How Paint Colors Can Affect the Value of Your Home

By JAMES THRASHER | Special to the Palisadian-Post

Ringing in the new year can mean different things to different people. To some it means a renewed effort to eat healthy and exercise, spend more time with family, or take up a new hobby.

To others, updating the color scheme in their home is a great way to start fresh in the new year. If 2018 has brought with it a desire to finally paint your master bathroom in that bright pink color you just love, you may first want to consider how your choice of color will ultimately affect your bottom line should you choose to sell.

Zillow recently looked at more than 32,000 photos from homes sold throughout the country to gauge how certain colors impacted their sale price, when compared to similar homes with white walls. According to this Zillow study, homes with bathrooms painted in light shades of blue sell for an average of $5,400 more than similar homes with different colored bathrooms.

Perhaps you’re nowhere near moving, but for those that are, is having that pink bathroom worth the price of a week’s vacation in Cabo? If you think it is, then paint away. But if you want to maximize the value of your largest asset, perhaps you should opt for a far more popular (and profitable) powder-blue hue.

The bathroom is not the only place in your home where you can add value by your choice of color. On the exterior of your home—one of the most important places to make a great first impression on a potential buyer—a neutral grey or off-white “greige” paint choice will net you almost $3,500 more on average.

It’s also not just the color of the home; the color of the front door can sometimes be just as important. A popular trend in recent years has been to paint the front door a bright vibrant shade of red or yellow to add a pop of color and boost curb appeal. While you may think it looks fantastic, Zillow claims that homes with front doors painted in darker shades like navy blue or slate gray sold for over $1,500 more on average.

A very effective way to make your home appeal to the largest number of potential buyers is to err on the side of a more neutral, traditional aesthetic as opposed to more eclectic decor. When a potential buyer walks into your home, you don’t want them turned off by your unique sense of style.

While you may think you have impeccable taste (which I am sure you do), other buyers may wholeheartedly disagree. You want a potential buyer to be able to visualize themselves living in your home from the moment they walk in.

Using soft grey and white tones in the majority of your home provides a potential buyer with the sense of having a clean slate, and gives them an opportunity to visualize the changes they would make, instead of being distracted by your lime green entryway or your mosaic-tiled ceiling.

Zillow finds that having very specific or unique features in your home can detract from its value by over $2,000.

It is important that you strive to achieve a comfortable balance between having too much color and unique décor, and having none at all. Having too many busy colors can affect the potential buyer’s ability to see past them, and having an all-white home devoid of any color or accent pieces gives buyers the feeling that the home is cold and sterile.

According to the Zillow study, homes with no color at all sell for $4,035 less on average. If you’re having trouble finding that middle ground, try having the dominant walls and features of the home painted in neutral greys and off-whites, while adding a single accent wall of more vibrant color, and including things like brightly colored pillows and blankets to add distinct pops of color.

James Thrasher is a sales partner with Amalfi Estates, Pacific Palisades’ No. 1 real estate brokerage. His core business strategy is serving the needs and interests of his clients, and achieving fantastic results for everyone he works for. For more information on helpful household tips, or if you are thinking of buying a home or selling your own, contact James Thrasher at 818-624-8661 or stop by Amalfi Estates at 984 Monument Street, Suite 105, Pacific Palisades.