Paint Colors That Sell Homes

Paint Colors That Sell Homes cover pic shows different warm paint colors.

 

Paint Colors That Sell Homes:  The Best Paint Colors to Sell Your Home
When preparing to put your home on the market, one of the most impactful upgrades you can make is a fresh coat of paint. Strategic color choices can maximize your home’s appeal to potential buyers. From creating a cohesive flow to adding personality, paint can set the stage for a faster sale.

Paint Colors That Sell Homes:  The Key is Neutral Backdrops

Foremost, warm, neutral backdrops tend to have widespread appeal amongst homebuyers. Whites, light taupes, almond tones, and soft grays make clean canvases that allow buyers to envision the space as their own. Additionally, warm neutrals like khaki and and linen are inviting without imposing. According to experts, flexible, neutral tones should form the bulk of your interior and exterior color scheme when selling.

Specifically, whites and off-whites give buyers flexibility:

Firstly, white lets the features of the home stand out so buyers focus on layout, finishes, and potential. Crisp white makes it easy for buyers to picture their own furniture and style rather than the sellers’. It creates a versatile blank canvas. Additionally, white reflects light beautifully, so rooms feel airy and bright.

Furthermore, soft whites like “Chantilly Lace” by Benjamin Moore still offer flexibility without feeling sterile. Especially if staging furniture is sparse, warm off-whites add a welcoming vibe. Overly stark white can read as cold when vacant. Warm undertones counteract this effect for a universally inoffensive backdrop.

Paint Colors That Sell Homes:  Continuing Neutrals with Purpose

While white offers flexibility, warm medium neutrals can also sell well, especially if trying to avoid a clinical vibe in a furnished home. Almond, taupe, camel, and warm gray offer personality while still allowing buyers to envision the space as their own. Not to mention, these cozy neutrals add nice dimension to small rooms versus flat white.

For example, as Avalon Group Realty broker Aaron Hunt notes, “You really want your paint colors to blend into the background so potential buyers can envision the home as their own.” Warm tones accomplish this goal without disappearing into utter blandness.

When considering neutrals, also match undertones strategically to your floors, counters, cabinets, and other fixed features. Complementary undertones promote cohesion and flow:

In detail, warm wood floors suit honey neutrals, while cool tiles coordinate nicely with misty grays. Avoid matching competing tones like warming oak floors and icy paint—this feels disjointed. Matching undertones pulls spaces together.

Paint Colors That Sell Homes:  Notable Paint Color Recommendations

When selecting neutral paint colors to sell your home, there are a few versatile tried-and-true shades worth considering that appeal broadly without alienating buyers. Here are some top paint color recommendations from brands like Sherwin-Williams and Benjamin Moore:

Benjamin Moore “Chantilly Lace” – This creamy white with faint yellow undertones reads as soft and welcoming. It avoids starkness, but still offers flexibility.

Sherwin-Williams “Alabaster” – For exterior facades, this popular warm off-white maintains approachability with its gentle tone. It endures well as a neutral that won’t date quickly.

Sherwin-Williams “White Flour” – A crisp, versatile white that feels bright and fresh but also cozy depending on accompanying decor tones. It lightens and opens any interior space beautifully.

Sherwin-Williams “Snowbound” – With subtle blue undertones, this cool-toned white offers a bit more personality. Its light gray tint lends contemporaneity and pairs well with grays and blues.

More Paint Colors

Farrow & Ball “Pigeon” – A light dusty blue-gray that feels timeless, minimalist, and serene. It can lend bedrooms and studies an ethereal spa-like escape.

Valspar “Coral Curry” – For front doors or accent walls, this friendly reddish-orange hue conveys cheerfulness and approachability. It feels fun yet classic for pops of color.

Benjamin Moore “Water’s Edge” – On the green side of blue, this tranquil hue named appropriately suits bathrooms, dining rooms, and other restful living spaces beautifully.

Benjamin Moore “Swiss Coffee” – is a tried and true warm white that is a favorite of many designers.  Just be careful with north facing rooms at it might appear to be a gray/green color with the northern light influence.

Sherwin Williams “Marshmallow” – Additionally, this is a beautiful warm-white paint color that has a touch of red in it.  Sometimes, but rarely it may appear pinkish in certain lighting situations.  But 95% of the time this warm white color creates a dreamy, warm and inviting living experience.

These specific, neutrally-hued paint colors balance flexibility with personality for appealing, on-trend backdrops when selling homes to maximize interest and bids. Rely on undertones to match existing features seamlessly as well.

 

Paint Colors That Sell Homes:  Pops of Color Show Personality

While neutral backdrops allow buyer flexibility, small pops of color can infuse personality without overwhelming buyers. Saturated tones on accent walls or front doors add interest while neutral common rooms feel broadly welcoming.

Additionally, brightly colored accessories like throw pillows demonstrate how buyers can customize to their style against versatile foundation colors. Timeless jewel tones and earthy greens make great accent additions to show the potential of neutral walls and inspire buyers’ creativity.

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Paint Colors That Sell Homes:  ncorporating Color Cohesively

When working pops of colors in, maintain restraint. Colors should complement each other and flow logically. Mismatched, competing palettes read as disjointed or dated to buyers seeking move-in ready homes.

In general for color palettes, deduce which neutral undertone flatters your home best—warm, cold, etc. Then, choose accent colors from the analogous side of the color wheel for harmony. If soft almond walls suit your aesthetic, layer in sage green accents versus competing cherry red that may overwhelm buyers.

Additionally, while vibrant accent walls highlight architectural details in your current space, keep them out of main living areas. Reserve for bedrooms and studies instead of open concept kitchens future owners may prefer uniformly neutral.

Finally, when painting exteriors, consider neighborhood schemes. Avoid loud colors that seem out of sync with nearby exteriors drawing initial buyer attention. While charcoal gray siding may complement jewel-toned front doors wonderfully, if most neighborhood homes are beige and white, high contrast risks being remembered negatively by buyers touring in clusters. Pitch your color as “a modern take on traditional neighborhood style” versus “boldly rejecting what’s around me” by staying moderately on trend.

Paint Colors That Sell Homes:  The Importance of Quality Paint

Beyond thoughtful color schemes, paint quality impacts buyers profoundly from durability to odor. Investing in paints with superior coverage, longevity, and zero off-gassing pays dividends. Paint is not a place to cut corners, but rather one to invest in quality for best impressions. Especially because smells linger in buyer memory. Here are top considerations around paint itself:

Foremost, coverage matters immensely; patchiness reads as lazy or hiding issues to buyers. Premium paints cover fully and evenly in typically two coats. Cheaper paint may take three-four coats to hide old colors, all the while showcasing flaws instead of disguising them. Pay a little extra for guaranteeing flawless results the first time versus repainting repeatedly with budget-grade, thin coverage.

Comparatively, older or lower quality paints wear down faster over time and become difficult to clean. Satin and eggshell finishes better shed dirt, grime, fingerprints, and condensation while hiding imperfections in texture. Higher sheens reflect more light for brightness and durability.

Continuing on durability, quality formulations last longer through humidity, direct sun exposure, and physical wear of kids and pets running through. Higher resin ratios make paints more flexible and fade-resistant. Kitchens and bathrooms especially endure moisture, grease, and heavy use. Invest in enduring premium products.

Paint Colors That Sell Homes:  Low VOC

Furthermore, odor profoundly impacts buyer experience and perception of cleanliness. Zero to low VOC paints don’t require noxious chemicals to maintain performance like cheaper emulsions. They dry pure without air quality trade-offs. Set a welcoming stage from the moment buyers walk through your front door with crisp, odorless backdrops.

Finally, application quality makes a visible difference. Professionally applied paint appears seamless without drips, thin patches, or messy edges revealing old layers. Perfectly cut-in lines tidy homes considerably over amateur applications reading as DIY fixer-uppers. Consider hiring out painting even neutral backdrops to achieve model home smoothness if precision painting isn’t your forte. Upgraded quality paint enhances your home while precise applications polish overall impressions tremendously.

Paint Colors That Sell Homes:  When and Where to Use Color

While a predominantly neutral scheme maximizes buyer appeal broadly, not all rooms serve the same goals. Hallways and accent walls allow bolder color statements than contiguous main living spaces spanning kitchens, dining, and living rooms where future owners visualize heavy furniture rearrangements. Analyze room function when incorporating color:

For example, entrance corridors in exciting saturated colors make dynamic, memorable welcomes when adjoining more conservative communal rooms. Especially if exterior neighborhood color schemes skew neutral, a punchy front door color remains unexpected and delightfully personal to buyers without overwhelming entire interior palettes. Bright teals, deep plums, and moody evergreens transcend trends with timeless appeal to refresh dated homes.

Furthermore, accent walls highlighting home architecture add interest without total commitment. Paint built-in shelving, stair risers, awkward nooks, or random walls an unexpected hue. Tie back to neutral common areas with decor accessories sharing that color. This pulls spaces together instead of appearing randomly disjointed. Especially when staging furniture is at a minimum, bright accent walls showcase personality and design potential to buyers creatively.

Paint Colors That Sell Homes:  Bed and Bath

Comparatively, bed and baths allow more flexibility than contiguous kitchens, dining rooms, and living rooms. Future owners rarely renovate these spaces immediately unless flawed structurally. Play up what makes them special through color if moving soon. Luxe indigo ceilings create striking bedroom retreats; modern matte black bath tiles conveys sophisticated spa aesthetic. Since new owners tend to furnish offered flexibility before rebuilding baths and bedrooms entirely, personalized colors tend not to deter but rather excite buyers about potential.

On the contrary, open concept kitchens, living rooms, and dining spaces spanning entertain, cook, and relax convey core home function to buyers. Since these rooms blend continuously, eclectic color palettes seem disjointed and disrupt visual harmony necessary for buyers picturing their own furnishings flowing freely across common areas. Stick to one or two cohesive neutrals here for seamless flow. Use lighting and decor instead to incorporate more exciting pops of color easily changed out by new owners if too bold down the road. Layer rugs, curtains, pillows and art for interest while foundational architecture fades to understated sophistication letting the rooms themselves shine.

Paint Colors That Sell Homes:  Monochromatic Sophistication

For a polished, upscale aesthetic, consider painting walls, trim, and ceilings unified palettes flowing seamlessly throughout rooms. Monochromatic tonal schemes lend residential spaces a refined modern gallery vibe.

Specifically, as Realtor Devi Saltzberg suggests, painting wall planes, baseboards, crown moldings, and overhead planes identical colors creates ultra-sophisticated spaces. She notes, “Paint the wall, ceiling and trim the same color for a sophisticated lux look.” Mimicking commercial and boutique architectural designs, continuous color makes rooms feel brightly expansive, sharp and contemporary.

When executing, opt for on-trend lighter neutrals set against brighter accent decor and accessorial color pops. For example, snowy white perimeter paint allows charcoal curtains and furniture to pop crisply. Or, soft gray blue planes shade vibrant lime green indoor plants and cerulean throw pillows wonderfully.

Furthermore, consider finishing adjacent rooms in continuity. For example, paint formal living rooms, libraries and offices in uniform trimmed ivory. Then perhaps, gradating family spaces slightly darker like kitchens and informal dens in warm tan beyond passage doorframes. This lends homes a designer perspective playing with shade variation and color blocking for modern angular appeal.

Ultimately, continuous color cleanly tailors ornate architecture for current minimalist aesthetics. Unified sophisticated paint applications streamline spaces flawlessly without competing colors or disconnects disjointing room flow. When selling property especially, this continuity captures buyer eyes effortlessly directing attention to thoughtful finishes and intentional decor layering instead of distracting mismatched color. Keep staging furnishings equally curated. Let subtly luxe paint present the shell spectacularly.

Paint Colors That Sell Homes:  The Impact of Natural Lighting on Color Choices

Available lighting dramatically impacts color, sometimes in unexpected ways. Bright south-facing rooms illuminated with sun may appear muted or cool in reality, while shaded north-facing spaces likely need warming. Analyze how natural and artificial light currently hits rooms before choosing hues, along with considerations around changes prospective buyers may make remodeling. A color delightful in your lighting or with your minimal window furnishing may surprise under different conditions. Instead of painting rooms similar colors aiming for harmonious flow, opt for more contrast adjusting individual spaces for intended light exposures. Moody hues suit naturally dramatic spaces replaced easily by buyers, while colorwashed bright rooms seem disjointed from their environment impending flow. Factor unique room attributes choosing complementary palettes. Consider the following light impacts by room:

To demonstrate, bright open kitchens with generous windows suit warmer paints contrasting crisp natural light, styled brightly by future owners regardless. Shaded dining nooks tucked away may welcome deeper green and inky blue tones without conflicting outlook views. Personalize accent walls here for buyers appreciating psychological coziness matching elegant rooms to their lighting personality and architecture stories. Your sunroom likely links interior/exterior panorama views; allow creamy natural light to fill the space keeping walls soft without competing palettes impeding flow. Timeless whites enhance bright architecture and borrowed landscapes. Conversely, media rooms rarely integrate outlook scenery meant for immersive entertainment withdrawing focus inward. Consider sultry accent walls if easily replaced by new owners disinterested hosting view corridors anyway. Light sets rooms’ atmosphere: Bright paints fight naturally bright architecture where rich moody tones complement naturally sheltered cocoons.

Paint Colors That Sell Homes:  Ceilings

Furthermore, consider ceiling height with color. Darker paint visually lowers overhead space even painted partially up accent walls. For resale, allow generous rooms to feel open by keeping walls lighter. Use deeper tones in more compressed bonus spaces instead, exaggerating cozy elements buyers expect in quaint architecture over tight modern boxes. Especially in historically stoic homes, refreshed color disguises small rooms better than contemporary builds with expectations around openness.

Finally, factor in the surrounding landscape’s impact through windows on color temperature. North facing rooms may reproduce cooler light across polished concrete floors giving spaces steely blue cast regardless warm paints. South facing rooms bounce warm light across surfaces inherently with longer sun exposure. Supplement what’s available instead of fighting natural environment palettes.

Paint Colors That Sell Homes:  The Emotion of Color in Selling

Color selection impacts buyer emotions and memories tied to spaces. While trendy finishes snag attention briefly, thoughtful classic colors enrich architecture stories best. Well executed palettes feel intrinsically welcoming through curation around how buyers engage rooms relaxing in, cooking within, working beside, rather than matching arbitrary aesthetics.

Especially open concept main living spaces, choose colors supporting flow between zones. For example, an airy blue dining area may contrast nicely with creamy open kitchen initially, but compete visually along continuous sight lines impeding spatial connection buyers desire. Instead, graduate the same neutral palette lighter to darker across zones for peaceful continuity. Use textures, sheens and decor contrasts for dimensional interest.

Additionally, soft, warm paints feel intrinsically welcoming in entry spaces. Terracotta mud rooms greet families transitioning outdoors to in. Buttery dining rooms gather friends over food and memories linked through colors. Kitchens in nurturing greens or restful taupes support cooking enthusiastically for loved ones. Lead buyers on a conceptual and emotional journey room to room. Make conscious color choices around experiences you hope home offers families.

Finally, cool palettes feel calming in bedrooms and spa-like baths. Light airy blues and greens complement restful zones. Cheerful paints seem out of place overwhelming such serene architecture goals. Instead, decorate shower curtains or bedsheets introducing vibrancy easily replaced by future owners against soothing foundational colors supporting sleep and self care unimpeded. Consider how families move through homes accessing different areas day and night when curating color palettes buyer connect with intrinsically. Match rooms to their essence and enhance through considered colors.

Paint Colors That Sell Homes:  In Closing

When preparing your home for sale, paint color plays an invaluable role in buyer impressions, apex appeal, and evoking the architecture’s welcoming personality. While trends grab short-term attention, classic sophisticated color palettes using neutrals in most rooms with occasional bright accents stand the test of time appealing to more future owners. Plus quality paint itself makes a visible difference in finish durability, light reflectivity, and buyer sensory experience from first walk through. Invest in designer grade products applied by painting professionals to guarantee impressive coverage, longevity, and precision paint lines adding perceived value for buyers touring commonly hurried, critical in groups assessing homes competitively.

Take the time to consciously curate soft, inviting color schemes honoring rooms unique goals within the home flow. Pair smart improved staging decor together with polished refined palettes differentiating your property as a turnkey oasis for the next family, not dated and requiring heavy customization down the road. First impressions matter immensely; ensure paint makes a positive impact drafting buyers into your architecture vision, not repelling them compare contrasting palettes across town. Home color decisions impact potential owners. Invest wisely curating your property for long-term buyer appeal.

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About the Author
Rob Johnson
Realtor, St. Petersburg FL