How to get more painting jobs
Painting is two different businesses: one-off residential, where you compete with anyone who owns a brush, and the one that feeds you year-round, which is realtors, property managers and remodelers. In South Florida exterior is its own market on top of that, because sun and humidity force a repaint every five to seven years and those are five-figure jobs.
Updated 2026-08-16
The two businesses
**One-off residential.** The owner gets three quotes and compares. You win on response speed, an itemized quote and photos, not on price.
**Repeat work.** A manager with buildings repaints hallways, apartments between tenants and exteriors every year. A remodeler needs a painter on every job. There's nothing to sell each time.
The second is what you build; the first is what pays while you build it.
1. Property managers
The steadiest source. Every apartment that turns over gets repainted, and a manager with two hundred units has several a month.
It's simple, repetitive work at a price agreed in advance with nobody to convince. The per-unit price is lower than residential, but there's no quote to prepare and no client to persuade.
How you get in: show up with your price for a standard one- and two-bedroom apartment, license and insurance, and be available on short notice. Tenant turnover doesn't wait.
2. Realtors and houses going on the market
A house about to be listed almost always gets painted first, and there's a rush because the listing photos have a date.
That's the argument: I deliver in three days so the realtor has the photos. Speed is worth more than price there.
And after the sale, the new buyer usually repaints to their own taste. It's two jobs in the same house.
3. Remodelers and general contractors
Every remodel ends in paint, and the contractor needs a painter who shows up on schedule and doesn't hold up the job.
Introduce yourself to the remodelers in your area: it's planned work, with no client hunting and payment by job.
4. Exterior, which is its own market here
In South Florida sun and humidity punish facades, and a house needs repainting every five to seven years. HOAs also require facade maintenance.
It's a higher-ticket job with less competition, because it takes equipment, pressure washing and knowing how to prep. And a house painted on the outside is your best advertisement on that street: it's the only advertising visible from three blocks away.
5. How to quote to win
**Go look.** Quoting from photos is how you lose money in painting, because the cost isn't painting, it's prep.
**Itemize the prep.** Filling, sanding, crack sealing, priming. It's eighty percent of good work and it's what your cheap competition skips.
**Say how many coats and which product.** "Two coats of Sherwin Williams" versus "quality paint" are two different quotes even at the same price.
**State what is NOT included.** Furniture, damaged drywall repair, ceilings.
**Deliver it inside 48 hours.**
6. What it pays in South Florida
| Job | Range |
|---|---|
| Interior, per square foot of floor | $1.50 to $4 |
| 3-bedroom house, full interior | $2,500 to $6,000 |
| Apartment between tenants | $500 to $1,200 |
| House exterior | $3,500 to $9,000 |
| Single room | $300 to $700 |
| Kitchen cabinets | $2,000 to $5,000 |
| Textured ceiling, per foot | $1 to $2.50 |
Cabinets are the highest-margin job in the trade and the one fewest people do well. Learn to do them and you have a service that prices like remodeling.
7. The Google profile and photos
Category "Painter" or "Painting contractor," your cities, and complete galleries per house: before, prep and after. Prep in photos is what separates you from whoever only shows a finished wall.
doubts
What people usually ask
How do I compete with someone charging half?
By showing the prep. The cheap one usually doesn't fill, doesn't prime, or does a single coat, and it shows in two years. Put it in writing on the quote and the customer understands the difference.
Should I charge for materials separately?
Break it out on the quote even if you buy them. It makes clear how much is product and how much is labor, and it lets the customer upgrade without feeling like the price went up.
Do I need a license in Florida?
Many counties require painter registration or licensing, and managers and contractors will always ask for insurance. Check your county's rules.
Are rental apartments worth it if they pay little?
Yes as a base: they fill the week, there's nothing to sell and payment is fast. The key is a fixed price per apartment type rather than quoting each one.
What if the customer supplies their own paint?
Accept it but put in writing that the warranty covers labor and not the product. If the paint covers poorly, that can't become your problem.