A board member emailed me three competing quotes for repainting the corridors of her 12-storey building and asked a fair question: the highest was almost 40% above the lowest — is the low bid a bargain or a trap? I read all three line by line: the painting itself was priced almost identically. The spread was everything else — prep, product, logistics, and paperwork the cheap quote simply never mentioned. This post is for condo boards and property managers comparing painting bids this season — here’s how to read what isn’t written.
1. “Two coats” means nothing without the prep line
Roughly 70% of the labour in a corridor repaint that lasts is preparation — washing scuffed walls, patching anchor holes, sanding patches flat, spot-priming every repair. The paint is the fast part. When one quote is dramatically cheaper, prep is where the money came out.
A real scope spells it out: degrease and wash high-touch areas, patch and sand, spot-prime repairs, then two finish coats. A thin scope says “supply and apply two coats of premium paint.” Both are technically painting. Only one will still look right in year three.
What to look at: Find the prep paragraph in each quote you’re holding. If a bid doesn’t describe surface preparation in a few specific steps, price it as paint-over-everything — that’s what you’ll get.
2. If the quote doesn’t name the product, you can’t compare prices
“Premium paint” is not a specification. A builder-grade eggshell and a scrubbable commercial corridor product are very different cans — on a high-traffic hallway, the cheap one shows every touch-up and burnishes shiny wherever cleaners wipe it.
Ask every bidder to name the manufacturer, product line, and sheen in writing — it lets you compare bids on identical terms and gives you something enforceable when the cans arrive on site. I’ve walked jobs where the spec said one thing and the delivery slips said another. The board only caught it because the product was named in the contract.
What to look at: Check whether each quote names an actual product line and sheen. If one bid names the product and another says “equivalent paint,” they are not the same price even when the numbers match.
3. Occupied-building logistics are a real cost — someone pays for them
Corridor work in an occupied building is as much coordination as it is painting: resident notices, floor and elevator protection, low-odour products, keeping egress clear, daily cleanup so the building stays livable for the two or three weeks the crew is in it. That coordination costs real money, and bids that include it show it.
The cheapest quote usually assumes none of this. The crew shows up as if the building were empty, and the complaints land on the property manager’s desk — which means the board pays for the gap anyway, just in a different currency.
What to look at: Look for a line about working in an occupied building — notices, protection, hours, cleanup. If it isn’t there, ask the bidder to add it in writing and watch what happens to the price.
4. The paperwork tells you who is actually showing up
Before price, I’d want three documents from any bidder: a current WSIB clearance certificate, proof of commercial liability insurance, and confirmation of who performs the work — their own crew or a subcontractor. The answers explain low bids fast: a contractor who can’t produce a clearance certificate is pricing the job without the overhead that protects you if someone gets hurt on your property.
What to look at: Make the three documents a condition of bidding, not a condition of award. The bidders who push back have answered your question.
What to do if you’re comparing quotes right now
Don’t pick the low bid or the high bid — pick the complete one, and make the others requote against its scope. If none of the quotes on your table spell out prep, product, and occupied-building logistics, the comparison hasn’t started yet.
I review painting scopes and walk buildings for condo boards and property managers across Ottawa, including Kanata, Nepean, Barrhaven, Orleans, Stittsville, and Westboro. If you want a second set of eyes on a repaint scope before it goes to the board, I’ll tell you what’s missing. No charge.
Call me at 613.325.3011 or email yasir@heims.ca.
— Yasir, HEIMS Construction
HEIMS Construction is an Ottawa-based commercial painting contractor specializing in mid-rise and high-rise condominium buildings, multifamily properties, and commercial facilities. We serve Ottawa and surrounding communities including Kanata, Nepean, Barrhaven, Manotick, Orleans, Stittsville, and Westboro. We are members of the Painting and Decorating Contractors of Canada (PDCA) and carry full WSIB and liability coverage on every project.