If you’re a homeowner in Overland Park considering a whole-house painting project, you’re probably wondering what kind of investment you’re looking at. The short answer is that most whole-house exterior painting projects in Overland Park typically range from $4,500 to $12,000, while interior whole-house painting usually falls between $3,500 and $9,000. However, these are broad ranges, and your actual cost will depend on numerous factors specific to your home and the scope of work required.
At Stone Painting, we’ve completed hundreds of whole-house painting projects throughout Overland Park and the greater Kansas City metro area, and we’ve learned that no two homes are exactly alike when it comes to painting costs. Understanding what drives these costs can help you budget appropriately and make informed decisions about your painting project. Let’s break down everything you need to know about whole-house painting costs in our area.
Understanding the Variables That Affect Your Painting Cost
The size of your home is obviously the primary factor in determining cost, but it’s far from the only consideration. A 1,500 square foot ranch will cost significantly less than a 3,500 square foot two-story home, but even two homes of identical square footage can have vastly different painting costs based on their architectural features and current condition.
The number of stories in your home has a substantial impact on pricing. Single-story homes are generally the most economical to paint because they require minimal scaffolding or specialized equipment. Two-story homes require additional setup time, safety equipment, and labor to reach upper areas safely. If your Overland Park home has three stories or significant height variations, expect costs to increase accordingly because painters need more time for setup and face additional safety considerations that slow down the work.
Your home’s architectural style also plays a crucial role in pricing. Many Overland Park neighborhoods feature beautiful homes with detailed trim work, multiple gables, dormers, decorative brackets, and other architectural elements that require careful brush work and significantly more time than painting simple, flat surfaces. A craftsman-style home with extensive trim detailing might cost 25-40% more to paint than a contemporary home with clean lines and minimal trim, even if they’re the same square footage.
The current condition of your home’s surfaces is another critical factor that many homeowners underestimate. If your home has been well-maintained with painting done every 8-10 years, the surface preparation might be relatively straightforward. However, if it’s been 15-20 years since your last paint job, or if you’re dealing with peeling paint, wood rot, or damaged siding, the preparation work can add substantial costs to your project. At Stone Painting, we often find that preparation represents 60-70% of a quality paint job’s total labor time, and homes with deferred maintenance require even more prep work.
Exterior Whole-House Painting Costs in Overland Park
For exterior painting, most Overland Park homeowners can expect to invest between $4,500 and $12,000 for a complete whole-house project, with the average falling around $7,000 to $8,500. This typically includes thorough surface preparation, priming where needed, and two coats of high-quality exterior paint on all siding, trim, soffits, and fascia.
Smaller homes, such as ranch-style houses between 1,200 and 1,800 square feet with simple architecture, generally fall on the lower end of this range. These projects might run $4,500 to $6,500, especially if the existing paint is in decent condition and minimal repair work is needed. We see quite a few of these homes in some of Overland Park’s established neighborhoods where homeowners are maintaining homes built in the 1960s and 1970s.
Mid-sized homes between 2,000 and 2,800 square feet typically cost $6,500 to $9,000 for exterior painting. These are often two-story colonials or split-level homes that are common throughout Overland Park. The additional height and increased surface area drive costs higher than single-story homes, but if the home is well-maintained and has relatively simple trim work, it won’t reach the upper end of the pricing spectrum.
Larger homes above 3,000 square feet, or those with complex architectural features, can easily reach $10,000 to $12,000 or more. We’ve worked on beautiful homes in neighborhoods like Hallbrook and Tuscany Reserve where the attention to architectural detail is exceptional. These homes might feature stone accents, multiple gables, extensive cedar trim, covered porches with detailed columns, and other elements that require careful, time-intensive work. While the higher investment reflects the additional labor and materials, the result is a stunning transformation that truly elevates the home’s curb appeal.
It’s worth noting that these prices assume you’re using quality exterior paints from manufacturers like Sherwin-Williams or Benjamin Moore. While cheaper paints might save you a few hundred dollars upfront, they typically don’t last as long in our Kansas climate, where we experience significant temperature swings, intense summer sun, occasional severe storms, and freezing winter conditions. The better paint might add 10-15% to your material costs, but it can extend the life of your paint job by three to five years, making it a wise long-term investment.
Interior Whole-House Painting Costs in Overland Park
Interior whole-house painting typically costs less than exterior work, with most Overland Park projects ranging from $3,500 to $9,000. The average interior whole-house painting project for a standard three-bedroom, two-bathroom home usually falls between $4,500 and $6,500.
The calculation for interior painting is somewhat different than exterior work. While exterior painting is primarily calculated based on the home’s footprint and height, interior painting costs are driven by the number of rooms, ceiling height, trim complexity, and the current wall condition. A 2,500 square foot ranch with eight-foot ceilings and simple trim will cost considerably less than a 2,000 square foot home with vaulted ceilings, crown molding throughout, and extensive door and window trim.
For a typical Overland Park home with standard eight-foot ceilings and modest trim, you might expect to pay approximately $400 to $700 per room for walls, ceiling, trim, and doors. This means a three-bedroom, two-bathroom home with a living room, dining room, kitchen, and hallways might cost $4,500 to $6,000 for a complete interior refresh. Adding rooms like a finished basement, bonus room, or home office will increase costs proportionally.
Homes with higher ceilings or extensive trim work will cost more. Two-story entryways, great rooms with vaulted ceilings, or homes with detailed crown molding and wainscoting throughout can add 30-50% to your interior painting costs. These features are beautiful and add tremendous character to your home, but they require more paint, more setup time with taller ladders or scaffolding, and significantly more careful brush work to achieve clean, professional results.
The condition of your interior walls also affects pricing. If your walls are in good condition with only minor imperfections, the preparation work is relatively quick. However, if you have numerous nail holes from picture hangings, drywall damage from furniture impacts, or texture that needs to be smoothed, your painter will need additional time for repairs and preparation. Some older Overland Park homes have heavy texture on the walls or ceilings that homeowners want removed for a more contemporary look. This texture removal can add substantially to your project cost, sometimes $1 to $2 per square foot of wall surface, but it can completely modernize the feel of your home.
What’s Included in a Professional Whole-House Painting Estimate
When you receive a whole-house painting estimate from a professional company like Stone Painting, it should include much more than just the cost of paint and labor. A comprehensive estimate should detail all aspects of surface preparation, which is the foundation of any quality paint job.
For exterior projects, proper preparation includes power washing to remove dirt, mildew, and loose paint, scraping and sanding areas where paint is peeling or flaking, priming bare wood or areas where paint has been removed, caulking gaps around windows and doors to prevent moisture intrusion, and repairing any rotted wood or damaged siding that could compromise the paint’s adhesion and longevity. These preparation steps are non-negotiable for a paint job that will last, and they represent the majority of the labor time on most projects.
Interior preparation should include moving furniture away from walls (though we recommend homeowners remove small items and valuables), protecting floors and furniture with drop cloths and plastic sheeting, filling nail holes and minor drywall damage, sanding rough spots or previous repair work, removing switch plates and outlet covers, and taping off areas that won’t be painted. Professional painters also prep by cleaning walls to remove grease, dust, and other contaminants that could prevent proper paint adhesion.
Your estimate should also clearly specify the paint quality and number of coats. For exterior work, two coats are standard and necessary for proper coverage and durability. For interiors, one coat might be sufficient if you’re painting a similar color over existing paint in good condition, but two coats are often necessary when making dramatic color changes or painting over stains. At Stone Painting, we always specify which surfaces will receive one versus two coats so there are no surprises.
The estimate should also include details about trim work, which is often quoted separately from wall painting because it requires different techniques and is more time-intensive. Trim includes baseboards, door frames, window frames, crown molding, and any other millwork in your home. Some homeowners choose to have only walls painted and not the trim, which can reduce costs significantly if the trim is in good condition and you’re happy with its current color.
Finally, a professional estimate should outline the cleanup process and any warranty or guarantee offered. Reputable painters include thorough cleanup in their pricing, which means removing all paint debris, drop cloths, and tape, vacuuming if necessary, and leaving your home as clean as it was when they arrived. A solid warranty covering defects in workmanship for at least one to two years shows a painter’s confidence in their work quality.
Why Some Bids Seem Too Good to Be True
In the Overland Park painting market, you’ll encounter a wide range of bids for the same project. Some estimates might seem surprisingly low compared to others, and while everyone loves a good deal, extremely low bids often come with hidden costs or compromises that aren’t apparent until the project is underway.
Some painters cut costs by skipping essential preparation steps. They might do minimal scraping, skip priming altogether, or apply only one coat of paint when two are needed. The result might look acceptable initially, but the paint will fail prematurely, often within just a couple of years. You’ll see peeling, blistering, or uneven coverage that requires a complete repaint far sooner than if the job had been done properly from the start.
Other low-bid painters use inferior paint products that don’t hold up to our Kansas weather. Discount paints might cost 40-50% less than premium products, but they typically have lower pigment concentrations, less effective binders, and inferior UV protection. In Overland Park’s climate, where we experience hot, humid summers and cold, sometimes severe winters, paint quality makes a tremendous difference in longevity. A cheap paint job might save you $1,000 initially but require repainting in five years instead of ten, ultimately costing you more in the long run.
Some painting contractors operate without proper insurance or licensing, which allows them to offer lower prices because they’re not carrying the overhead costs of legitimate business operations. This might seem like a victimless cost-saving measure until something goes wrong. If an uninsured painter is injured on your property or accidentally damages your home, you could be held liable for medical costs or repairs. The few hundred dollars you saved on the paint job could turn into thousands or even tens of thousands in liability.
At Stone Painting, we’ve seen many situations where homeowners hired the lowest bidder only to have the painter disappear mid-project, do substandard work that needed to be redone, or cause damage that wasn’t covered by insurance. We’ve even had to completely redo exterior paint jobs that were less than two years old because the previous contractor skipped critical preparation steps. While our bids might not be the absolute lowest, they reflect the true cost of doing the job right the first time, using quality materials, proper techniques, and skilled craftsmen who take pride in their work.
Additional Costs to Consider
Beyond the base cost of painting, there are several additional expenses that might apply to your whole-house painting project. Wood repair is one of the most common add-ons for exterior painting. Many Overland Park homes have wood trim, siding, or architectural details that develop rot over time due to moisture exposure. Before painting can be done properly, this damaged wood needs to be replaced. Minor wood repairs might add a few hundred dollars to your project, while extensive rot in multiple areas could add $1,000 or more.
If your home has serious moisture issues, mildew remediation might be necessary before painting can begin. This is particularly common on north-facing walls that don’t receive much direct sunlight. Professional mildew treatment ensures the growth is killed at the root and won’t bleed through your new paint. This usually adds a modest amount to your project cost, perhaps $200 to $500 depending on the severity.
Color consultation services are another potential add-on that many homeowners find valuable. Choosing paint colors can be overwhelming with thousands of options available, and what looks perfect on a small sample card might look completely different on your entire house. Some painting companies, including Stone Painting, offer color consultation services where an experienced designer helps you select colors that complement your home’s architecture, your neighborhood aesthetic, and your personal preferences. This service might cost a couple hundred dollars but can prevent costly mistakes and buyer’s remorse.
If you’re painting an older home, lead paint testing and remediation might be required or advisable. Homes built before 1978 often contain lead-based paint, which requires special handling and disposal procedures to protect your family’s health. Professional lead remediation adds significantly to project costs, sometimes doubling them, but it’s essential for safety, particularly if you have young children in the home.
Finally, consider the timing of your project. Many painting contractors in Overland Park are extremely busy during spring and fall, which are the ideal seasons for exterior painting. Scheduling your project during these peak times might mean waiting longer to get on the schedule or potentially paying a premium. Summer and mild winter days can also work well for painting in Kansas, and scheduling during these less busy times might give you more flexibility on timing and potentially more competitive pricing.