When Is it Time to Paint Your Home's Exterior?

July 7, 2025

How to Know When Your Exterior House Paint Needs a Change

When you’ve bought a new home, there are a few things that you have to do right away like unpack, visit utility companies, and repaint the house exterior. While most contractors do paint houses before they are sold, it doesn’t usually hold up.

You’ll need to apply fresh paint before the thin coat starts to chip or fade. This won’t be the only paint job you’ll ever have to do either. Paint has to be replaced every few years or so.

To help you repaint your home before damage starts to show, here is a guide on how to tell you need to update your exterior house paint.

1. Flaking and Bubbling

There are many reasons why your exterior paint could start to flake and bubble. The most common reason is that you or the person who had the home before you failed to weatherproof the home. Moisture from the elements can cause mold which doesn’t do wonders for your paint.

Speaking of the weather, if there is little shade in your yard the heat from the sun can crack your paint job. Even the breeze from the ocean can cause damage to your paint if you live near the beach.

2. Fading Paint

Two big things can cause fading paint. The first is again, the sun. The hot beams can rain down on it and bleach it.

The other reason is condensation that ends up on the outside of your home. If you notice any water drips this is a huge sign of water damage. You’ll want to get it fixed before you apply a new coat of paint because if you don’t the new coat will suffer the same fate as the old.

3. Your Other Paint Color Has Started to Morph

Unless you spring for UV paint, your color will start to morph on down the line. You’ll mainly notice this with darker colors. UV rays will bleach it and the lighter version may be a whole different color than the original.

If you already have a light paint color you won’t notice this morphing as much. You can avoid this from happening by planting a few trees for shade, by using UV-resistant paint, or by avoiding painting in hot weather.

4. Boost Your Curb Appeal

If you live in an area populated with gorgeous, freshly painted homes, yours will stand out like sunflower in a sea of daisies if it doesn’t look the same. You may not care if your neighbors judge you but if you plan on selling your home any time soon, the new owner might.

Besides, a fresh coat of paint will up the value of your home. When you do end up selling it you may be able to get more for it than you would have if you kept faded, cracked paint on it.

5. Your House Is New

Going back to our example in the beginning, when contractors put a coat of paint on a home before it goes up for sale, it’s a thin one. It’s enough to prime the wood but not enough to stop it from swelling and shrinking.

We understand buying a new home is expensive so you may not be able to get to it right away. This thin coat will last about 5 years. If you let it go any longer than that before you repaint then damage will start to set in.

6. Chalking

One way to test if you need to repaint is to run your hand against your home siding. If when you pull your hand back you see a gross, chalky substance that means the paint is starting to break down.

This happens to even the best and most expensive paints and when it does you’ll need to repaint before the chalking starts to show on the surface.

7. Rot

Mold and mildew aren’t the only things that can occur from heavy amounts of moisture on your wood siding. If left unattended, you may have to deal with rot. The bad thing about rot is that it doesn’t always make itself obvious.

If you even suspect that you may be dealing with it, give your home siding a poke. If it feels a little squishy then you’ll need to replace the boards. The good thing is that you’ll only have to replace the infected ones.

The bad thing is that you’ll have to repaint the boards as soon as you put them on the house for aesthetics and to protect them from rotting like their predecessors.

8. Repaint Before Your Paint Starts to Chip and Peel

If you wait until your paint starts to chip then you’ll be creating a bunch of extra prep work for yourself. For example, if it chips you’ll have to scrape all the flakes away or else they will show up as ugly chunks in your new paint.

Since we know you don’t have the gift of precognition, the basic time frame on getting a new paint job is about seven years. Even if it doesn’t start showing damage until then, you’ll want to go ahead and paint before it does.

Know When It’s Time to Apply a Fresh Coat of Exterior House Paint

Knowing when to apply a new coat of exterior house paint can save you tons of money on repairs in the long run. It can also help you keep your curb appeal on point and fight against wood rot. Use these tips for telling when it’s time to repaint to keep your home fresh and up to date.

For the best value in quality paint visit Martens Reedsburg True Value Paint Center today. We have the exterior paint and home paint supplies you need to get the job done right!