The Best Color to Paint to Sell Your House

The incorrect paint color will undermine the auction of fifty-fifty the most well-appointed, tidy dwelling. A burgundy bedroom, green kitchen, or pink nursery inevitably becomes a home's calling card, as buyers tend to call back homes by their flaws or quirks. From thousands of available shades, we've selected the best paint colors for selling a house, according to meridian real estate agents and interior designers.

There are a few rules of thumb when deciding the best paint colors for selling a house — Source: (Pixabay / Pexels)

Rules of thumb: Painting earlier you sell

Before dive into the best paint colors, let's talk nearly some general rules to follow when selecting pigment colors:

99% of the time, choose one neutral color

Neutral, neutral, neutral: every real estate amanuensis'south motto. Neutral colors appeal to the widest range of buyers, suiting a wide range of interior design color palettes and styles. In HomeLight's Meridian Agent Insights Report for Q1 2020, 98% of top agents surveyed agreed that neutral color schemes are the most pop with buyers.

Commit to an undertone

Every pigment colour has an undertone that is absurd, neutral, or warm. Cool shades have a base that is slightly blueish, greenish, or violet, while warmer shades have a base of operations that'south slightly scarlet, orangish, or yellow.

Neutral shades strike a perfect balance between warm and cool shades. Pigment colors with warm undertones create a cheery, inviting atmosphere, exaggerating the appearance of natural lite. Conversely, cool-toned paints produce a calming, contemporary vibe.

"What we commonly say is if your floors have any kind of a brown or blonde-similar tone to them, you want to practice a beige color. If yous have any sort of a absurd colour or more of a xanthous-y, grayness tone on the floors, we encourage people on the walls to do a really, really light grayness," Knapp advises, adding that, regardless of tone, lighter interior shades tend to sell amend.

And so if your dwelling has cherry floors, choose a warm beige or light tan paint color for the interior such as Barcelona Beige or Softer Tan past Sherwin-Williams. The same rules use for your home'due south outside — you desire to cull an undertone complementing the existing hardscape or accent materials.

If your home'southward landscaping includes silvery gray stone veneer retaining walls, choose a cooler toned paint like Storm by Benjamin Moore or Flagstone Grey by Glidden.

Follow neighborhood trends

When in uncertainty, see what's trending in your neighborhood past scoping recent home listings online. What colors are the most popular? Sticking with neighborhood norms isn't a matter of keeping upwardly with the Joneses, it's harmonizing with styles that resonate with your heir-apparent pool.

For instance, buyers shopping in a historical neighborhood full of well-maintained colonials will probable capeesh a traditional color scheme that suits the architecture. Instead of going neutral, sellers can lean into the building'southward history with traditional pigment colors such as Sherwin-Williams' Williamsburg Wythe Blue and Claret, a complementary muddled salmon.

Each interior room is different when choosing the best paint colors for selling a house — Source: (Malte Luk / Pexels)

All-time paint colors for selling a house past room (interior)

Thankfully, painting your home is an like shooting fish in a barrel and inexpensive way to heave your home'south marketability and resale value. Co-ordinate to Consumer Reports, painting key interior rooms like the kitchen and bathroom can heave your sale price by one% to 3%, while enhancing your outside can add 2% to 5%.

Our pigment colour selection process considered information from HomeLight's Height Agent Insights Reports and other reputable surveys, as well every bit a comparison of shades championed in the blogosphere. For adept guidance for pulling off i of our selected shades in your home, meridian real estate agent Pamella Knapp offers advice from her experience of selling homes 53% quicker than the boilerplate amanuensis in Portage, Michigan.

Keep it consistent

When selecting paint colors for your interior, Knapp says less is more. Choose ane, neutral paint color for the primary living areas, including the living room, family room, entryway, dining room, and kitchen. We recommend selecting a lighter shade at least two shades lighter or darker than your flooring for adequate contrast and increased room size.

To brighten rooms that receive less natural lite than others, bring in additional flooring lamps and brighter bulbs rather than a second paint shade:

"Most people don't want their business firm super, super bright on the solar day-to-mean solar day, but when you get to sell, it's actually wise to get much brighter bulbs in every light if you experience that your house is a bit dark. Those small things can make a really big bear upon," Knapp shares.

Common areas: Living room, dining room, and hallways

When in doubtfulness choosing between grey or beige, go for gray. In HomeLight's recent survey, 79% of summit agents reported that gray paint colors are more popular than biscuit and white shades in their market.

If gray paint doesn't adjust your domicile'south flooring, trim, or architectural style (recall Castilian or Mediterranean), then choose a shade of beige or a shade from the illustrious in-between "greige" family.

All-time greyness paints:

Agreeable Greyness by Sherwin-Williams: Ranked the #ane paint color by real estate agents in a recent survey by HomeLight, this subtly absurd shade is low-cal enough to match whatsoever interior, while saturated enough to make a divergence.
Abalone by Benjamin Moore: A light, neutral gray, Abalone pairs well with a wide range of interior colors and wood stains.
Silverpointe by Sherwin-Williams: As its proper name suggests, Silver Point is a cool, silvery shade that gives rooms a sleek appearance.

Best beige paints:

Accessible Beige by Sherwin-Williams: Parting from traditional beiges, this shade has a grayish undertone, preventing it from exuding the dreaded yellow tinge in the daylight.
Kilim Beige: This warm beige leans more brown and orange than yellow, perfect for ranch and Tuscan style homes.

Other pigment options:

Penthouse by Clare: This pale greige is one of Clare's bestselling neutral colors. Striking the balance between cool and warm, Penthouse creates a sophisticated, airy atmosphere.
Canvas Tan by Sherwin-Williams: This tan shade is soft, fresh, and vivid. The warm undertone adds glow to a room while also complementing a wide range of woods stains.

Kitchen

Pigment your kitchen walls the same shade equally the other common areas, adding dimension with different shades for the cabinets and the island. When in doubt, Knapp shares that white cabinetry is a safe bet:

"White is universal, people love white. If you're going to tackle painting the cabinets on your own, it's tough. Paint doesn't naturally adhere to a wood chiffonier, so at that place's a lot of you take to do. So I just encourage you lot not to do that unless you're skilled."

For a pop of color, paint your kitchen isle navy, gray, or a soft bluish. An emphasis island gives your kitchen a touch of tendency without a large commitment — information technology'southward far easier to repaint an island than cabinets.

Best white pigment colors for the cabinets:

Linen White by Benjamin Moore: This classic, creamy white, suits warm woods flooring.
Grey Mist by Benjamin Moore: A slightly gray-toned white, Gray Mist is a softer alternative to starker shades of white.
Carter Crème by Magnolia past Joanna Gaines: Perfect for farmhouse kitchens, this antique white adds state amuse to cabinetry.

All-time island emphasis colors:

Newburyport Blue by Benjamin-Moore: A muted navy with an ever so slight green undertone, Newburyport Blue is a bestseller in Benjamin-Moore's Historical Drove.
Naval past Sherwin-Williams: Sherwin-Williams crowned this rich navy Color of the Yr for 2020.
Charcoal Blue from Behr: This grayness-bluish adds just the correct amount of color to an otherwise neutral kitchen.
Dovetail Gray by Sherwin-Williams: This warmer toned gray is dark enough to provide contrast against white cabinetry, while calorie-free enough to maintain a spacious, airy experience.
Kendall Charcoal by Benjamin Moore: This rich, however neutral gray pops confronting white trim and cabinetry.

Powder room

For the pulverisation room or guest bathroom, sellers tin can either stick with the same paint color used in the common areas or bring in a fresh color for some added personality. Accent powder rooms are currently trending fifty-fifty for more traditional homes, giving yous leeway to bring in colorful shade or wallpaper.

If you lot want to join in, Knapp recommends choosing a paint or wallpaper that is withal fairly neutral and heir-apparent-friendly, suggesting metallic accents.

Best pigment colors for accent powder rooms:

Black Sapphire by Behr: This muddled, gray-blue contains a hint of lavender, balancing masculine and feminine energy.
Headspace by Clare: A soft, blue-light-green, Headspace brightens small powder rooms, complementing low-cal, white interiors.
Antique Tin by Behr: This darker, cool charcoal hue pops confronting white tile for a neutral, all the same assuming cease.

Principal and secondary bedrooms

If a seller's budget allows, Knapp recommends that they paint the bedrooms the same neutral color as the mutual areas.

"I will say that in bedrooms, people are typically the most forgiving, because in bedrooms typically people are gonna want to coordinate with their bedding every bit opposed to the chief rooms or family room."

Ask your real manor amanuensis for the final decision on painting your bedrooms. In some instances, the price of painting may outweigh the added marketability — though it likely will if you lot're roofing up lime green paint or dinosaur wallpaper!

The exterior color is important when choosing the best paint colors for selling a house — Source: (Binyamin Mellish / Pexels)

All-time paint colors for selling a house (exterior)

Now that your interior is looking spiffy, permit'due south tackle the exterior. Curb appeal is everything when selling your home: 76% of agents believe that it is the number matter sellers tin practice to boost their home's marketability, with 94% agreeing that bully curb appeal translates to a higher auction cost.

"We see a lot of dark colors, so I think darker on the outside is the trend correct at present—dark with white trim—just, that trends in and out all the time," comments Knapp, sharing that it'southward more than important to find a fairly neutral shade that complements your hardscape and subtly contrasts with your neighbors.

"You want to take into consideration your neighborhood and your neighbors. You don't want to have the exact same color business firm as your neighbors do."

If you want to bring in some color, Knapp recommends choosing a fun color for your front end door. Past painting the front door a color, y'all create a focal point to welcome buyers inside. Plus, if a buyer doesn't love the color, it's relatively affordable and piece of cake to change out.

Best gray outside pigment colors:

Atomic number 26 Mount past Benjamin Moore: Fe Mount is a darker gray-brown that warms upwardly whatsoever exterior.
Flannel Gray by Behr: This medium grayness leans is absurd, all the same inviting.
Slate Pebble by PPG: A warmer gray with an oaky undertone, Slate Pebble especially suits hardscape with brownish-black tones.

Best taupe exterior paint colors:

Sparrow past Benjamin Moore: Sparrow is the perfect mix of rich brown and deep greyness, for a darker, yet warm exterior.
Coastal Villa by Valspar: Littoral Villa is a medium-light shade of brown, nicely absolute by white or black trim.
Creek Curve by Behr: Cooler than Coastal Villa, Creek curve is a medium to light, gray-taupe shade.

All-time white exterior paint colors:

Oyster White past Sherwin-Williams: This warm white suits homes with wood accents.
White Dove past Benjamin Moore: A soft white with a hint of warm gray, White Dove is a balanced off-white that is neither too stark, nor also creamy.

Seal the sale with fresh paint where information technology counts

Fresh, neutral, and inviting, you can't become incorrect with these paint colors when selling your abode. Just remember to trial your called shades with generous swatches before you buy by the gallon.

Header Image Source: (Мария Травина / Unsplash)