Austin, TX
Mon - Sun: 9am - 9pm
(512) 789-4240
A small city with its own rulebook
Rollingwood covers less than one square mile, right where MoPac meets Bee Caves Road. George B. Hatley began building it in 1955, and it became its own city in May 1963. The 2020 Census counted 515 homes. It has its own city hall on Nixon Drive and its own building code.
That last part is why this page exists. As house painters in Rollingwood, we follow Rollingwood's rules, not Austin's. They are not the same as West Lake Hills' rules either, even though the two cities sit side by side and share the 78746 ZIP code. So before we set a start date, we check three things: which days we can work, whether your trees can be trimmed yet, and what the current water stage means for washing.
Medrano's Painting has painted Central Texas homes since 2014. Our shop is in East Austin, about 9 miles away. Ask for a free estimate and we will come walk the house with you.
Rollingwood rules that shape a paint job
No building permit to paint
Rollingwood's code says you need a permit to build, change or move a building or a fence. Then it lists work that needs no permit at all. Paint, stain, plaster, trim work, drywall, wallpaper, cabinets, gutters and roofing materials are all on that list. So a repaint, inside or out, can start without a trip to City Hall.
A new fence is a different story. It needs a permit, and permitted outdoor work, including a fence, comes with a neighbor notice. The applicant has to give written notice to owners within 250 feet and post a sign in the yard. The building official then acts on it within 15 to 45 days. If your paint job is part of a bigger project, plan for that wait.
Weekday hours for loud work
Rollingwood keeps construction to weekdays, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Weekends and city holidays are off limits. On Saturdays, indoor work is allowed from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. if it stays inside a finished shell, is quiet, and needs no big equipment. Breaking the rule is a Class C misdemeanor with a fine of up to $500, and each day counts as a new offense.
Painting gets a little more room. The code lists painting as minor home upkeep that can happen outside those hours, as long as it causes no noise, odor or dust problem for the neighbors. Loud prep, like pressure washing and power sanding, belongs in weekday hours. Quiet brush and roller work is where there is some give.
Trees need a permit, and oaks need patience
Branches that rub a wall scrape off new paint and keep trim damp. In Rollingwood, cutting them back takes a plan. The city requires a permit for any tree trimming or removal. Oaks cannot be trimmed from February 1 through June 30, to slow oak wilt, unless the city approves emergency work first. The city lists the fine as $500.
If limbs hang over your roof or lean on your siding, have a tree service get the permit and trim them between July and January. Then a spring paint date is not stuck waiting on the calendar.
Dumpsters and portable toilets
Rollingwood does not allow dumpsters or storage pods that can be seen from the street or a neighbor's property. Portable toilets are not allowed at all, unless an exception applies. For work that needs no permit, such as painting, the owner must register with the city secretary first, and the limit is 90 days. Most paint jobs never need either one. If a big exterior job might, we talk it through with you before day one.
Exterior painter work on older Rollingwood homes
Census estimates for 2020 to 2024 put the median Rollingwood home at 1984. About 4 in 10 homes went up before 1980, and about 1 in 4 were built in the 1950s and 1960s. The 1980s were the busiest decade. Only about 1 in 6 homes date from 2010 or later.
For an exterior painter, the age of the house changes the prep:
- Homes built before 1978. The EPA says these homes are more likely to have lead-based paint. Test old trim, doors, eaves and window frames before anyone scrapes or sands them.
- Tired wood trim. Decades of rain soak into fascia and soffit boards. Trim work is on Rollingwood's no-permit list, so our wood rot repair can replace soft boards right before the paint goes on.
- Newer custom homes. A first repaint on a newer house is mostly careful prep, crisp lines and good color choices.
Our exterior painting covers siding, trim, doors and eaves. For fences and decks, wood staining needs no permit here, while building a new fence does.
Interior painter work inside Rollingwood homes
Indoor projects are the easiest to schedule in Rollingwood. They need no permit, and quiet painting fits the city's work-hour rules well.
- Interior painting: Walls, ceilings, trim and doors, with the furniture covered and the floors protected.
- Cabinet painting: Nearly 1 in 4 homes here were built in the 1980s. If your kitchen still has its first cabinets, painting them is a fast way to update the room.
- Popcorn ceiling removal: In a home from before 1980, a textured ceiling may contain asbestos. The EPA says the only way to know is a lab test, with samples taken by an accredited inspector. Test before anyone scrapes.
- Drywall repair and texture matching: We patch cracks and dents and blend the texture so the fix does not show through the paint.
- Wallpaper removal: We strip old paper, repair the wall under it, and prime it for fresh color.
- Epoxy floor coating: A coated garage floor resists oil and sweeps clean.
Washing a Rollingwood house when water is short
Rollingwood runs its own small water utility, with about 539 home connections. The City of Austin supplies all of its drinking water and treats its wastewater. But Rollingwood writes its own drought plan, and that plan decides how we pressure wash:
- Stage 2: Washing driveways, walks and other hard surfaces is banned, except for health and safety. A pressure washer used on a house must have a water recycling unit and a trigger nozzle that uses no more than 3.5 gallons a minute. A hand-held hose with a shut-off nozzle is allowed.
- Stage 3: Pressure washing is banned. The city may grant a variance on your watering day, but only for health and safety.
We check the city's current stage before we book. If the stage rules out a pressure washer, we talk through other ways to get the surface clean enough for paint.
Where we paint in Rollingwood
Rollingwood is small enough to know by its streets. Rollingwood Park's lower park sits on Nixon Drive near City Hall, and its upper park runs along Rollingwood Drive. The ballfields became known as Hatley Park. The land came from George B. Hatley, who sold 11 acres to the Western Hills Optimist Club. That land was bordered by Rollingwood Drive, Nixon, Gentry, Wallis and Pleasant Drive.
The city sits at MoPac and Bee Caves Road, close to Zilker Park and downtown Austin. Bee Caves Road, also called RM 2244, runs west through Rollingwood and West Lake Hills toward Bee Cave. Homes here use the 78746 ZIP code, and so do homes in West Lake Hills. The two cities have different rules, so we confirm which one your home is in.
Rollingwood is not only homes. The city reports dozens of medical offices and several large office developments, and Rollingwood Center alone has three office buildings. For offices and suites, see our commercial painting page.
From our Northdale Drive shop in East Austin, Rollingwood is about 9 miles by road. The usual route crosses town and passes Zilker Park on Barton Springs Road. Plan on about 20 minutes with light traffic, and more at rush hour.
Why Rollingwood homeowners hire Medrano's Painting
- Owner-led. Antonio Medrano is hands-on, and reviewers often mention him by name.
- Clean, careful work. Attention to detail and a tidy job site are what reviewers bring up most.
- Quick quotes. Several reviewers point out how fast they got a price.
- 4.9 stars from 86 Google reviews.
- Painting since 2014. Licensed and insured, and Latino-owned.
- Open Monday to Sunday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., so you can call after work.
What a Rollingwood paint job costs
Most Rollingwood homes date from the 1950s to brand-new builds, so one flat price would not fit them. We price your job after a free visit. These things change the number most:
- Age of the home. Trim from before 1978 may need a lead test and more careful prep.
- Wood repair. Soft fascia, soffit or trim adds time before paint.
- Trees. Limbs that touch the house need a permit and a tree service first.
- Scheduling limits. Weekday-only loud work and the water stage can shape the timeline.
- Height and size. Two-story walls take more ladder work.
Call (512) 789-4240 or request your free estimate.
Get a free painting estimate in Rollingwood today
Tell us what you want painted and when you hope to start. We will check Rollingwood's rules for your job, walk the house with you, and give you a clear written quote.
We also paint next door in West Lake Hills, farther west in Lakeway, and to the northwest in Steiner Ranch. Contact us or call (512) 789-4240 to get started.
