Exterior paint costs in Colorado Springs

In the Old North End of Colorado Springs, a neighborhood design guide has real opinions about your colors. It recommends a palette of at least two or three colors, says five or more can work, and suggests muted, earth-tone shades with contrasting colors to pick out trim and details. It asks owners to avoid bright colors and strong pastels. It also calls sandblasting, water blasting and propane or butane torches inappropriate ways to strip paint from historic houses.

A multi-color scheme looks great, but it takes more time. Every color change means more cutting in by hand around brackets, window trim and eave moldings. That's worth knowing when you compare a one-color plan with a four-color one.

Summer weather adds its own limit. The Colorado Climate Center describes the steep rise from the plains to Pikes Peak as a "thunderstorm machine" in summer, building storms on almost any day with enough humidity. For painters, that often means a morning start and an eye on the clouds after lunch, since a passing storm can spot a fresh coat.

Most homes in the region are far newer than the Old North End's, with more than a third built since 2000, and a simple one- or two-color house is usually a far quicker job than a Victorian with five trim colors.