When you go househunting....

[Heather K.]

Are you swayed by paint colors in a house when you go househunting? We might be moving in the foreseeable future (we're military... we always "might be moving soon") and I'm trying to decide if it's worth repainting rooms in my house to "neutralize" them. When you're househunting do you overlook the paint colors or is it a factor for you?

 

Thanks for the input. :)

[Night Elf]

I've heard it's best to have everything neutral so people can just picture themselves moving in without a lot of work.

 

Personally, paint colors don't bother me at all. My current house was advertised as having "designer" colors when we bought it 6 years ago. They were ugly. I knew I was going to change them, but painting doesn't bother us.

 

Now, lots of wallpaper is an entirely different thing. That would probably be a deal breaker for me. I can handle a wall or two, but whole rooms would be a huge turnoff.

[kathkath]

I think it's well worth it to repaint a neutral color. It gives the appearance of clean and fresh. Having one continuous color can also make a place appear bigger. Color can draw attention away from the homebuyer's main task of imagining themselves living in your house, IMO.

[LisaKinVA]

If all that was wrong was cosmetic issues (paint, broken toilet... things that I can fix easilly), nope, it wouldn't stand in my way as a BUYER. But, I'm not the average buyer.

 

The average buyer would be turned off by bold & old/grungy -- and as a SELLER, I'd fix that stuff.

 

Since you move quite a bit, you have to determine how much work you want to do to a place. I don't consider painting much work... most times.

[sarah1615]

I think it depends on the situation. Some colors are unflattering for certain spaces and could make a room appear smaller, etc, which could influence my decision to buy a house. In general though, I try not to let the owner's color choices sway me.

[Kebo]

I have no problem overlooking house colors, but many people can't or won't. I'd vote to repaint unless you have gotten lots of compliments on the current colors. Repainting will also make the house look fresher and newer, which is a very good thing.

[abbeyej]

I think there's ample evidence that it's hard for the majority of buyers to see past overwhelming color -- even if they THINK they can. Now, if your house is relatively neutral already, that's probably fine -- it doesn't all have to be shades of pale beige. But if you have a neon yellow entry way or an electric blue bedroom or a bathroom in shades of chartreuse and orange and a plum kitchen... Well, yeah, you don't want people to be distracted by the paint.

[Impish]

If the colours hurt my eyes in pics, I'm not even going to consider seeing it in person.

[lllll]

..

[Julie Smith]

I'm not a typical house buyer.

 

I have bought a house two times. Both times I have agreed to buy it before entering the house. I had my requirements 3K from dh office, and then if possible 2K from a recreation center and library.

 

The first house I told my agent, when we pulled up outside it, "Oh, no need to go inside and bother the people who are selling. I'll take it.". The second time I tired to go inside because the outside was a little, um unique. But then the people weren't home. (Scheduled appointment) so I thought for a minute and then said, "I take it, but I want to see inside before making a offer".

 

The first time I bought a house it took awhile since my agent didn't believe me when I said it MUST be in this location. Whenever she drove outside that location I would say, "I don't care what you are thinking of showing me. I wouldn't take it".

 

The second time the agent showed two houses in my accepted area. I had the house bought same day I went shopping. My agent also didn't insist of my husband seeing the house before buying it - so we could do all the paperwork by fax.

[MelanieM]

I consider myself pretty aware of the whole painting thing (have done lots of it!) and easily able to visualize a space differently than it appears. However, when we were house hunting back in November we visited our house and another that was exactly the same floor plan and with very similar features. The main interior difference was that our house was painted in nice (to me) colours and the other house was still completely white -- no colour on the walls at all. Our place was soooo much more inviting! It was amazing how much harder it was to get past the stark appearance of the other house and visualize the potential.

 

So yes, I think things like paint really do matter when you're showing a house.

[The Girls' Mom]

I have looked past a lot of cosmetic things in house buying, but many, many people won't. A freshly painted house in neutral colors gives the impression of newness and cleanliness. It also means it's pretty much move in ready (providing there aren't other things to be done). Well worth the investment, IMO. Every house we have sold showed much better after a fresh paintjob.

[justamouse]

No. But I hate it when they're painted whites and neutrals. We say many, many houses. We forgot all of the neutral ones. The houses painted brightly-even a bathroom, were the ones we remembered.

[Ellie]

Not necessarily, because I figure I can paint. OTOH, if every.single.room must be painted because the current colors are awful, that might make a difference to me.

 

A friend recently sold her house and painted her purple kitchen (really, more of a nice purply-plum color) because her realtor insisted on it. Another realtor said he didn't think she should have, because it made her house stand out from the rest. And the woman who eventually bought it...painted the kitchen the same color. :-)

[Plucky]

I'm a person that can see the potential of a home. We paint, put in new flooring ourselves, and even a new kitchen this last time - but that is because there was no other home in the area, with the kind of property we wanted. There were many gorgeous, large homes with granite counters, and no work needed that we could afford, but we didn't want to be in a cookie cutter development with a tiny backyard and all our windows looking into the neighbor's house. I loathe new developments.

[coffeefreak]

I think it really depends. When we sold our house in 2008, we painted the two rooms that were going to be major "issues." They were a bathroom that was painted with blue polka dots and stripes, and a bedroom where the paint had faded to a hospital green.:lol: We left the great room yellow, our bedroom blue, and the other bedroom yellow and pink. However, we had all new appliances that were being left with the house, a home warranty, and no other repairs that needed to be done (carpet was fine etc). We're stating to look at houses again and the paint factors in when there are numerous other things that need to be done. It also factors in when it makes the room look smaller or just plain bad! If you have the money, you might want to paint neutral colors to give yourself an advantage over other houses.

 

I know that's not much help, but in this market, it's best to consider all the factors involved.

Blessings!

Dorinda

[Tap]

Color can affect my impression of a house, but a purchase decision more likely will be affected by how the color was applied and what I will have to do to repaint it. Repainting can be a quick project or a nightmare...that would play into my decision.

 

Was it done sloppy and is all over the base boards? Will the base boards have to be sanded and repainted? If they painted only part of the base boards, is there a natural separation between rooms/base boards? (a concern with open floor plans without natural room divisions)

 

How much will I have to repaint? Is it a project I can do myself, or will it require professionals? I have painted 2 story entryways myself before but my back couldn't handle it now.

 

How dark of a color was it? If I wanted to repaint a black and white striped room, I know there will need to be many coats and primer used. That moves more into having a professional do it than me (bad back).

 

Does it have a bunch of runs in it that will need to be sanded down? Crease lines between colors used in the same room? Holes fixed that show different textures?

 

Textured walls will affect the ability to repaint, that would be a consideration.

If they painted wood, how many times has it been repainted? Did they paint doors that are flat and leave brush/roller marks?

 

Paint over wall paper or faux treated walls can be horrible to deal with, that would likely be a negative.

 

How much needs to be repainted? In my current house (open floor plan with 2 story entry), if you want to paint any of these, they all have to be repainted as they share walls....living room, music room, downstairs entry, downstairs hall, staircase, upstairs hall, downstairs ceiling, upstairs ceiling. It is a 2story, 1500sqft project, with 3 20ft walls, just to paint a wall in the living room. LOL In the back of the house, the large dining room (was a living room), kitchen nook, and kitchen are all one room. Again, you can just paint one part without doing it all.

[Happy]

As a real estate agent, I'm surprised by how much I'm affected by fresh, clean, and bright. Fresh warm neutrals are my favorite. I can see the potential in so many houses, but the ones where I don't have to think too much are always at the top of the list. (Unless there are holes in the walls or no kitchen. I have a special soft spot for rehab projects....my buyers don't however....)

 

If you can't paint everything, paint the living area and master bedroom. Then clean like a mad woman. Declutter so the place looks and feels huge. Then leave all the curtains and blinds open and the lights on--all of them!

 

Good luck in your move!

[mazakaal]

Drastic colors bother me. If the walls are a light color that I don't love but could live with, then it's fine. But if they're bright red and black (or something similarly dramatic), it immediately turns me off.

[mom4him]

Are you swayed by paint colors in a house when you go househunting? We might be moving in the foreseeable future (we're military... we always "might be moving soon") and I'm trying to decide if it's worth repainting rooms in my house to "neutralize" them. When you're househunting do you overlook the paint colors or is it a factor for you?

 

Thanks for the input. :)

It never swayed me in the past. I know that they advise to have more neutral colors but when we had our home appraised last year it appraised very well and has anything but neutral colors in it.

 

Personally I don't like neutral colors so if I found a home that I liked with them I would KNOW that I would be painting before I moved in.:001_smile: I have always looked at the bigger picture though also. We have always purchased fixer uppers.:tongue_smilie:

[Heather K.]

Wow-- thank you all for the input! Our home is very clean and we put it all new floors when we bought it a few years ago. But the disadvantage is we're in a newer, "cookie cutter" neighborhood where many identical homes are for sale at the same time. So every detail-- including paint colors-- might be important when selling. We have a warm yellow-gold in our kitchen/family room that we love.... but aren't sure how it will strike potential buyers. Trying to decide if it's a big deal or not.

I appreciate all your thoughts. :)

[RoughCollie]

We have a warm yellow-gold in our kitchen/family room that we love.... but aren't sure how it will strike potential buyers.

 

To me, that is a neutral color. I'd leave it.

[Plucky]

To me, that is a neutral color. I'd leave it.

 

I'd leave it, too. I like warm neutrals, not white. So make your home as nice as possible, clean and declutter, and price it very competitively. That is all you can do to compete with so many other houses. And there are people who like "cookie cutter" out there - don't sweat it. :001_smile:

[Dobela]

For us the colors of the house were not a factor unless the house was near the top of our budget. Then we would take time to reconsider how much more it will cost to repaint in addition to any other known repairs.

 

However, if the walls were dirty, had lots of damage.... I would advise painting and repairing. That just sends warning of poor upkeep.

[mazakaal]

I'd consider that neutral enough and leave it.

[DarlaS]

I'd consider that neutral enough and leave it.

 

:iagree:

 

It's neutral. I've even seen new houses in this area with golds & greens instead of or in addition to some builder's beige. It seems to be pretty universally liked.

 

It's not like you have all the moldings painted black or something.

[DawnM]

We dont' care at all about paint colors.

 

The house we are in didn't sell for over a year due to paint colors.

 

The previous owner painted the large master bedroom a seafoam green from the chair rail up (AND THE CEILING!) and then from the chair rail down she did a sponge painting of seafoam green and purple. Her realtor told her over and over to repaint as that was the #1 reason people wouldn't buy the house.

 

We have repainted it a tan color since, but it did take a lot of effort, particularly the ceiling.

 

Dawn

[ciyates]

You can always offer a credit for paint or to paint the house before the closing. That way if painting is an issue for someone you can overcome it.

 

We are not the average house buyers. We are much more interested in the the bones of the house than the cosmetics. Honestly there isn't much we haven't done to a house.

[newbie]

Paint colors are very important. B/c who is going to repaint, owner or buyer.

 

We just painted the last two homes we have lived in and dont want to do again, so the next one we are buying have to love the colors, so I can just clean and move.

 

So, I would say yes neutralize.

[abbeyej]

Do appraisals consider things like paint though? I get the impression it is more about structure, number of rooms, major improvements (additions, etc.).

 

Yeah, appraisals are a totally different animal. They do *NOT* reflect color or the *perceived* size of rooms or clutter or many of the things that do, in fact, influence buyers.

[elfgivas]

I'm not a typical house buyer.

 

I have bought a house two times. Both times I have agreed to buy it before entering the house. I had my requirements 3K from dh office, and then if possible 2K from a recreation center and library.

 

The first house I told my agent, when we pulled up outside it, "Oh, no need to go inside and bother the people who are selling. I'll take it.". The second time I tired to go inside because the outside was a little, um unique. But then the people weren't home. (Scheduled appointment) so I thought for a minute and then said, "I take it, but I want to see inside before making a offer".

 

The first time I bought a house it took awhile since my agent didn't believe me when I said it MUST be in this location. Whenever she drove outside that location I would say, "I don't care what you are thinking of showing me. I wouldn't take it".

 

The second time the agent showed two houses in my accepted area. I had the house bought same day I went shopping. My agent also didn't insist of my husband seeing the house before buying it - so we could do all the paperwork by fax.

 

i wish there were a "like" button. i am this way about location (the house before this had to be within walking distance of work and school), but not this way about the inside, but dh is.... i wish i were....

 

we have bought and sold multiple times, and repainted each time ...

 

hth,

ann

[Aggie]

Wow-- thank you all for the input! Our home is very clean and we put it all new floors when we bought it a few years ago. But the disadvantage is we're in a newer, "cookie cutter" neighborhood where many identical homes are for sale at the same time. So every detail-- including paint colors-- might be important when selling. We have a warm yellow-gold in our kitchen/family room that we love.... but aren't sure how it will strike potential buyers. Trying to decide if it's a big deal or not.

I appreciate all your thoughts. :)

 

Although this sounds like a lovely color, it's not going to be one that *every* woman loves.

 

We have moved several times, also. There have been houses that we've had no problem up-dating or painting. But there have been times when I was too busy with the dc to even think of doing one thing to a new house.

 

Think of your potential buyers. If they love color, they are probably going to paint anyway. When I had the time and inclination to paint, having to choose colors and do the work wasn't a problem for me because I could 'see' the new colors on the walls.:D

 

But when dc were little and there was no way I could stand the thought of painting, I wouldn't have bothered with a home that *had* to be repainted. Even though your color may be considered neutral, it wouldn't go with anything I have. And it being the kitchen AND family room....

 

I would suggest painting it.:001_smile:

[Sushi's Mom]

Ww have only purchased one home. We looked at many and narrowed it down to two. The other house, that we did not buy, was what I call the Brady Bunch house, because the outside looked like that, and the inside had more of an open floor plan. It had hardwoods under the carpet, the rooms were bigger, the living room and family room were connected by pocket doors. The yard was the right size for us. It was $2000 less than our house. The kitchen, however, was hideous and old, it needed a new roof in a few years, and probably new windows at some point. All the rooms were painted weird colors too, and the bathrooms were old, yucky colors, including powder blue and goldnerod tiles.

 

The house we bought was more traditional, smaller rooms, the kitchen was only 6years old and beautiful, all the main floor rooms had nicely painted walls, the roof was 5years old, and the windows we're about 10 years old. Carpets n the main floor were also just a few years old. The bedrooms were not updated, but it was something we could live with a while, or deal with ourselves. Two of them had new carpet, one has really old shag, and there are no hardwoods in the house. The yard is huge, on a corner (which we did not want) and my daughter cannot play in it for safety reasons unless I go out with her. It's hilly, too, and I broke my ankle falling down one of the hills.

 

The reason we bought it though was because we had the perception that we would not have to do anything to this house, just move right in. For the most part, that was a true, but I find myself wishing we had purchased a different house, and now we are in the process of trying to fix this house up (we've been here almost 10 years) so we can sell it. I'm not sure what are the things we need to fix, though, in order to make it sellable. It had been on the market for 6months before we bought it, and an identical house across the street from us, was on the market for 9 months a few years ago. So, houses sell slowly in this area. I'm not sure who I have to hire to come in to tell me what needs to be done and what we can ignore. We want to try to sell it ourselves first, so I don't want to call a realtor. (the house values have not increased much, and if we have to pay a commission, we would lose money. I'm torn about that and getting out ASAP. It is not critical we leave, so we just have to decide.)

[justamouse]

My kid's bathroom is tangerine. The dining room is blood red with cream dental molding. I left them those colors.

 

There was an article in our paper a few months ago about how painting the house neutrals to sell it were not a good decision because the houses all look too uniform.

 

If you paint them, use good paint, Benjamin Moore, and do it right or pay someone. Sloppy painting is wretched-where it's all over the ceiling and drops on the floor-it looks like a kid did it. But rich colors that are professionally done (and done well yourself) make a house jump out at a buyer.

 

And, it's the LAST thing I consider when buying. It's the cheapest thing to change. A yellow kitchen is as classic as classic gets.

Edited June 19, 2011 by justamouse

[Murphy101]

The only time paint bothers me is when it is painted cabinets/woodwork in the kitchen. Especially if it is white.

 

I rented a house with a white kitchen many moons ago and it scarred me for life. HATED that kitchen and swore I'd never have painted cabinetry again.

[Jeannie in NJ]

when we bought our house 18 years ago, the entire house (except for kitchen and bathrooms) had flocked green wallpaper and green shag carpets. THe kitchen had brown wallpaper and yellow floor with harvest gold appliances. We bought the house knowing we would be changing everything. We were young, no kids and no pets and plenty of time to re-do the house. The outside of the house was faded green singles, we replaced with white siding. We got the house for cheap and discovered when we took up the carpets all original beautiful hardwood floors in every room except kitchen and baths.

 

We are looking at houses to move into now and one house we waliked into everthing was powder blue, carpets, walls, even the kitchen all the exact same color. I said no way am I re-doing everthing again. So we are mostly looking for house that we do not have to repaint except maybe kids bedrooms or only one room downstairs if we otherwise love the house.

[Melinda in VT]

I try to avoid judging a house based on paint colors, but I recognize that the paint does tend to influence my impression of how the home feels.

 

Around here, almost every house has a unique floor plan. Houses of the same rough size and price are likely to have very little in common, so the decision is less likely to be influenced by paint colors.

 

When I am looking at very similar houses, paint color influences the final decision more, because other factors are more likely to be the same, and you have to decide somehow.

 

A popular neutralish color that isn't my personal favorite is less likely to cross a house off my list than bedrooms obviously painted for the opposite gender. (I have three boys and a girl who hates traditional girl colors. If bedrooms are painted pink or purple, that house would fall below other similar homes with neutral bedrooms or bedrooms painted blue, yellow, green, or red.)

[coffeefreak]

Wow-- thank you all for the input! Our home is very clean and we put it all new floors when we bought it a few years ago. But the disadvantage is we're in a newer, "cookie cutter" neighborhood where many identical homes are for sale at the same time. So every detail-- including paint colors-- might be important when selling. We have a warm yellow-gold in our kitchen/family room that we love.... but aren't sure how it will strike potential buyers. Trying to decide if it's a big deal or not.

I appreciate all your thoughts. :)

 

Have you looked online or gone with your realtor to the houses that have the same floor plan or similar floor plans to yours? We did that and didn't paint because of it. The houses that were for sale that had our floor plan had "custom" paint colors (like lavender and deep purple), or didn't have the upgrades ours did. The person who bought our house actually chose us because he would have to do the least amount of work, but was ticked he'd have to paint. He would have had to paint ANY of the houses like ours, so we were in luck (he hated our yellow living room:lol:)

 

HTH!

Blessings!