cost of painting house

[mogo51]

If any member has recently painted their home in Pattaya area, could they advise me of the cost. I am getting what seem to be very unreal quotes some over 60k that to me seems excessive - I suspect 'special farang price'. It is 3 b/r 2 storey house, medium size. I am not getting the ceilings done, as they are fine and have large sliding glass doors on 3 walls downstairs, so not much painting there to be done, inside is in quite good condition, bedrooms dont need doing as they are wallpapered (regrettably), so I dont see how they are arriving at these types of prices.

I am wanting to use Jotun paint as it is better quality, outside rub back, undercoat and 2 coats of colour. I have not seen one of them measure the surface are, they walk around for a couple of minutes and come up with a price! Seems a stitch up to me.

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[HeijoshinCool]

Tell them you'll supply paint and other materials, then ask how much.

[beachproperty]

Not sure what you mean by "rub back" the outside of the house. Is that a massage? Just kidding .....assume you mean "sand, scrape and prep".

I would ask him how long its going to take to paint the house...if he says a few days, send him on his way as he is just going to "slap" on the paint, no drop cloth, no proper prep ... etc.

Next ask him how many workers helping him?

I've just painted my place inside and out ...new construction, 200 sq meters, so did a sealer, primer, two coats and all trim in white (wood windows and doors) took 3 painters 3 weeks. Cost 25,000 baht for labor plus aprox cost of materials 10,000 baht (top of the line weathershield elastermeric paint ). I paid main painter 500baht/day and assistants 300 baht/day. Generaly, laborer should be at the minimum 300 baht a day/person.

Not in the Pattaya area so no help in referrals...Good luck, though, finding a reliable painter!

Edited December 19, 2014 by beachproperty

[gamini]

I think times have changed. Before painting our two story house on one rai which want to sell,we had to pay bt 10,000 to have it all just cleaned up. So we hate to think how much it would cost to paint it . So we are selling "as is" (Labour is now bt 400 to 500 a day ,we live 40km south of Hua Hin.) I long for the good old days when I paid Bt400 a month for staff up in the mountains near Chiangmai.

[henksteeghsth]

normally the ask 150 to 200 baht pro sqm

undercoat,primer and 2 layers of paint will cost a little bit more

paint cost 1700 a bucket a good primer 2500 a bucket

for 250 sqm you need about 15 buckets of paint

that means the price is olmost ok

And you know wen you pay peanuts you get monkeys!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[KittenKong]

I long for the good old days when I paid Bt400 a month for staff up in the mountains near Chiangmai.

I doubt that they do.

[technologybytes]

I always supply the materials and just pay for the labour. In my opinion the only paint manufacturers to consider are ICI and Berger, unless you are intending to sell the house in which case any old paint will do.

I usually pay 350-500 baht per day for the labour, but I am in Chiang Mai and I appreciate that it may be a bit more expesive in Pattaya.

Get someone to paint just a part of the job so you can assess how well he works, then keep him on for the whole job or say goodbye if he's not up to scratch.

[kwaussie]

If outside good nick, just light sand, wash down, 2 coats is all needed as self priming, if changing colour from dark to lighter colour would use tinted undercoat or a few drops of black then 2 topcoats or 3 coats of self priming topcoat.

Would use daily labour hire as can control quality.

[catman20]

if you buy the paint don't give it all to them at once cos they will steal some tins of paint and say we make 2 coats already. good luck with these people.

im sick off the thais trying to rip me off, I try to tackle as many jobs myself as I can with the help of a girlfriend

[mikebell]

And another extra cost is the paint. A cartel controls paint prices in Thailand. UK prices for similar products are a third cheaper.

[Johnnie99]

Herr Schicklegruber painted quite a few houses.

[mike324]

sounds reasonable for a house, things are not cheap nowadays and labor cost has gone up quite a bit. Like other posters said, you supply the paint and get a quote for labor to cut down on them trying to make money on the paint as well.

[bob strutt]

it is not only paint, you have tools , rollers , drop sheets , sandpaper, brushers, fillers, no more gaps ,labor and then paint, not to mention ladders and scaffold if two story, 60k is very close to the mark at pattaya now, everything is going up and good paint is expensive, just finished pianting my new house and it all adds up, you only get what you pay for

[Noi657]

People need to get this 200,300,400 baht per day syndrome out of their heads! Yes you can guesstimate a labourer cost but to put a price on a skilled and experienced tradesman is more difficult. Going for a cheap Charlie rate can actually cost you more in the long term.

[dotpoom]

I think times have changed. Before painting our two story house on one rai which want to sell,we had to pay bt 10,000 to have it all just cleaned up. So we hate to think how much it would cost to paint it . So we are selling "as is" (Labour is now bt 400 to 500 a day ,we live 40km south of Hua Hin.) I long for the good old days when I paid Bt400 a month for staff up in the mountains near Chiangmai.

I suspect those staff are not longing for those "good old days" to come back again.

[swerving]

My house will be completed on Monday. 250m2. 13 doors stripped of old paint, plus ceilings and walls in all rooms except kitchen. 32 days @ 500thb per day plus 15,000thb for paint ( Dulux) and materials. Total 31,000thb.

60,000thb is way too much.

Arrange a daily rate and pay for the materials yourself.

[mogo51]

if you buy the paint don't give it all to them at once cos they will steal some tins of paint and say we make 2 coats already. good luck with these people.

im sick off the thais trying to rip me off, I try to tackle as many jobs myself as I can with the help of a girlfriend

I am the same as you, getting so sick and tired of the continual attempts at rip offs. I would do it myself but a: a hopeless handyman and b. suffering sever back problems. c. two storey house..

Have been out pricing paint this morning and have just got a call from one painter who will do it for 120bht sq.mt. I have roughly calculated 220sq.mts. (I take out glass sliding doors x4 and some more for windows). Still comes in about 26k.bht for labour.

Just working on the paint costs at the moment.

[mogo51]

Not sure what you mean by "rub back" the outside of the house. Is that a massage? Just kidding .....assume you mean "sand, scrape and prep".

I would ask him how long its going to take to paint the house...if he says a few days, send him on his way as he is just going to "slap" on the paint, no drop cloth, no proper prep ... etc.

Next ask him how many workers helping him?

I've just painted my place inside and out ...new construction, 200 sq meters, so did a sealer, primer, two coats and all trim in white (wood windows and doors) took 3 painters 3 weeks. Cost 25,000 baht for labor plus aprox cost of materials 10,000 baht (top of the line weathershield elastermeric paint ). I paid main painter 500baht/day and assistants 300 baht/day. Generaly, laborer should be at the minimum 300 baht a day/person.

Not in the Pattaya area so no help in referrals...Good luck, though, finding a reliable painter!

Just doing the sums, I have worked out there is 220sq.mts. and I also get about 10k bht for the paint. A painter is quoting 120bht per sq. mst. so this sounds about the pricing you are quoting. Pattaya prices if you are not careful can be way more than that.

I works out at about 40k for outside only, the inside is not bad except for a few bumps and scrapes, but matching the paint is a challenge to fix that I am told? Chances of just fixing those bumps and scrapes are not that good, so we may be only doing half a job.\, which is not what I want to achieve.

[ThaiFelix]

if you buy the paint don't give it all to them at once cos they will steal some tins of paint and say we make 2 coats already. good luck with these people.

im sick off the thais trying to rip me off, I try to tackle as many jobs myself as I can with the help of a girlfriend

I am the same as you, getting so sick and tired of the continual attempts at rip offs. I would do it myself but a: a hopeless handyman and b. suffering sever back problems. c. two storey house..

Have been out pricing paint this morning and have just got a call from one painter who will do it for 120bht sq.mt. I have roughly calculated 220sq.mts. (I take out glass sliding doors x4 and some more for windows). Still comes in about 26k.bht for labour.

Just working on the paint costs at the moment.

Dont worry about taking the windows and doors out of the equation as unless you have them fully masked up they will get painted as well I just had some walls built up here in Isaan and when they had almost finished painting I noticed some cement spatters that had been thrown up by having the cement mixer too close to an existing wall. I asked if they wouldnt mind throwing a bit of paint on the splashes and I think that is exactly what they did. There was paint all over some ornamental rocks nearby and so much paint on some nearby plants they had stuck to the wall. I have learnt that when you have some small job rectified it is a lot easier to do it yourself. I am not knocking Thai builders but after dealing with four different building teams over the last year I have come to realise that while they try they just dont know what a good job is.

Some suggestions if I may.. My experience is that Isaan builders dont like using roller trays. They like to dip the rollers into the buckets which I have found consumes way too much paint. More paint on the walls is good but not when you have to drive two hours to buy more Dulux because they have run out early. Not using trays also means they decanter the paint into smaller containers and dont put the leftovers back in the original containers. The result at the end of the day is half a dozen containers of paint in buckets with various labels and no-one knows what is what...especially in my case where I had nearly all white eg flat white ceiling paint and semi-gloss white external wall paint. Also recommend a primer of a different shade or a tint as someone suggested so it is easy for them to see where they have been...again especially if you are painting white.

Edited December 20, 2014 by ThaiFelix

[Bernard Flint]

My partner,s brother does all my paint work, 400 baht a day, free room to sleep, free food, free tv, and cost of traveling to pattaya and back. i pay for all paint etc and he does the work.

[HerbalEd]

I think times have changed. Before painting our two story house on one rai which want to sell,we had to pay bt 10,000 to have it all just cleaned up. So we hate to think how much it would cost to paint it . So we are selling "as is" (Labour is now bt 400 to 500 a day ,we live 40km south of Hua Hin.) I long for the good old days when I paid Bt400 a month for staff up in the mountains near Chiangmai.

I bet your former underpaid staff don't "long for the good old days."

[phetchy]

Moved onto a village in East Pattaya 5 years ago. Average 2 bed bungalow, needed painting inside and out, got a recommendation from a farang friend who will not tolerate a bad job for any of the maintenance work he has done on his apartment block. He said his chap is not cheap, but you get what you pay for. About 50K I recall and a top notch job. Looks like it was done yesterday 5 years later. I'd guess that on my recommendation another 7 or 8 farangs on the village have used him and not a complaint so far. He will give you a quote for labour only if you wish, but he will usually quote for an all in price and provides the bills etc. IMO paying a bit more for decent paint is well worth it in the long run. Very meticulous with covering furniture, masking switches etc. PM me for his number (speaks a little English but Thai will be easier).

Edited December 20, 2014 by phetchy

[Liquorice]

I've just painted the walls of two bathrooms, 1 bedroom and a lounge/dining room area with 2 coats of Dulux silk emulsion.

Took 6 9ltr tubs at 1,450 baht a tub.

One 3ltr tin of undercoat and 2 1ltr tins of gloss for the doors and frames.

Fillers, sandpaper, brushes, rollers etc. Over 10,000 baht to date and I'm the free painter!

I reckon another 5,000 baht to finish the other 2 bedrooms.

A 2 storey house will cost more for the external bamboo scaffolding to be erected and dismantled.

Thais throw away brushes and rollers at the end of a day. New brushes and rollers daily.

Mate of mine just had a single storey 3 bed externally painted (two coats) for 6,000 baht labour.

Paint was an extra 12,000 baht

30-35,000 baht for undercoat and two coats for the external including scaffolding and paint would be reasonable, if they do a good job.

Edited December 20, 2014 by Faz

[KittenKong]

My house will be completed on Monday. 250m2. 13 doors stripped of old paint, plus ceilings and walls in all rooms except kitchen. 32 days @ 500thb per day plus 15,000thb for paint ( Dulux) and materials. Total 31,000thb.

60,000thb is way too much.

Arrange a daily rate and pay for the materials yourself.

This sounds more likely and I would also want to get the materials myself, or at least arrange the purchase of them separately.

It's certainly very hard to calculate a fair price when the materials are included, as the cost of these can vary wildly depending on brand and quality and source.

[Alwyn]

Why do people here talk about an amount per day for labour? Decorating is a skilled profession. I did a 4 year painter & decorator apprenticeship to get my city & guilds qualification. (I also hope I never have to decorate again, it's hard work!!) If these guys are decorators you're going to pay more than for a labourer. If I were you I would ask for a reference or two, this is normal, right? Watch them to make sure they do what they say they're going to do and make sure before they begin they understand they will be cleaning up at the end! Of course, you could always get quotes from other companies too.

[yankee99]

Why do people here talk about an amount per day for labour? Decorating is a skilled profession. I did a 4 year painter & decorator apprenticeship to get my city & guilds qualification. (I also hope I never have to decorate again, it's hard work!!) If these guys are decorators you're going to pay more than for a labourer. If I were you I would ask for a reference or two, this is normal, right? Watch them to make sure they do what they say they're going to do and make sure before they begin they understand they will be cleaning up at the end! Of course, you could always get quotes from other companies too.

Im sure if the above posters were presented with a copy of an apprenticeship degree they would be happy to pay more

[Alwyn]

Why do people here talk about an amount per day for labour? Decorating is a skilled profession. I did a 4 year painter & decorator apprenticeship to get my city & guilds qualification. (I also hope I never have to decorate again, it's hard work!!) If these guys are decorators you're going to pay more than for a labourer. If I were you I would ask for a reference or two, this is normal, right? Watch them to make sure they do what they say they're going to do and make sure before they begin they understand they will be cleaning up at the end! Of course, you could always get quotes from other companies too.

Im sure if the above posters were presented with a copy of an apprenticeship degree they would be happy to pay more

Agreed! Which is why he needs to look at their past work if posible

[lj cm]

Tell them you'll supply paint and other materials, then ask how much.

Absolutely correct!.

Then you know the quality of the paint.

The price for work should be around 15,000 Baht.

[Travel Dude]

I think times have changed. Before painting our two story house on one rai which want to sell,we had to pay bt 10,000 to have it all just cleaned up. So we hate to think how much it would cost to paint it . So we are selling "as is" (Labour is now bt 400 to 500 a day ,we live 40km south of Hua Hin.) I long for the good old days when I paid Bt400 a month for staff up in the mountains near Chiangmai.

I long for the days we have again slaves... as long as I can enjoy my bottle of Champagne in my newly painted house it does not matter the labour can't even buy some rice from what I paid them for the job. Come on... don't be so disgusting selfish!

Edited December 20, 2014 by Travel Dude

[KittenKong]

Why do people here talk about an amount per day for labour? Decorating is a skilled profession. I did a 4 year painter & decorator apprenticeship to get my city & guilds qualification.

People talk about an amount per day because a day is a set number of hours and that allows you to calculate the length of the job. Most decorating jobs take more than one day but you could just as well give a price per hour if you prefer.

Lawyers and other professionals also charge by the hour, as did I when I was still working, so that's no insult.

And here the qualification for being a decorator is often just that you own a paintbrush.