agent and a dishonest one. A genuine agent will give you a realistic appraisal with evidence and research. Lots of agents will inflate sales appraisals so you can hear your dream selling price but when an agent gives you an appraisal, check that it’s backed with comparable sales and recent data. A good agent will also design a marketing campaign tailored to your property’s needs. As everything comes through the Internet these days you don’t need to limit your search to a local agent.”

What are some tips you would give to a homeowner planning to sell?

Thomas: “Buyers aren’t visionaries- they don’t have the creative flair to see past bad curtains and unmown grass, but coming to market can be delayed by weeks if vendors are busy fixing a leak because they’ve replaced the benchtop, cupboards, stools and tapware. All this can be done over a weekend or two and you can hire a professional to get it done with no budget blowouts – but make a list and stick to it.”

Andre: “Prepare your home so buyers can imagine it as their own. Aim to create an emotional attachment with the buyer. It might be a good idea to have a stylist for your property to achieve the desired results. ”

Contact local real estate agents

Here are Andre’s tips to get your property to sell:

Kerb appeal: Make sure there are no weeds and the lawn and plants are trimmed. Attractive pot plants can also add to the appeal.
Lighting: Clean the inside and outside of your windows, turn on all the lights and draw up the blinds and curtains.
Less is more: Less clutter will help the room look bigger so the potential purchaser can imagine their things fitting into your property.
Pleasant scents: Get rid of any smoke or pet odours. Open up your windows, brew coffee or use diffusers to add some homeliness to your property.
Acclimatisation: This is largely weather dependent but if it’s cold turn on the heater and if it’s hot, turn on the air conditioning to create an enjoyable experience.

What’s next for the Sydney and Melbourne property market?

Thomas: “The RBA has lowered interest rates further and have increased the restrictions on loans for investment properties but the thing is, investors don’t set rental prices just as vendors don’t set sale prices. The market will take care of that, demand will always win out and people can only afford what they can afford. Once again, this may be the beginning of the end of the boom market, if this happens.”

Andre Pang: “The market is expected to plateau and move sideways for a number of years. Investors should seek high yields instead of growth at this moment. I also see an increase in studio developments like the ‘Melbourne Quarter’ project in Docklands which offers micro studios ranging between 25-33 sqm. While there is still an undersupply of property, affordability is still a major issue and studio apartments are very normal in other parts of the world, it’s only a matter of time that Sydney and Melbourne will adopt a similar mentality.”