THE APARTMENT FIXER

Artist, Painter, Handyman in New York City. 347-985-0583

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Small art brushes for small detail work. #apartmentfixer #nycpainter #details

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Custom Artwork in progress. #apartmentfixer #dubblebubble #modernart #art #donzuniga #color

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Williamsburg wallpaper install. Cool wallpaper, huh? 👌 #apartmentfixer #wallpaper #groovy

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East 9th street, Williamsburg. Banana leaf wallpaper install. Preparing the music before the job commences. @freeride #apartmentfixer #williamsburg #wallpaperinstall

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Hiring an Apartment Painter in New York City: 5 Contract Tips From a Lawyer/Painter

So, you live in New York City, and you are going to hire a painter to work on your place.  Whether you plan on researching an interior painter online, hiring from craigslist or another listing site, or hiring based on a referral, you should consider the following contract tips I will give below.  Why? I'm a lawyer, and a painting contractor.  I hear some horror stories from New Yorkers' apartment painting experiences.  This article wont go into what you need to look for before you hire a painter, but what to do after you've vetted and picked your paint contractor.  These tips I give you may help you to get a better deal from your painter, and also may protect you from  horrible experience with your painting contractor if anything goes awry.  

1. Order the materials yourself.  Once you are sure about colors and paint  brand, have the painter make a list of how much paint and and materials will be needed for the scope of the work, and if you have time, order the materials yourself.  If you are OK using Home Depot paint, you can go and fill the basket with whatever you need (at a huge savings over local hardware stores) and they will deliver the materials to your place for less than $50 anywhere in NYC.  You will see that paint and supplies are about half the price as your local hardware store.  You can also call some of the local paint vendors and order right over the phone, and they will gladly deliver for free (but again, their paint is going to be much more expensive than Home Depot's paint). If you are not cost sensitive, you can order from Merit Kaplan and they deliver anywhere in Manhattan.  Why do this?   Because many painters charge a premium for the materials if they buy them, and some may even charge you for the highest quality paint, but actually use the contractor grade, and pocketing the difference.

2. Get your painter to outline the entire estimate in detail, and itemize each separate fee the painter is charging you.  This way, if you change your mind later and decide not to have the bathroom painted with chalk-board paint, you can easily see what it will cost you to eliminate that part of the job.  It also allows you to pay your painter progress payments based on each completed section of the paint job.  This will keep the painter's estimate honest too, since the estimate wont be an arbitrary number of "$6000.00 to paint".  Its better for both you and your painter to see that it costs $60 to paint the door, and there are 10 doors, so the $600.00 makes sense. 

3. If the project will take more than a few days, or will require more than 2 visits, have your painter submit a work schedule of when he will be there, and when each task will be finished.  Incentivize the contract based on this schedule, so that if your painter doesn't finish the tasks on schedule, you will get a discount, but if he does, he will get a bonus. For instance, finishing the job ahead of schedule or on time should earn the painter a 10% bonus, cash.  But if e finishes more than 2 days late, you should get a 10% discount, and 1 point for each additional day beyond the 3rd day.  Why do this?  Painting contractors are notoriously flaky.  If your painter tells you it will take a week, then it will probably take 3.  Sometimes this is not the fault of the painter, and no penalty should be assessed, but sometimes your painter just isn't organized, or is juggling too many jobs, or is just lazy.  You will have to live in your apartment and suffer through the paint process, If your painter knows your project is time sensitive, he will more likely be there finishing the contract.

4. Make sure the contract requires the painter to get your written authorization before adding any fees to the contract, and releases you from liability for unauthorized work add-ons.  You may have agreed to pay $3500, and would surely not be happy that the painter is billing you for extras amounting to hundreds of dollars in additional fees.

5. Be sure to pay only a small deposit--enough to start the job. Structure the payments throughout the project based on progress points, so that your painter can work toward those points, and expect to be paid once those tasks are complete.  This will assure the work is getting done is stages, and that you aren't extending too much cash before you see the quality of work.  If the quality is bad, you can fire the painter without losing the whole budget.

Best, 

Don the Painter

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Wall Murals are The New Art

Lately, I have been booking a lot of small jobs to install self-stick wall murals. These are large, wall-sized murals of cityscapes, art, beach scenes, logos, etc. that come large enough to cover a large part of a wall, or the whole thing.  I installed the beach mural last week for someone living in an upper west side 1 bedroom apartment in New York City:

Of course, it came out very nice.

So, whats the benefit of choosing a mural over wallpaper?

A client told me that it seemed like a great way to temporarily cover a wall, since these can be easily removed if need be, unlike wallpaper, which may damage a wall if you try to remove it, since it is glued to the wall.  Vendors such as MuralsYourWay  tout the benefits of the murals on their websites, stating 

" . . . an excellent choice for apartment dwellers, trade shows, corporate sales promotions, and for anyone who likes to change decor styles frequently. The material sticks to most wall surfaces and is removed easily and without damage for transport to a new location when needed. Installation is very easy - just peel, position and stick.

Great for: Most wall surfaces (smooth walls), any image, reusable, no paste needed,outdoor, mirrors/doors...

Lightly textured finish-comparable quality to our vinyl & canvas.

Reusable - wrinkle resistant & can be reinstalled many times.

Adheres to nearly any surface - just peel & stick.

Our removable murals are great for quick change decor.

Simple installation - no paste or tools needed.

Easy to remove, and tear proof."

There are a large variety of self-stick murals from many vendors, and they come is many different scenes, sizes and prices.  Covering a 10' by 15' wall with the following cityscape from EazyWallz can cost you $850.00, plus another $300 to have it installed by a professional.

These murals make for a fun, reversible alternative to wallpaper.  

If you choose to install a stick-and-peel mural, giveme a call, and I'll give you a fair price to hang it like a professional.

Cheers!

Don

www.theapartmentfixer.com