Giving your home a fresh coat of paint is one of the easiest and least expensive things you can do to make it more appealing to potential home buyers. If you have painted in the last couple of years and the colors are fairly neutral, then you can probably get away with some touch-ups here and there.
On the other hand, if your home is filled with wallpaper, is painted with vivid colors or hasn’t been updated in awhile, you should seriously consider repainting. It can have an enormous impact on how well your house shows and how quickly it sells. Your goal is to make it as broadly appealing as possible, which is why home stagers and real estate agents tell you to go with a neutral, non taste-specific color.
Neutral Does Not Mean White
But people often assume that neutral means white or off-white. Problem is, white tends to be cold, harsh and not very inviting as a wall color. And, contrary to popular belief, it will NOT make a small room appear larger. It will just make it look like a small, sterile room. Likewise, painting the entire interior of the house the same bland beige color may not offend anyone, but will guarantee that your home is totally forgettable unless it has some very distinctive architectural features.
What you’re going for is a color scheme that elicits positive emotions and enables potential buyers to visualize themselves living in the house with their own furnishings. It should look stylish and up to date without being too taste specific. One way to achieve this is to select a paints in the same color family for the main rooms so that the rooms flow together visually.
Warm Colors Make People Happy
When staging a house for sale I recommend warmer neutrals for the main living areas like the family room, dining room and kitchen, because warm colors stimulate the senses (as well as the appetite). Buttery, creamy, buff and tan colors will warm up any room and will to work well with red, green or brown furniture.
Cool Colors Soothe and Relax
For bedrooms and bathrooms you should be trying to create the feel of a spa retreat. Using cooler neutrals like pale blues, sage greens and grays will help accomplish this.
When selecting colors from a paint strip remember that the color will look darker on the wall than on the strip so it’s usually safer to go lighter. The best thing to do, however, is to get sample jars of 2-3 color choices and test them on a section of wall at least 2′ x 2′. Make sure to test and compare colors in daylight hours, as that is when buyers are most likely to see them. Remember also that the same color can look dramatically different from room to room depending on the room’s exposure and how much light it gets.
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