Selling your home can be a stressful process. It can be hard to know how much money to put into repairs or other improvements before you sell. One thing experts agree on, however, is that exterior paint is one of the fastest, easiest and least expensive ways to give your house a facelift before selling.
If you’re considering painting the exterior of your home before you sell, choosing the right color could literally make thousands of dollars of difference in your final selling price.
Best Exterior Paint Colors to Sell a House
Our company has years of experience helping homeowners update their home’s exterior paint color in order to sell. While there are certainly color trends that come and go, there are a few tried-and-true hues that make both current and future homeowners happy. Here are the exterior paint colors we find continually boost home value for sellers.
Greige
There’s a reason this color has transitioned from trend to classic in the last few years. Not only does this grey-beige exterior paint color hold a solid place in “neutral” territory, it also is rich enough to pack a visual punch without being overwhelming. In word: greige might be beige’s cousin, but it is anything but boring.
This exterior paint color acts as a great backdrop to highlight beautiful landscaping or interesting trim work. It can take your home’s exterior from dull to sophisticated, and can look very “right now” without being overly modern. So if you’re hoping to catch a buyer’s eye, greige might just be the way to go.
Best Exterior Greige (Grey-Beige) Colors
Some beautiful greige exterior paint colors from PPG:
Cool Charcoal (dark greige)
Stonehenge Greige (medium greige)
Stone Harbor Greige (light greige)
Blue
Not all blues are created equal. In fact, blue can be a tricky color to get right. Too bright and your home’s exterior will take on a primary, “kids-room” vibe. Too light and your home could look washed out or dirty.
Regardless of these blue exterior paint pitfalls (and don’t worry, a professional exterior paint company will help you avoid these mistakes!), the right color of blue can make your home stand apart in your neighborhood.
For just a pop of blue, paint your door navy. Make sure there is enough grey in the navy paint so that your door color doesn’t skew too nautical or childlike. For a full backdrop of blue, again, choose a navy or a blue that has grey undertones. This mix will help your home look stately without making too much of a statement.
Best Exterior Blue Colors
A few great blue and navy exterior paint colors with grey undertones from PPG:
Feldspar (greige’s navy cousin)
Midnight Hour (is it navy? Is it black? Who cares, it’s perfect for a statement door.)
Tundra Pond (a stormy, dusty blue)
White
Yes, white is still a great exterior paint color when you pick the right one. Some may think white is boring. Paint colors, however, have come a long way from just “white” or “off white” a few decades ago. Today, using the right white exterior paint color can help offset beautiful trim work, highlight architectural details or give your porch the attention it deserves.
Try a white exterior paint with grey or even brick undertones. These colors tint the white so that it pops against trim or shutters. Undertones can help warm or cool your white exterior paint so that you get the desired look for your home. Cream colors are also perfect for trim, especially if you want to highlight details without creating harsh contrasts.
Best Exterior White Shades
Here are some white exterior paint colors from PPG:
Gypsum (almost grey, but not quite!)
Horseradish (pairs well with black accents)
What exterior paint colors should be avoided when selling a house?
Zillow conducted a study of over 32,000 homes to determine how paint colors affect housing prices and how they sell. According to the study, there are several colors that should be avoided when painting the exterior of your home before selling.
Red should be avoided on the exterior of your home. Red is so vibrant (in nearly all its shades) it makes it hard for buyers to imagine a different color in its place or to even want to view the home in the first place.
Yellow is also a difficult exterior paint color for buyers to look past unless you work with a paint expert to choose exactly the right shade. If you do choose yellow, err on the side of a soft buttery yellow with grey undertones.
Brown, like yellow, is a tough color to get right. If you really like brown, or think it fits with the vibe of your neighborhood, you’re much better off finding a darker greige with some depth.
If you’re still not sure what exterior paint color to choose to increase the resale value of your home, talk to a reputable professional exterior painting company. Not only will they be able to tackle your project so it looks perfect for buyers, they will offer a color consultation before painting. They’ll make sure the color you choose fits with the neighborhood, the style of your home and helps give the right impression to buyers.
Professional Exterior Painters for your Home Painting Project
Our professional exterior paint experts are ready to help you make the exterior of your home ready for buyers. We repair, prepare, prime and paint exteriors with the greatest care and attention to detail. Contact us today for a free exterior painting quote.
