Condo Painting right here in Quincy, Massachusetts.

Census estimates show 40.5% of the city's housing units in buildings with five or more units, and 23.3% in buildings with fifty or more. Those figures count rentals and condos together, so they do not say how many are condominiums. What they do show is that a large share of the city's homes sit in buildings where hallways, entries and exteriors are shared, and where painting anything visible from a corridor can involve more than one decision-maker.

The city's 2019 hazard plan describes Marina Bay as made up primarily of multi-unit condo buildings and large housing clusters along the water. Under state law, though, a condominium can be anything from a large complex to a two-unit house whose two owners act as the association.

What the master deed controls

Massachusetts condominiums are governed by Chapter 183A of the General Laws. The master deed defines which parts of the building are units and which are common areas, and common expenses are shared according to each owner's percentage interest. In practice, the interior walls of your unit are yours to repaint, but your entry door, the corridor walls outside it, balcony railings and the exterior usually are not. The exact line varies by building, so read the master deed and the association's rules before choosing a color for anything facing a shared space.

For trustees and property managers, this split shapes the bid. A common-area job is paid from association funds and often needs board approval, while unit work is a private contract with one owner.

Inside your unit

Unit repaints in larger buildings come with logistics a single-family job does not: reserving the service elevator, protecting hallway floors, working within the building's permitted hours and parking where management allows. An association may also require a certificate of insurance naming it before any contractor starts. Ask your manager what the building requires well before the start date.

The paint itself follows the condition of the walls. Drywall in a newer unit typically needs nail-pop and seam touch-ups and a more washable finish than the builder's flat. A unit carved out of an older house is more likely to have plaster and painted woodwork from before 1978. For room-by-room details, the interior painting page goes further.

• Confirm permitted work hours and elevator booking with management
• Send the association a certificate of insurance if the rules require one
• Check whether the entry door and its trim belong to the unit or the common area

Hallways, stairwells and lobbies

Common areas take constant traffic: rolling luggage, moving dollies, wet boots and hands on every railing. Walls there hold up best in a scrubbable eggshell or satin, with semi-gloss or enamel on doors, frames, handrails and baseboards. Work is usually phased floor by floor so residents always have a clear path to their doors and the stairs, with notices posted ahead of each phase and wet-paint signs on anything freshly coated.

In an older building, the stairwell may be the place where lead is most likely to be disturbed, because railings, balusters and stair stringers have often been repainted many times. With 68.5% of local housing units built before 1980, testing before prep is sensible. Massachusetts lead-safe renovation rules apply when paid work in a pre-1978 building disturbs more than 6 square feet per room inside or 20 square feet outside; the lead-safe painting page explains what changes on site.

Small conversions and shared exteriors

In a two- or three-unit condo, the association may be just the owners themselves, and exterior painting becomes a shared project with a shared budget. Agreeing on scope and color in writing before work starts avoids disputes later. If one owner wants extra work on their own porch or windows, it can be priced separately from the common scope. On buildings close to the shore, the exterior painting page covers storm exposure and prep.