PSP Recommendations

ADVICE

Preparation
Let the painters move the furniture around.If they are experienced they should be skilled at consolidating and protecting the furniture in work areas before they begin preparation. There is always cleaning up to do, but be sure they do the bulk of it, and go over that at the outset as one of your expectations.

Payment
50% up front is often a gesture of goodwill-but to be safe it depends on the size of the project and how much money will be involved in terms of labor and materials=it would be a bad experience on your part if you felt you got locked in or trapped by bad painters for the job. See if they are willing to do an initial proving week to show you what we do-so they can see the scope of the work and the effort required.

There will invariably be many small touch ups at the very end -- you might pay the balance when the job is basically finished, and hold back 10 percent until they're all taken care of.

Bids
It is also good to keep the estimate or bid flexible regarding the work as it unfolds because either party can get squeezed by either underbidding or overbidding-It may be better to offer up projected labor rates for the number of workers and the time required and a rough estimate for materials.Usually you can bet that everything will take twice as long as you estimate and that you will strike hitches with the process with unforeseen issues that unravel as soon as you get into the condition of walls and past construction or damage and wear issues.

Trust and common sense
Plan on being there every day until you feel confident leaving them home alone....and in any case, you should hide your jewelry and other expensive/liftable things. Once you've established a good working relationship with the painters they should be honest people who work a lot on trust so you should be able to leave them comfortably for periods of time as they go about their work.

Reminder
It’s always a good idea to check with the Better Business Bureau for complaints against someone you are interested in hiring as well as double checking that the person is licensed and insured.