There’s a lot you can do to sell your home faster and even to increase its value, but one of the most important visual aspects will always be the paint colors. Whether we like it or not, it’s the first thing we notice when laying our eyes on a house, first from the outside and then from the inside.
If the paint color is just right, your home will sell much faster. But the interesting thing is that finding paint colors that sell has less to do with what looks better, but rather what’s more practical. This is why, for the most part, experts recommend neutral tones for reasons I’ll get into below, since bolder and more experimental colors choices are not only less appealing to some, but also harder to change.
But what are the best neutral paint colors to sell your home? Let’s dive in and find out!
“In order to carry a positive action we must develop here a positive vision." – Dalai Lama
Simple is better
First and foremost, you want to keep it simple. Going too crazy with paint colors doesn't go well with selling your home because who knows what the buyer will like? You can paint your home whatever you want, but it's better for homeowners to repaint in a simpler way when they're trying to sell.
There are two main reasons for this:
First, it ensures potential buyers can look at your home in a creative way. Simpler and neutral tones make it easier to imagine a few changes because the place looks cleaner and more organized. They can immediately start picturing how their things would look and if they would repaint.
Second, neutral tones are more practical to work with. A black, dark blue, red or yellow wall is much harder to repaint because a coat of primer and/or white paint is pretty much guaranteed. But if the walls are white or neutral, the buyer will already have a good foundation for a house repaint.
White is your best friend
The two reasons in the previous topic are why white paint color is your best friend. It stays in line with the neutral that we want, and it helps in selling your home faster. White naturally reflects more light, which makes your home brighter and therefore more appealing.
Basically, if we could choose the best wall paint, it would probably be white. It’s incredibly versatile for almost every room and it’s hard to go wrong with it.
Plus, it's a natural base color to create contrast with other neutral tones without making it too dramatic. Accent colors like beige, light blue, or even natural wood make for a great balance that adds variety without overdoing it – leaving enough room for a potential buyer to see themselves living there.
Natural wood accents
The look of hardwood floors or wood furniture makes for a phenomenal sales pitch, mainly because wood feels very natural. Even someone who lives in the heart of the city can relate on a deep level to wood and feel cozier with its elements. The smell, the texture, the feeling to touch – it's pure nature.
Wood also goes really well with white walls, as they give a sense of balance that looks very appealing and, again, natural to the human eye. Combine it with the best neutral paint colors and you have a winning combination.
Besides, if you can boast hardwood floors, you should. Invest on a hardwood floor refinish and that's another massive selling point, both visually and practically.
Neutral tones add personality
Neutral tones are highly recommended for all the reasons I've brought up so far. You want something that looks nice, but not overbearing. You want your potential buyer to think “I could live here" or “I can work with this". If their first impression is a “no" on both fronts, you have a problem.
You can always be safe with a white paint color, but you can give it some personality with neutral tones. Light beige and other warm earthy tones are popular living room colors, but you can switch it up in the bathroom and bedroom with light blue, for example.
As long as it's subtle, it should work!
What about exterior paint?
The exterior is even simpler than the interior when it comes to paint colors. The overall guidelines are the same, but here experts recommend sticking with white and grey colors, with accents in brown or other dark neutral colors.
The reasons are the same as before: keeping it neutral is much more appealing to potential buyers. Bold paint colors can be very attractive too, but it’s more of a gamble when you’re trying to sell.
It’s better to have a potential buyer thinking they could just move in and let the exterior be as is for a while than to have them thinking their first action as a new homeowner would be an urgent repaint.
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