What builder-grade paint actually is
Production builders work to a cost, and paint is an easy place to save. In many new homes the walls get a thin coat of contractor-grade flat, often sprayed in one color across walls and ceilings, sometimes the same paint on trim. It looks fine on the walk-through. Then you move in, try to wipe off a handprint and the spot turns shiny or the paint rubs off on the sponge.
That is not a defect, just a cheap finish. It cannot be cleaned, touch-ups flash in a different sheen, and kids, pets and furniture mark it from day one.
The upgrade we do
Many owners also add one or two accent walls or a darker color in the study during the same visit.
- Walls in a quality washable eggshell or matte, in the color you pick, usually two coats.
- Trim, baseboards and doors in a semi-gloss or satin enamel that wipes clean.
- Ceilings left in flat white, or freshened if the builder sprayed them in the wall color.
- Settling fixes such as nail pops, corner tape cracks and trim gaps, handled before paint.
Timing it with your move
The easiest time is between closing and move-in, when the house is empty. A typical new single-family home takes three to five working days empty and longer once furniture is in. If you are already living there, we work room by room and move and cover furniture as we go.
Your builder's warranty walk is worth thinking about. Many owners schedule our repaint after the builder's walk so any drywall repairs the builder handles are done first. Drywall work after we paint means touch-ups, and those blend far better on washable paint than they did on the original flat.
New-home prep is lighter, but not zero
New walls are clean, but builder texture often has spray splatter and dried overspray on outlets and trim, and the caulk at baseboards is often thin or missing. We sand bumps, re-caulk gaps and spot prime any drywall repair the builder left raw. That small step is the difference between a repaint that looks factory-finished and one that just looks like new color on top of the old problems.
Call us when you notice
- Wiping a smudge leaves a shiny spot or bare patch.
- Walls, trim and ceilings are all the same flat white.
- Touch-ups from the builder show as blotches.
- Nail pops and corner cracks appeared after the first summer.
- You want real color before the furniture arrives.
How a builder-grade repaints job runs
Walk the new house
We look at the existing paint, settling cracks, caulk gaps and builder repairs.
Pick colors and sheens
We help you choose wall, trim and ceiling colors with sheens suited to each room.
Prep the surfaces
Splatter is sanded, gaps caulked, nail pops reset and raw patches primed.
Paint top to bottom
Ceilings, then walls, then trim and doors, with floors, cabinets and fixtures protected.
Final walk
We walk every room with you and touch up anything you flag before we pack up.