Real Estate News

You’ve probably heard the number one rule of real estate is location, location, location. And while that is important to buyers searching for homes for sale in Davenport FL, they are also considering more than just where the property happens to be located – and some of those factors have a bigger effect than you might expect.

It might not seem like a big deal, but the paint colors you use in your home, both inside and outside, can make a big difference in how much the property sells for – and in some cases, if it even sells at all. Considering that painting is one of the least expensive improvements you can make on your home, and it has one of the biggest returns on investment, it’s worth getting it right when it comes to color selection. Not convinced? According to one study, the ROI on painting is anywhere from 55-107 percent. Using certain colors can even influence how much money you get for your home. For instance, one report revealed that homes with black or charcoal gray front doors sold for over $6,000 more than homes with other color doors dispelling the popular advice to paint your front door red.

Before you head to the home improvement store and start searching for “painting companies near me” to tackle the job, though, there are a few caveats to keep in mind. Certain colors are seen as the “kiss of death” when it comes to property values, and other colors, like black for front doors, will increase your home’s value. As you select paint colors to freshen your home before putting it on the market, put your personal preferences aside and avoid these paint colors at all costs.

1. Any Color of Orange

Shades of coral and terracotta may be trendy, but when it comes to selling your home, it’s best to skip this trend. Surveys show that orange is one of the least liked colors in the world, and using even muted shades can turn off buyers, who will only see the work they have to put into repainting the walls.

2. Off-White/Eggshell/Beige

You might think that painting all of the walls a shade of white will create a blank canvas that can help buyers better envision their own furnishings in the space, but surprisingly, those colors actually reduced the selling prices of homes. Many buyers see a room painted in these colors as boring and lacking charm, and again, see themselves having to invest time and money in painting to bring some personality into space. A better option is to use warm neutral colors, like sand, warm grays, or soft shades of green, blue, or yellow to brighten up the rooms.

3. Dark Brown

Dark brown is often singled out as a terrible color for interior paint, but this warning applies to most dark colors. Although in the right spaces, darker hues can be effective at creating an elegant and cozy vibe, in many spaces it just creates a dark and cave-like feeling. Dark paint colors contributed to homes selling for thousands of dollars less than expected, probably because the rooms felt smaller, and buyers dreaded the work involved in painting over dark walls.

4. Style Specific Colors

You might love bright pink, and it looks amazing with your office furniture and accessories, but unless your potential buyers share your taste, they may be put off by the fuchsia walls in the home office. The lime green accent wall in your breakfast nook coordinated beautifully with your vintage rattan dining set and tropical print accessories, but without those details, the green just makes buyers feel nauseous. While you’re living in your home, you can decorate and paint to your own tastes, but if you’re trying to sell, you need to consider what will appeal to the majority of buyers. They need to be able to picture themselves in the space, and how it will look with their belongings, but when everything is painted to your specific preferences, that’s difficult to do. Before listing your home, paint over any trendy or unusual colors to avoid turning off buyers.

Painting your home is a cost-effective way to increase its appeal to buyers and how much the property sells for. If you can’t paint every room, choose the ones that need the most TLC (i.e., any room that has one of the colors mentioned above) and the kitchen, bathroom, and entry. Those are the areas buyers look at the most, and where paint can make a significant difference. And remember – you can always repaint your new home in your favorite colors later on.  If you have a Davenport home to sell, then contact us first and let us help you choose the best paint colors.