A sign on a finished job helps, but the homes three neighborhoods over with the same peeling trim never see it.
Painting play · Exterior by home age
Exterior painting leads from homes that are due for a repaint.
Exterior paint wears out on a schedule you can predict. Spur finds owner-occupied homes by build year, siding type, and how long the owner has been there, writes a card that names the house and what the weather has done to it, and mails it before your spring calendar fills.
Free forever plan · No card · 20 property searches a month
USPSFirst-Class
Greg Lindqvist2218 SE Linwood AvePortland, OR 97202Scan to book your assessment
Greg L. scanned your exterior assessment card · 6 min ago
AI-written for this owner · Mailed in 2 days
Build yearplus siding type and years owned on every record
1 cardper home, naming its age and siding
QR per houseso you know which owners want a price
The problem
Every house on the street needs paint eventually. Most painters wait for the phone to ring.
"Spring exterior special" goes to new builds with fresh paint and to 1950s homes with bare wood alike. Half the list isn't ready.
Peeling paint becomes soft fascia and window sills. By the time they call, the job needs carpentry and the price scares them.
How it works
From list to mailbox in one workflow.
Five steps from a build-year filter to a booked color consult.
app.usespur.com
See it in Spur
A Portland exterior repaint list by home age
Sample owner-occupied homes split by era and siding, so each gets the right message. Names are partly masked.
Zips 97202 + 97206Single-familyOwner-occupiedBuilt before 2000Owned 7+ yrs
- Greg L.2218 SE Linwood Ave1,840 sq ft · built 1964 · cedarPre-1978: lead-safeOwned 9 yrs
- Hannah & Joe T.4407 SE Ogden St2,120 sq ft · built 1926 · wood lapPre-1978: lead-safeOwned 14 yrs
- Ruth A.6315 SE 52nd Ave1,560 sq ft · built 1987 · T1-11Owned 11 yrs
- Marco D.3830 SE Henderson St2,410 sq ft · built 1995 · fiber cementOwned 8 yrsTwo-story
- Patrice O.5512 SE Bybee Blvd1,710 sq ft · built 1948 · wood shinglePre-1978: lead-safeOwned 22 yrs
AI draft for Greg L. · 2218 SE Linwood Ave
YOUR CEDAR SIDING ON LINWOOD AVE HAS HAD 9 SUMMERS OF SUN.
Hi Greg, you've owned your home on Linwood for about nine years. Cedar siding in Portland usually needs fresh paint every five to seven years, and the south and west walls tend to go first.
We'll walk the outside of the house for free, check for peeling, bare wood, and soft trim, and leave you a written price. Because your home was built in 1964, we test for lead and follow EPA lead-safe practices on every prep job.
Scan the code to pick a time. We're booking exteriors for April through June now.
Harbor Line Painting · OR CCB #241187 · EPA Lead-Safe Certified Firm · (503) 555-0162
Sample data for illustration. Your results depend on your market and filters.
Playbook
How to find homes that are due for exterior paint
Exterior paint has a working life, and it's shorter than most homeowners think. Painters generally plan on five to ten years between full repaints, depending on the siding, the paint, the prep, and how much sun and rain the walls take. Wood siding and trim sit at the short end. Fiber cement, stucco, and brick hold paint longer. South- and west-facing walls fail first.
That makes home age and ownership length a useful proxy for need. A home owned seven or more years by the same owner has probably gone a full paint cycle on their watch, and many owners put it off until peeling shows from the street. Combine years owned with build year and siding type and you have a list where most homes are either due or close to it.
Treat pre-1978 homes differently. Lead-based paint was banned for residential use in 1978, and the EPA estimates that 87% of homes built before 1940, 69% built from 1940 to 1959, and 24% built from 1960 to 1977 contain some lead paint. The EPA's Renovation, Repair and Painting (RRP) Rule requires a certified firm and lead-safe work practices when you disturb more than 20 square feet of painted exterior surface on these homes. Say that you're certified on the card. It's a reason to choose you over the cheapest bid.
Lead with an assessment, not a discount. Owners of older homes worry about what's under the paint: soft fascia, rotted sills, failing caulk. A free walk-around with a written price is a low-risk next step, and it lets you price carpentry honestly instead of discovering it mid-job.
Time it to your season. Exterior work depends on temperature and dry days, so mail in late winter for spring jobs and in mid-summer for early fall. Owners need a few weeks to get bids and pick colors, so the card should land six to eight weeks before you want crews on site.
9×return on a year of Spur Team from one $5,400 exterior repaint
One exterior repaint covers years of Spur.
- Spur Team: $49/mo billed annually = $588/yr
- 800 postcards on Team at $0.94 each = $752
- One $5,400 exterior repaint = 9× your subscription, and about 4× software and postage combined
Example math. Job size, response rate, and close rate vary by market and home size. Run your own numbers →
One tool, not four
Spur vs. the usual way painters find exterior work
What you needThe usual waySpur
Homes filtered by age, siding, and years ownedEvery door on a carrier route✓ Built in
Owner name on every card"Current Resident"✓ Built in
Copy that names the house and sidingOne spring special for everyone✓ Built in
Lead-safe language for pre-1978 homesSame card for every era✓ Built in
Knowing who scannedWaiting for calls✓ Built in
Exterior by Home Age by the numbers
Why home age predicts exterior work
87%
of homes built before 1940 contain some lead-based paint, as do 24% of those built 1960–1977
20 sq ft
of disturbed exterior paint on a pre-1978 home triggers the EPA Renovation, Repair and Painting Rule
9×
return on a year of Spur Team from one $5,400 exterior repaint
FAQ
Exterior painting lead questions
How often does a house exterior need to be painted?
Most homes need a full exterior repaint every five to ten years. Wood siding and trim usually need it sooner, while stucco, brick, and fiber cement hold paint longer. Sun-facing walls wear out first.
How do painters find homes that need exterior paint?
Filter owner-occupied homes by build year, siding, and years owned. Owners who have been in the home seven or more years are likely due, and homes with wood siding are due more often.
Do I need EPA certification to paint older homes?
If you disturb more than 20 square feet of exterior paint on a home built before 1978, the EPA RRP Rule requires a certified firm, a certified renovator, and lead-safe work practices. Some states run their own programs with similar rules.
What should an exterior painting postcard offer?
A free exterior assessment with a written price. Owners of older homes want to know about rot and prep costs before they commit, and a discount doesn't answer that.
When should I mail exterior painting leads?
Six to eight weeks before your season opens, usually late winter for spring work and mid-summer for fall work, with a follow-up three weeks later.
Keep exploring
Related plays and guides
Start in minutes. No card required.
Fill next season with homes that are due.
Pull owner-occupied homes by age and siding in your service area, and mail your first exterior assessment offer today. Free to start.
Find homes due for exterior paint — freeFree forever plan · No card · 20 property searches a month
Prefer a walkthrough? Book a demo