Semi-Gloss or Flat?

We are looking at ways to cut costs and it has been brought up to paint walls with semi-gloss paint so we can wipe them clean and not have to do a full paint.

This would save us A LOT of money, since we have less than 50 apartments and had 27 move-outs this year.

As the leasing agent/manager, my concern is how it will look and how well the new tenants will like it. The property is 30 years old and painting with semi-gloss will show everything!!!

I am changing our lease for 2014 to add a clause about hanging pictures, push-pins and stickers to help with the condition of the walls.

Comments would be greatly appreciated!!!

We use eggshell - not quite as shiny as semi-gloss, but you can still wash it...

I have had a lot of success with addendum about adding holes in the walls, push pins, nails etc. When the questions comes up on "how to" decorate or hang with out nails or push pins etc. I recommend command strips. They work like a charm!

Navaho white-semi gloss. It gives a little updated look as it looks slightly two tone against the bright white gloss baseboard.

I worked on one property that used semi gloss, and it is not pleasing to the eye....The paint was a shade of white, so it looked stark.

You still have to re-paint, because residents ding the walls and get them dirty. It is not cost effective to wash the walls.

In other words, I prefer flat paint except in kitchens and bathrooms. Hope this is helpful.

Happy New Year

Adrienne Taylor

You may want to contact a local Sherwin Williams. I am a contractor for apartments and they've always been willing to give us free paint for 'test' units, or heavily discounted paint for quantity contracts. If you're sure about how much paint you'll need in the coming year(s), you could negotiate a paint purchase agreement at lower rates if you'll guarantee using their paint for all 50 units over the year. Don't use semi-gloss anywhere but bathrooms and kitchen. Eggshell or flat everywhere else.

Thank you for the input. It has been decided we will paint with eggshell. I have been using it in the kitchens and bathrooms.

Now, it has been suggested we change paint and paint color.

Nearly all of our units are painted with the same color. Sherwin Williams, Macadamia with white trim.

I believe it will cost more to change color and go with a cheaper brand of paint in the beginning.

I did a little research and a few brands of paint are slightly cheaper than our contractor price, but I'm concerned about quality and the fact it will take more paint to cover what we have.

We are a new community, and in the few that we have turned we use semi-gloss. We use a tan color with white trim. The tan really helps hide things we don't want seen. During construction all the walls were painted with flat paint (still the same tan) and just don't hold up as well. We have found we can save ourselves from a full paint doing it this way.