What's in a shade of paint? A whole lot of cash.

According to a study done by Zillow, certain shades of paint can add or detract value from a home. Choose all the right shades and home sellers can more than make up for the cost of a can of paint. Don’t get us wrong, It’s great if buyers have their own sense of style and taste. But your sellers should put a light shade of gray on top of that flamboyant self-expression. When it comes to selling, choosing lighter shades of gray and even warm, soft yellows helps the sale of a home.

What's The Deal With Color?

Color has a lot of effect over us, not just in home selling and real estate. Color has been scientifically proven to effect our mood. The place of the color on the spectrum also has a effect, if a blue is a softer blue Vs harder as an example. According to Mountain Vista Psychology, "Colors close to the red spectrum are warmer colors, including red, orange, and yellow. These warm colors evoke emotions ranging from feelings of warmth and comfort to feelings of anger and hostility. Whereas blue colors like purple and green are known for evoking feelings of calm, sadness, or indifference."

This is not a new concept as well. There is entire subfield of marketing called color marketing and you can see examples of this everywhere you look. McDonalds yellow arches are meant to invite customers in through its warm yellow. Coke's red label is aggressive and eye catching, the examples go on and on.

Homes and Color

Zillow’s Chief Economist, Svenja Gudell states that “A fresh coat of paint is an easy and affordable way to improve a home’s appearance before listing. However, to get the biggest bang for your buck, stick with colors that have mass appeal so you attract as many potential buyers to your listing as possible. Warm neutrals like yellow or light gray are stylish and clean, signaling that the home is well cared for, or that previous owners had an eye for design that may translate to other areas within the house.”

Although that news may not be too surprising, other information from the large study was. For example, did you know that a black front door could increase the price of a typical U.S. home by 2.9 percent? Or, that having a periwinkle blue bathroom could yield a home price that is 1.3 percent higher? What other color and location gets a 1.3 percent increase? Living rooms with pinkish taupe paint! Changing these spaces or rooms could really add up to a lot of cash that could more than make up for your time and money spent on painting.

What about the colors to avoid on specific spaces? Stay away from off-white or white in your kitchen, costing the average homeowner $82. Instead, opt for a warm yellow and stand to earn an extra $1,000 or more. Additionally, bedrooms painted dark brown sold for $236 less than expected, while using the same shade in a bathroom lowered the selling price by $469. Lastly, stay away from terracotta that orange-tannish hue outdoor flower pots are known for. Painting your living room that color can cost you almost $800 in the sale price of your home.

Beauty and style are in the eye of the beholder, but when it comes to someone else’s wallet, play it smart and not personally. Spending $100 on a couple gallons of paint and getting some friends to have a painting party will be more than worth it when you earn thousands extra on closing day.

Conclusion

Color is key and while it is not likely in everyone's mind when selling a home. It should be, just from the simple fact that it can increase the value of the home leading to more money for you.

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