Step-by-step guide to starting a successful Painters business.
It depends entirely on where you work — some states require a contractor license above a certain job value, others require registration only, and lead-safe certification applies for pre-1978 homes in the US. Check your state contractor board, and carry general liability insurance regardless because commercial clients and many homeowners will ask.
Price from your costs up — labor hours, paint and sundries, overhead, and profit — not from guessing what the customer will accept. New painters most often fail by underbidding prep-heavy jobs, so measure and inspect surfaces carefully before quoting rather than pricing off square footage alone.
They can fill a new company's calendar, but you're paying for shared leads and competing on response speed and price. Treat them as a bridge: track your cost per booked job honestly, and reinvest in reviews and referral relationships that eventually make the lead fees unnecessary.
Residential repaints have short sales cycles, immediate payment, and homeowners who refer neighbors, which suits a new operation. Commercial and new-construction work brings bigger contracts but slower payment terms, bid paperwork, and thinner margins, so most painters add it once cash flow can absorb 30-to-60-day invoices.