Interior Painting across Plainville, Massachusetts.

The Census puts the median year built for local housing at 1978, but that midpoint hides a wide spread. About 13% of the 4,470 housing units date from 1939 or earlier, the 1970s alone account for 16%, and roughly 38% went up between 1980 and 2009. Inside, those groups call for different prep, different primers and different precautions.

Jewelry production began at Slackville, now Plainville Center, between 1830 and 1870. For those years the Massachusetts Historical Commission lists central-chimney houses, central-chimney cottages and side-hall cottages as the most widespread house types, and for 1870 to 1915 it names side-hall cottages in Victorian Gothic/Queen Anne or plain mid-Victorian designs. Some bungalows and individual Dutch Colonial cottages were added between 1915 and 1940.

Plaster walls and old trim in the pre-war cottages

Houses from the 1800s and early 1900s were typically finished with plaster rather than drywall. Old plaster can hide hairline cracks, loose keys behind the surface, and patches from earlier repairs. Before any color goes on, cracks are cut out and filled, loose sections are secured, and repairs are primed so they do not flash through the finish coat.

Window casings, baseboards and doors in these houses may carry several layers of paint, and the older coats can be oil-based. Latex applied straight over glossy oil will peel, so the trim needs a scuff sand and a bonding primer first. Our comparison of latex and oil-based paint explains why.

Lead dust in rooms painted before 1978

About 53% of local housing units were built before 1980. The Census groups years by decade, so that figure runs slightly past the 1978 federal lead paint cutoff, but it shows how many homes may have lead under their newer coats. Sanding or scraping those layers indoors creates fine dust that settles on floors and sills.

Under the EPA Renovation, Repair and Painting rule, contractors who disturb paint in pre-1978 homes must be certified and follow lead-safe work practices: sealing off the room, misting before scraping, HEPA vacuuming and a cleaning check at the end. The steps are laid out on our lead-safe painting page.

1970s and 1980s rooms

Houses from the 1970s onward generally have drywall, which is quicker to prep but shows its own problems: popped nails, cracked tape at ceiling corners, and dents along hallways. Textured or popcorn ceilings from that period need care, because rolling paint onto loose texture can pull it off in sheets. Testing a small area first shows whether the texture will hold.

Flat ceiling paint hides seams well, while eggshell or satin on walls and semi-gloss on trim stand up to cleaning. The guide to premium and builder-grade paint covers when a better product earns its cost.

Manufactured homes and apartments

Mobile homes make up about 7% of the housing stock. Some manufactured homes have vinyl-covered gypsum wall panels with battens over the seams. A glossy vinyl face will not hold ordinary latex, so it needs cleaning, a light scuff and an adhesion primer before the finish coats.

About 18% of units are in buildings with five or more apartments, and nearly 30% of occupied homes are rented. In a rental, durable washable finishes and a schedule built around move-out dates help a unit turn over cleanly.