It's actually even worse; a fresh coat of paint can truly hide actual problems. I've had that experience house shopping myself. I tended to shy away from places

It's actually even worse; a fresh coat of paint can truly hide actual problems. I've had that experience house shopping myself. I tended to shy away from places that smelled like paint, even though often they're painted for "good" reasons. Hell, just last weekend I read a home inspection that specifically cited inability to assess interior and exterior wall cracking due to recent paint.