Believe it or not, something as subjective as interior paint color can help sellers boost home value when they put their house on the market.
Ready, Set, Paint Your Home with these 8 Colors to Boost Home Value Before Selling
Every seller wants to get the most they can when their home goes on the market. And now, thanks to Zillow, we find that something as subjective as paint color may boost home value and let sellers squeeze a little more profit from the deal. Let’s take a closer look at what the Zillow analysis found and tie in some hints from common color associations that may help to explain why subjective color changes could produce objective home price increases.
1 + $5440 – HOMES WITH COOL NEUTRAL WALL COLORS
In general, for-sale listings with walls in cool-toned neutral colors sell for more. Think light or pale blues and grays. Zillow’s Svenja Gudel remarked that painting interior walls blue or pale gray can make the home feel larger while staying neutral, enabling the buyer to envision themselves in the space.
Check out Behr’s great “Know your neutrals” post where they explain why gray is never boring.
Gray –
Gray, beige and taupe are kissing cousins which are classified as “achromatics” which is to say they are essentially non-colors. Neutrals. Warm grays evoke grounded naturals while cool grays borrow elegance, luxury and classic styling from their bossy big brother, Black.
Blue –
Blues are associated with sky and water. Constants. Blue tones are often used in health care and other environments to soothe and calm. It’s a color commonly chosen by financial institutions to convey trust. Move blue toward gray and borrow its classic elegance; move it toward the warm end of the spectrum for vivacity and complexity as you near teal or purple.
Check out Benjamin Moore’s home page (you’ll want to enjoy the landing page’s graphic for a while) then scroll down for more on the meaning of color.
2 + $1856 – HOMES WITH BLUE BEDROOMS
We’ve already talked about blue in general, but it can help you boost home value in several rooms, specifically, including bedrooms. Think in shades of a light or deep blue sky color to medium or deep bluish gray or slate. These are rooms you want to rest in. Deep colors in soothing hues feel relaxed and natural in rooms where rich, dark, restful colors can actually help you sleep more sound.
3 + $1926 – HOMES WITH BLUE DINING ROOMS
In the dining space, opt for blues in slates and pale gray-blue. If you’re thinking that it’s time to move on from blue, you’re wrong. You can boost home value before selling by painting key rooms in your home shades of complementary blues that – especially if you can create additional cohesion in flooring and millwork – will feel well thought through and add interest to what might otherwise be a monotonous color palette (remember all-white walls? we do!)
Check out Sherwin Williams Color Visualizer App for web, smartphone and iPhone – see how the colors you like look when they become wall or accent colors in different rooms of the home.
4 + $3496 – HOMES WITH GREIGE EXTERIORS
If you know that the word for frightened + angry is “frangry” then you probably already know that “greige” is a combination of the words gray and beige. When you put those colors together and paint it on the outside of your house, apparently that’s a good thing. According to the Zillow analysis of over 30k photos and listings, Greige homes sold for nearly $3500 more than similar houses that were medium brown or tan.
5 + $1514 – HOMES WITH DARK NAVY TO SLATE GRAY PAINTED FRONT DOORS
Dark navy and deep slate both borrow a sense of luxury from black, so it’s not surprising to find that homes that sold for more money had front doors painted in these deep, luxe hues.
We found some great slate and greige-ey colors in Better Homes and Gardens’ “For the love of gray” paint palette.
6 – $4035 – HOMES WITH WHITE BATHROOMS (SOLD FOR LESS, NOT MORE!)
Don’t miss the minus sign on this one. Homes whose bathrooms were painted white sold for less. You don’t have to paint your bathroom walls blue, but you should paint them something other than white.
7 + $5440 – HOMES WITH BATHROOMS RANGING FROM LIGHT PALE BLUE TO SOFT PERIWINKLE
Not only will you not lose money by painting your bathroom walls some color other than white, you might win big if you choose a blue color for your bathroom walls. It’s worth noting that as the recommended blues go, these are the most playful of the bunch. So if you’re itching to try out a vibrant shade or do a fun pop of color somewhere in your home to make it memorable to buyers, the bathroom might be just the spot.
Better Homes and Gardens’ “Blue Paint Colors” article includes several blue palettes, including this one with great blues that are perfect for the bathroom.
8 + $1809 – HOMES WITH BLUE KITCHENS
It might not be a big bang but it’s still a bang for your buck nonetheless. You may be able to boost home value – at least as buyers perceive it – with a fresh coat of paint throughout, including a soft gray-blue on kitchen walls.
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Are you looking for a new home in King, Pierce or Thurston County?
Whatever colors you decide to paint your home before selling, we hope that you will give our new home communities in King, Pierce and Thurston counties a try when you decide it’s time to buy. Let us know if you have any questions about the new home buying process – and yes, you can personalize your new Soundbuilt home with your favorite interior wall colors.