Insulation, drywall, paint, and rough finishes

Sequence

1. Insulation — wall and ceiling insulation, plus air-sealing details verified by the energy inspection. Spray foam at rim joists, roof-deck taping, gaskets at top plates.
2. Drywall — hung, taped, mudded (3 coats), sanded.
3. Prime + first coat — walls and ceilings.
4. Trim carpentry — baseboards, casing, crown if scope, stair railings.
5. Paint — final coats on walls and trim.
6. Flooring — hardwood, tile, LVT — installed against the trim, or sometimes with shoe molding added afterward.

Why this is its own phase before the kitchen

Kitchen install is sensitive to dust and to the underlying floor surface. Doing drywall, paint, and the primary flooring first means the kitchen lands on a finished floor in a clean room. Skipping the sequencing — installing cabinets first and trying to finish around them — produces visible joints, paint touch-ups behind cabinets, and floor seams in awkward places.

What's not in this phase

• Kitchen cabinets, counters, backsplash, appliances — separate phase next.
• Bathroom fixtures, tile, vanities — usually batched with the kitchen finish phase.
• Light fixtures, outlet trim, switch plates — final electrical trim phase, after kitchen.

Specifications matter here

The finish quality of the project lives in this phase. Specifications that didn't matter much in design (drywall finish level, paint sheen, trim profile) become visible.

For a band-3 project, Level 4 drywall finish is standard for most rooms; Level 5 for any wall that gets accent lighting (the kitchen open-plan wall, the primary suite). Paint should be a quality interior latex; trim should be a semi-gloss or satin.

When this is done

When the walls are painted, the trim is up, the primary flooring is laid, and the rooms are clean enough to receive cabinets.