Houston is hard on exterior paint. Ninety-degree days, ninety-percent humidity, afternoon downpours, and sun that bakes the south and west sides of a house for half the year. When a paint job starts peeling after two summers, the cause is almost always what happened before the paint went on.
Start with washing. Pressure-washing removes chalked paint, dirt, and pollen, but the shaded north side of most Houston homes also carries mildew, which needs to be treated with a proper cleaner, not just blasted. Painting over mildew means it grows right back through the new coat.
Then scrape, sand, and prime. Any spot where the old paint has lifted needs to come off down to a sound edge, and bare wood, Hardie board, or stucco needs primer before finish paint. Failed caulk around windows, trim, and siding joints gets cut out and replaced. This is slow work, and it's where most of the difference between a three-year paint job and a ten-year paint job lives.
Product matters too. A 100% acrylic exterior paint with UV resistance and mildewcide, applied when the surface isn't wet and the temperature isn't extreme, will outlast a bargain coating every time. Two coats, not one. And timing: spring and fall are the easiest seasons, but with the right scheduling an exterior can be painted almost year-round here.