Is that $400 on your contract? If so, how exactly is it worded? Minimal floor prep... Or does it say float low areas, or something to that effect???? He has certainly under bid the floor prep, in order to get you to sign a lower cost proposal/contract!!! You signed a contract to complete the job to manufacturer requirements. I would hold him to the original quote. I don't know the laws in your state about contracts, but here if they sign it and your contracted and they back out, you can get it done by another contractor, and have them pay the difference, in cost, if higher then the original contract. This is the EXACT reason I do not put a firm number on floor prep. Even if you can see the substrate, it is very hard to estimate the amount of "mud" or the man hours it is going to take to get it done right. Putting a number on it and underbidding, causes corners to be cut in the most important part of the installation. Over bidding it, makes your client think your ripping them off. That's why I do all floor prep at, Time & Materials. Since I can't see the project myself, I can't tell if it needs a full self leveler(which is rare) or just to grind the highs & fill the lows. In the wood/concrete junction picture, I could screed that and make it work, given the wood is exactly even with the concrete, as it should be if done right.

Cool house! Oodles of potential! But you've got a lot going on here with the openness and adding a feature wall colour will not be doing the architecture any favours. I would keep it simple and go with one colour throughout. I would go with a white for the walls and the currently painted trimwork. Let the wood accents be the star of your house. That being said, there are 2 things that bother me in the photos. First, the dining room, why does it have a railing? Looks like a weird adult playpen. I would remove that railing and build wall-to-wall steps on each side of the dining room that go down to the lower levels and that would make your space more open and accessible. The other thing that bothers me is the very traditional furniture and lighting. I couldn't tell by your description if the furniture is yours or the previous owners. I would definitely replace all the lighting with something in a more contemporary style. Your furniture should also be simple lines and more minimal. You have an opportunity to make this a really special house. The architecture is already cool, what you do with it could make it awesomely cool!!

Photos didn’t upload to post. Here they are.

Thanks so much for the input. Let me know if you happen to know particular paint brands and colors you can recommend (the paint chips are fun but hard to assess). Also, any experience with non-VOC paint?