There is a raging debate by estate agents and interior designers about the best colours to paint a home you are wanting to sell. Home buyers need to see your home in its best light and should be able to focus on the property’s features and be able to picture themselves in the house when they visit.
Although you have personalised your home with your tastes and preferences, the prospective buyer needs to imagine it as their dream home with their own furnishings in a space. One thing that everyone agrees on though, is that a fresh coat of paint will make the house look clean and new and increase its selling potential.
Oh but what colours to choose? Colour choices determine the ascetics and ambiance of your home, and you will want to appeal to a wide audience.
Popular Colour Choices – What the Experts Say:
Classic White – This will instantly enlarge a room, giving a neutral and light feeling. There are many variants of white, so remember to consider the undertone of the white. Too warm an undertone can feel dingy or dirty, and too cool an undertone may feel sterile and unwelcoming. Some interior designers don’t advocate a white bathroom while others prefer it with a pop of colour used in towels and bathmats. We will leave you to decide!
Safe Neutrals – According to the Paint & Colour Tends 2022 report conducted by Fixr, neutral colours reign supreme and will leave the buyer comfortable that they can move in and not instantly need to paint over an uncomfortable colour. Most people are comfortable with a neutral backdrop so that they have a blank canvas to work with. Neutrals and earth tones are generally versions of beige, grey and the new greige (a mixture of grey and beige). Neutrals with undertones of blue appeal equally to male and female buyers.
Limit colours – Fuchsia? Probably not the best idea. For the interior colours to work, there has to be a cohesiveness and flow to the colour options throughout the rooms. Using the same colour for living areas, dining rooms and kitchens in an open plan scenario, is not only cost effective, but also makes the home feel bigger. Colour variety can be added to smaller rooms such as bedrooms, bathrooms, and kitchens but it is advised to keep colours in the neutral family.
Complete the look with appropriate finishes – most interior paints are available in gloss, satin, eggshell, matte, and others such as suede. The finishes are conducive to functionality, for example a gloss is for ease of cleaning in a high traffic or soiling area. Thus, a gloss would be in busy rooms like the kitchen and bathrooms. A satin would be used in large busy rooms like a living room. Matte and eggshell would be best used in bedrooms and study rooms. The trims in the home will seal the deal in white gloss for crown mouldings, doors and window frames. If however you have wooden trims make sure to varnish them.
So, is it worth it to repaint your house before selling? If you have the time and money for it and your exterior or interior is worse for the wear, go for it. Painting is one of the easiest projects you can take on before you sell. Visit one of our stores for some expert painting advice.
Although a white or neutral colour palette is universal and allows a buyer to more easily envisage their own furniture in the space, House & Garden give us the latest colour trend in South Africa in this link- https://www.houseandgarden.co.za/interiors/these-are-all-the-colours-we-can-look-forward-to-seeing-in-2022-118a005c-c3b3-407e-8c7e-67fbd1ac339d
Whether you paint or not, the following points should always be taken into consideration: