Painting a House: How to Give Your Home a Fresh Coat of Paint

painting a house on a ladder
(Image credit: getty images)

Painting a house that's looking tired, dated or in need of a freshen up can really boost its kerb appeal. If you are considering doing it yourself you will need to be well prepared and ready for some serious hard work.

In this guide, we focus on giving you some essential expert tips and tricks on how to get a professional looking finish on rendered exteriors. But don't be afraid to apply this tutorial to clad exteriors such as plastic, wood or brick. The principles are very much the same. 

Steve Jenkins

Steve Jenkins is a freelance content creator with over two decades of experience working in digital and print and was previously the DIY content editor for Homebuilding & Renovating. 

He is a keen DIYer with over 20 years of experience in transforming and renovating the many homes he has lived in. He specialises in painting and decorating, but has a wide range of skills gleaned from working in the building trade for around 10 years and spending time at night school learning how to plaster and plumb.

He has fitted kitchens, tiled bathrooms and kitchens, laid many floors, built partition walls, plastered walls, plumbed in bathrooms, worked on loft conversions and much more. And when he's not sure how to tackle a DIY project he has a wide network of friends – including plumbers, gas engineers, tilers, carpenters, painters and decorators, electricians and builders – in the trade to call upon.