Your major problem is to find out just why the peeling is happening, and correct that first. Flippers have no concerns for doing a job right--just fast and cheap--so I'd say they used the wrong primers and paint combinations--and I'd bet with almost no prep. Most people recommend an oil-based primer over old wood, then you can top it with either latex or oil paint, latex being the common choice--but you HAVE to prep properly first. And as for lead paint--I believe it only needs to be removed entirely where a child can reach it--say within four feet of sills and wall height. A lot of people are praising steam removal of it as it causes no dust. Residing is the last thing I'd do--you will never match the quality of the old siding with newer. Only replace it where it is too rotted to save.

Pen is an ink so consider it to be a stain that will bleed through latex paints and primers. You can either try to remove the pen marks or use a stain killing primer like Kilz or Bin and then touch up. Either way, you will likely need to touch up. I would probably use lacquer thinner to get the pen marks off and then touch up (easier than actually using the stain killing primer). I'm sure you don't have lacquer thinner on hand, so try some rubbing alcohol, Goo Gone, Soft Scrub with Bleach, hairspray, toothpaste, magic eraser, etc...so many things here that people have claimed to have worked. And then touch up.

What color are you painting Stacy? I enjoy painting but only if all the furniture is out of the room. I recently painted our master bedroom and had to do one wall at a time. One coat of primer, two coats of paint, two coats of trim paint and then on to the next wall. Took forever but it looks great now. The color is called Silver Sage and is perfect for our room! Today I am steam cleaning the carpet in the dining room, an oriental rug in the living room and the couch. Just now finished and I have fans running to help it dry faster. It's a nice day here so I have the doors and windows open and there is a nice breeze. I like to start the new year off with a clean house! ~Betsy

We did not do the painting ourselves but did get references from the painter we did hire. Here's our before and after:We went around our neighborhood and compared paint choices on a lot of other houses to see how we felt about making changes. Originally I wanted a darker and slightly less intense teal, but the painter wanted to use a different brand of paint, and so I settled on a more intense color. It was exactly the hue that I wanted, and my brother preferred it, and now I am happy that we used this color instead. Our house is on the west side of Los Angeles, less than three miles from the beach, and so color schemes here are probably brighter than most parts of the country, except Florida. I'm very glad to be rid of the fake shutters, and I don't miss the planter shelf, even though it was original to the house from 1950. We never used it, and so it only collected dirt. The front yard is busy enough without it.