Best Neutral Paint Colors to Sell a House

Painting to sell a firm involves a very different gear up of considerations and goals than general painting projects.

When selling, the name of the game is speed, savings, and making the home appeal to as wide an audience every bit possible.

✍️ Why yous should trust us

At that place are endless "how to paint your house to sell" guides out there full of impractical, general painting advice and capricious information that can lead you down the incorrect path.

This guide is different. We read books, talked to real manor experts, and did all-encompassing enquiry to distill the near important painting principles and tips specifically for dwelling house sellers.

Read on to discover the best interior and exterior paint colors to sell a business firm, how to make the right choice for unlike styles of rooms and homes, and applied cost saving tips and tricks.

However, earlier you swoop into a major painting project, it's best to consult with an experienced realtor. They tin can tell you what improvements and repairs will make your home more than appealing to buyers, and help you avert wasting money on projects that won't add value to your home.

Need help finding a great local realtor? Clever can aid! Clever is a costless service that matches yous with handpicked agents in your local market from trusted brokerages similar Berkshire Hathaway and Keller Williams.

Clever also negotiates low commission rates of 1% or $3,000 for yous, so yous can sell your house with a top local amanuensis — and become incredible savings too!

» MORE: Discover your perfect agent, save thousands on realtor fees!

Should I paint my house earlier selling?

It's almost always a skillful idea to paint before you sell your house, assuming your timeline and upkeep allow for information technology.

Painting is relatively inexpensive and makes a big bear upon on your power to attract interest to your dwelling.

Interior and outside pigment jobs are quite unlike, so they'll need to be considered separately.

Interior paint jobs are usually cheaper because they're fairly simple, and you may only have to paint a couple of rooms.
Exterior pigment jobs are commonly more expensive because of their size and complexity, which often means that doing information technology yourself is out of the question.

We've cleaved down some of the about common reasons for repainting a house before selling.

Reasons to consider repainting your home's interior	Reasons to consider repainting your home's exterior
Lots of dark colors, inconsistent color schemes, assuming emphasis walls » More Visible scuffs, holes, writing, stains, and cracks » More Noticeable odors from pets, cigarette smoke, etc. » More Older home with outdated design scheme and fixtures (cabinets, counters, etc.) » More	Faded or worn paint due to exposure to the elements (typically after 7-10 years) » More Outdated outside color scheme (trends typically alter every 10-20 years) » More than Visible cracking paint, mildew, broken siding, and other exterior damage » More

Obviously, every seller's situation is different. Sometimes you tin can avoid painting even if one or more of the above items apply.

For example, in some areas, competition among buyers is and so steep that most homes sell inside days of being listed — whether they've been painted or non.

In cooler markets, where buyers have their pick of the litter, you'll need to do everything you lot tin can to make your home stand out. In these cases, not painting may put yous at a competitive disadvantage and make your home harder to sell.

All-time interior pigment colors to sell a house in 2021

✍️ Best interior paint colors for: Walls | Ceiling | Trim

Dwelling sellers should almost always opt for low-cal and neutral tones like biscuit, grey, and off-white.

These colors might seem a little boring, only remember why y'all're painting:

You lot're trying to entreatment to the widest possible audience, non your own tastes!

Dark, vibrant, or inconsistent schemes brand homes feel smaller, stuffier, and less inviting. They also impede the buyers' ability to insert themselves — i.e., their holding and tastes — into the infinite.

In contrast, calorie-free color schemes brand your home feel open and spacious — similar a "blank canvas" for prospective buyers

Additionally, having fewer complicated design decisions to bargain with streamlines the entire process. Fast and easy is the proper name of the game when you're selling.

Hottest interior colors in 2021

These are the "hottest" colors right now according to Consumer Reports ^[1] only have them with a grain of salt as a home seller.

You might want to take the trendy approach if yous already have a modern habitation, merely in virtually cases, post-obit our tried-and-truthful advice will exist the near efficient approach for selling.

Opt for a simple three-color paint scheme

About interior paint jobs consist of iii major components:

Walls
Ceiling
Trim

Of class, there are all sorts of absurd, pattern-y ways to approach your interior color scheme. Equally painful as it is to say, avoid the temptation to be creative!

Every bit a seller, you lot want to keep your interior every bit simple as humanly possible. This volition save y'all fourth dimension and money — AND maximize your home's appeal.

We recommend employing a unproblematic, three-color scheme because information technology's cheap, information technology'due south easy to pull off, and it looks dandy in just nearly whatsoever room.

Simple three-color scheme for selling a home
Walls	Flat beige, fair, or light gray
Ceiling	Flat "ceiling white"
Trim	Semi-gloss bright white

Three-color paint scheme

Of course, the above scheme is a suggestion, not a difficult-and-fast rule. E'er consider the unique characteristics of your domicile before you lot cull your scheme or arroyo.

The specifics of your interior pigment job will be influenced by a number of factors, including:

The current wall color
Your budget
Your timeline for painting
The layout of your rooms

Talk to the experts at your local paint store or reach out to a few local contractors for advice.

These professionals have a ton of applied experience and will likely exist able to recommend a specific approach to fit your timeframe and upkeep.

Best paint colors for walls

Walls make up the largest expanse of any room. Stick with calorie-free, neutral tones — think white, biscuit, gray, etc. — to continue the space feeling open and blusterous.

We recommend opting for flat or semi-gloss finishes, as they're typically less expensive than high-gloss paint and do a meliorate job of hiding imperfections in the surfaces of your walls.

High-gloss and eggshell tend to be more durable than flatter finishes, but don't lose sight of the goal:

You lot're painting to sell!

It really only has to expect adept for a few months — and the buyer may exercise some repainting after moving in anyhow, to personalize their new dwelling.

Best paint colors for ceilings

Flat-white paint is the go-to choice for ceilings for several reasons:

Inexpensive
Hides imperfections
Makes the ceiling feel college

Even if you're thinking the ceilings look "ok," it probably makes sense to get ahead and repaint them anyway, along with your walls.

When you paint the walls but not the ceilings, it can make them look tired in contrast, and they'll stick out like a sore pollex.

Moreover, ceiling paint is cheap, painting ceilings is relatively easy, and doing so gives yous a chance to comprehend any paint marks that may have been left behind when you lot were rolling your walls.

All-time trim colors

When information technology comes to interior trim, nosotros recommend "semi-gloss white" for almost every situation.

A glossy sheen volition "pop" against the properties of a matte wall, adding involvement to the room without being likewise pushy or overbearing.

While semi-gloss white is certainly the most conventional and popular choice, there are situations in which it makes sense to stray slightly from the beaten path.

For example, a room with pure white walls might benefit from the slight contrast of an off-white or even grey trim.

Trim besides comes in all sorts of shapes and sizes, from three-inch baseboard to 36-inch chair rail to crown molding.

An extra splash of colour may be more appropriate on trim with detailed carvings or routed edges.

Once again, semi-gloss white is commonly a prophylactic bet, but talk to your agent or painter for more specific advice.

Interior cost considerations

Interior painting projects typically toll around $i,000-three,000, although the price of repainting the entire interior of a habitation with a contractor could run as loftier as $4,000-11,000 depending on your home size and paint quality.^[2] The average cost drops to almost $1,800 if you choose to go the DIY route.

Of class, the full cost of the project will vary considerably based on a number of factors, including the:

Size of the firm
Number of rooms that need to be painted
Complexity of the job (only walls vs. walls, ceiling, and trim)

Painting the abode yourself might look improve on paper, just when y'all're selling, it's usually not the best option.

When you lot're painting a house to sell, the two most of import things are speed and quality.

Professional painters are going to become the job done faster and brand it await great. Equally skilled every bit y'all retrieve you are, trust u.s.a. — they're ameliorate.

Believe it or not, there are some cost benefits as well to hiring a pro likewise. Painters tin help yous save on materials via their contractor accounts, which can get-go some of the labor costs.

Plus, professionals will practice the job right the first time (nearly DIY paint jobs involve mistakes and purchasing more materials to ready said mistakes).

The simplest way to reduce labor costs is doing some prep work yourself in advance, since most painters charge by the hour.

By moving all of the furniture out of the way, for instance, you salvage your painters time when they show upwardly to piece of work.

Want to save money when you sell your home? There's an easier mode than digging out your paint overalls and trying to do the prep work yourself.

Clever negotiates huge discounts with elevation existent estate agents at trusted brokerages in your area. Clever's free service matches you with agents handpicked for your unique situation, so you can notice the perfect realtor AND save thousands on commission.

Interior painting tips and tricks for home sellers

Repainting dark rooms with light colors

Dark and/or inconsistent paint schemes can oft make rooms — or your entire firm — feel stuffy and cramped.

To mask dark colors, lay downwardly one to ii coats of primer earlier applying light paint. This volition ensure that the dark colour does not drain through to the top coat.

» We recommend: Kilz Original Interior Primer

Making an one-time house look modernistic

Wood grain cabinets, linoleum floors, and other features can make an sometime house wait out of engagement.

Simple touches like painting dated kitchen cabinets white tin can transform the advent of an old house.

» We recommend: Rust-Oleum Cabinet Transformations

Getting rid of unpleasant odors

Unpleasant odors such as cigarette smoke tin seep into your walls and go a huge turnoff to potential buyers.

There are special paints that you lot tin can use to smelly walls to lock in bad odors before laying downwardly your peak glaze.

» We recommend: Kilz Restoration Interior Primer

Painting on a tight timeline

Yous may desire to list your house as soon as possible, but you realize that information technology needs to exist painted speedily before list photos are taken.

Get an all-in-1 paint and primer that dries quickly so that y'all can salve fourth dimension and minimize prep work.

» We recommend: ColorPlace Ultra Interior Paint + Primer

Fixing stained, cracked or peeling paint

With time, pigment can get stained past spills or showtime to crack and skin.

Small-scale patches tin can exist repaired with spackling, only more extensive repairs will probably require you to hire a handyman who tin can supercede drywall before priming and painting.

» We recommend: Dap DryDex

Best exterior paint colors to sell a house

✍️ Best outside paint colors for: Different domicile styles | Siding | Trim | Accents

Slapping a fresh coat of pigment on a home's exterior — particularly if it's a flake older — is a great fashion to increase its curb appeal and attract more interest from prospective buyers.

While the general rule of thumb for interiors is "go along it calorie-free and neutral," choosing a primary colour for the exterior is largely based on 3 factors:

Latest color trends in your area
The style of home being sold
Exterior materials and features

Hottest outside colors in 2021

Consumer Reports' colour picks are a proficient barometer for full general trends and tastes^[3], but the all-time choice volition depend on your domicile'southward manner, outside materials, and features.

What way of home are you selling?


Victorian Victorian homes were designed to create a dramatic contrast with bright colors like yellows, reds, oranges, and pinks. While white trim is traditional, contrasting trim colors are adequate if you want to add together some pop.	Mid-century modern Mid-century modernistic houses are about balancing natural and design-y elements. Consider using accents that pop against natural materials, like orange or bright light-green against a stone or brick facade.	Cape Cod Try to keep things simple and traditional. Skillful Cape Cod colors include soft white, grays, light blues, or neutral sand tones. Trim is usually white, but you tin can boost the dynamics by adding shutters with earthy tones similar forest green or ocean blue.	Ranch-way home Ranch-style homes are best with rich, warm earth tones like chocolate-brown or biscuit. Natural materials are ordinarily congenital into the exterior of a ranch, so creating contrast isn't as much of a concern. Yous can play up natural tones in brick or rock by complimentary earthy tones like forest light-green. For a more modern impact, add a bold accent similar a vivid red forepart door.	Bungalow For a bungalow, stick to classic colors similar white, grey, or taupe for a timeless await. All the same, if you lot want to modernize the exterior, try deep blueish, sage green, or yellowish. As a full general rule, create contrast with trim elements past choosing dark trim for low-cal siding, and vice versa.	Tudor Tudor-style houses go best with traditional colors similar white, dark brownish, and black. With the unique Tudor design, contrasting trim is non the norm. Instead, choose dark, wood-like trim colors, or use night blues or dark grays for a slightly more mod impact. A bright light-green accent door can be a neat accent that actually pops against the stucco or brick of a Tudor business firm.

Picking an exterior color scheme

Repainting an exterior is virtually never every bit simple equally choosing a unmarried color and diggings the whole affair with a spray gun.

You'll have to choose a scheme that accounts for all of the different design and structural features of the dwelling house and ties them together.

Most exterior pigment jobs consist of at least three core components:

Siding
Trim
Accents (doors, shutters, etc.)

Below, we've compiled some general considerations and tips for how to approach each component individually, and as a whole.

Siding colors depend on the home's style and materials

Your siding choice volition largely depend on two factors:

Your home'southward mode
The siding materials

As a general rule, traditional siding materials like wood look all-time with traditional colors, like white, blue, red, and then on.

More mod siding materials, such as concrete, metal, and vinyl, often pair best with modern tones, like light grays and tans — but you can get fifty-fifty edgier with darker colors like blackness and gunmetal grey (of grade, clean white with black trim is a slick look as well).

Looking for inspiration? Caput online to check out other listings in your area that are the same manner every bit your home. This volition provide some inspiration and be a good indicator for what's trending in your area correct now.

Utilize trim to add together dissimilarity and involvement (or tone it down)

Typically, the purpose of painting trim is to emphasize the architectural features of your domicile's exterior and create a noticeable dissimilarity with your siding.

The general dominion is to pair dark siding with light trim, and vice versa.

Of course, there are some notable exceptions.

For example, a more mod, minimalist home with understated trim elements may be better off with night trim that but creates a subtle contrast.

Some historic homes — especially Victorian-style homes — oft utilize bright trim colors to heighten their unique character and make ornate architectural features popular.

Choose accents to conform your tastes and way of home

Choosing the right colors for accents — shutters, doors, etc. — depends on your habitation'due south siding and trim colors, besides as your desired visual effect.

If you're going for a more than traditional, understated look, nosotros recommend either matching your accents to your trim — or, if you actually want them to fade to the background, with your siding.

Choose traditional, understated tones, such every bit grays, whites, and other globe-tones, that add slight contrast and interest without ruffling whatsoever feathers.

That said, accents can also exist a dandy opportunity for calculation a splash of colour to an otherwise muted home.

Blues, reds, and greens tin wait slap-up — particularly with low-cal siding and natural exteriors like brick, rock, and raw forest.

Should I pigment my door a bright, "fun" color?

Opting for a funky, "not-traditional" door color — blood-red ruby, heaven blueish, lime green, mustard yellowish, etc. — is quite trendy these days. Information technology can certainly add involvement to your home's exterior, but it as well could plow off some prospective buyers.

Whether an "out-there" front door color is a good idea really depends on your domicile's style and target audience. We recommend speaking to your amanuensis before making any unconventional painting choices that could jeopardize your power to sell chop-chop and for top dollar.

Cost considerations for exterior paint jobs

Exterior paint jobs tend to be more than expensive than interior jobs. A full repaint of a home'due south outside costs $4,000, on boilerplate^[4].

The steep cost of exterior painting is because the calibration of piece of work is typically larger and more than complicated than interior painting.

For these reasons, outside painting typically requires a professional. Doing information technology yourself is non recommended.

In some instances, yous might be able to get abroad with repainting just ane of the three exterior components — your trim, siding, or accents — or touching up problem areas.

Nearly of the time, however, if there's an issue, you lot'll want to tackle it all in one become.

Exterior pigment tends to fade quickly — due to exposure from the elements — and so you lot'll likely have a difficult fourth dimension getting the fresh paint to friction match what's already there.

Moreover, the prep work makes up a significant clamper of the overall cost of an exterior project. Oftentimes, painting all 3 outside components isn't that much more expensive than doing one — and it makes a large difference in terms of curb appeal.

To find the best value, always get quotes from multiple, highly rated paint contractors in your area.

If you're planning to paint both your home'due south interior and exterior, you may be able to save money and fourth dimension by hiring the same contractor for both jobs.

» More: Compare quotes from local contractors.