Using Color Psychology to Sell Your Home
By Jeanette Joy Fisher

When painting your home for resale, choosing the right colors can make a huge difference in your paycheck at closing. For instance, did you know that the exterior color of houses selling most quickly is a certain shade of yellow, but that choosing the wrong shade of yellow can kill a sale?

You’ll find many brochures in paint stores, showing various combinations of exterior paint colors. But most people don’t realize that most of those combinations actually include three colors, and not just two. Limiting your exterior paint scheme to just two colors also limits your income potential.

For a fast sale, think fun colors and go for a third, or even a fourth, exterior color. Think “Disneyland Main Street,” where every shop is painted in glorious multi-colors. Adding more colors will also add definition to the various architectural details of your home. Use gloss or semi-gloss paint on wood trim.

The Psychology of Exterior Colors

When choosing exterior colors, take the sales price of your home into account. Certain colors, especially muted, complex shades, attract wealthy or highly-educated buyers, whereas buyers with less income or less education generally prefer simpler colors. A complex color contains tints of gray or brown, and usually requires more than one word to describe, such as “sage green,” as opposed to “green.”

On the other hand, simple colors are straightforward and pure. Generally, houses in the lower price range sell faster and for higher prices when painted in simple colors like yellow or tan, accented by white, blue, or green trim.

The Psychology of Interior Colors

Using colored, rather than bland, white walls will increase your profit potential. Lynette Jennings tested the perception of room size and color, and discovered that a room painted white appeared only appeared larger to a few people when compared to an identical room painted in color – and the perceived difference was only about six inches! Most people also look better when surrounded by color, and feel happier, and since buyers pick houses that make them feel happy, that knowledge can put dollars in your pocket at closing!

Entryways should bring the exterior colors into the house. Repeating shades of the exterior throughout your home will make the entire home seem to be in harmony. Living and family rooms painted in a slightly lighter shade of the exterior color will ensure that you’ve picked a color your buyers like, because if they didn’t like your exterior colors, they wouldn’t have bothered to look inside. If they loved the exterior colors, they’ll love the interior, too.

When choosing interior colors, consider the use of each room. For instance, kitchen and dining areas that are painted in “food colors,” such as coffee browns, celery greens, and scrambled egg yellows, feel natural.

Since, deeper shades of color imply intimacy and serenity, I like to paint master bedrooms a medium shade of green or blue for warm selling seasons, and rouge red for cooler weather. Other bedrooms can be painted in creamy tones of green, blue, or a pale shell pink. (See the chapter on the Psychology of Color in my book “Joy to the Home: Secrets of Interior Design Psychology” for further information.)

Selling Season

Always consider your selling season (the time of year you’ll be marketing your home) and climate when choosing colors. Estimate the amount of time you’ll need to get your home ready for sale, and then add on extra days for unexpected delays. Use cool colors, such as blues, greens, and grays, to sell during spring and summer, and warm colors, such as yellows, reds, and maroons, when selling in the fall and winter.

Color Intensity

My husband and I usually use lighter colors when painting the exteriors of our investment dollhouses, because it makes them appear larger. On the other hand, our cabin in the woods looks richer when painted a darker color. When we decided to have it painted, I considered the usual cabin colors of dark brown and barn red, but fell in love with Olympic’s gorgeous “Gooseberry” plum color.

When getting ready to paint your house, look at the colors of neighboring houses and choose colors that harmonize, yet stand out from the crowd. Colors that clash badly with other houses will detract from the overall neighborhood.

At the beginning of the article, I told you that homes with yellow exteriors sell the quickest. But which shade of yellow sells best? First, the yellows to avoid: yellows with green undertones look sickly to most buyers, and yellows with orange undertones give buyers an impression of cheapness.

The best-selling yellow exterior color is actually a pale, sunny yellow, especially when complimented with one or more carefully-chosen accent colors. For instance, a semi-gloss white trim will give your home a clean and fresh look, and adding a third color, such as green, can make your home even more attractive to prospective buyers.

Colors affect human beings in many ways, and by using the principles of Color Psychology, you can make your home stand out from the competition, sell more quickly, and at a higher price.

(c) Copyright 2004, Jeanette J. Fisher. All rights reserved.

Professor Jeanette Fisher, author of Doghouse to Dollhouse for Dollars, Joy to the Home, and other books teaches Real Estate Investing and Design Psychology. For more articles, tips, reports, newsletters, and sales flyer template, see http://www.doghousetodollhousefordollars.com/pages/5/index.htm

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Choosing Exterior Paint Colors
By Budda Oliver

Now that you have taken into account the fixed features of your home, as well as the context of your neighborhood, you are ready to begin considering your available color options for the exterior of your home. Poor color choice can make your house seem flat, dull, and featureless, and you don’t want the colors you choose to overwhelm any aesthetic features of the architecture of your building.

Light or Dark Colors?

As a general rule, lighter colors typically brighten a house and make it appear more spacious, while darker colors can make the building seem smaller, but can also draw attention to the details of your home. Dark colors also absorb and hold more heat, so they may not be a wise choice in hotter, sunnier areas.

Muted tones are an increasingly popular choice. A few examples of these muted tones include such colors as Windsor Blue or Colonial Green.

Number of Colors

Most people usually think of a two-color combinations when planning on repainting the exterior of their home. This is a common mistake, and choosing three or four colors to incorporate into the exterior of your home can have dramatic effects.

Trim/Accents

A well-chosen selection of contrasting trim and accent colors can draw attention to architectural details as well as disguise any design flaws. Bright accent colors are a good choice for doors and shutters. If you are painting the exterior of your home in order to sell it, a contrasting door color is a major benefit, say many realtors.

Building’s Architecture

Be sure to find out what the original colors of your home were. Many times, people find that the original color combinations are the most appealing for their specific building type. This is especially true for historic homes. Ideally, Victorian style homes typically look visually appealing with Victorian colors, and so on.

Tools to Help You Choose

There are many methods available to you to help you find the ideal colors for your home. If you have artistic talent, you can draw a picture of the exterior of your home and make copies. You can then freely color the picture of your home with colored pencils, to get a better idea of how those specific combinations might look.

There are also many computer programs and software to aid you in finding the ideal colors for your home. Some of these programs come with a list of house templates to choose from, and some allow you to import an actual photo of your home in order to preview your color combinations.

If you plan on hiring a professional painting contractor, then why not ask for his or her opinion? Sometimes, there is seldom a better aid than a good professional’s opinion.

Mr. Oliver is a marketing agent for Dramatic Changes. The interior and exterior painting specialists concentrate on painting jobs throughout the Richmond Virginia area. For more information on a painting contractor in Richmond Virginia please visit their website.

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Tips For Choosing Exterior Paint Colors
By Budda Oliver

There are many reasons why you may be considering repainting the exterior of your home. Perhaps you are trying to sell your house, your original exterior paint is fading or damaged, or you may just be in the mood for a new look for your home.

New paint can add curb appeal to your house, and if selling, a new coat of paint on the exterior will have a tremendous effect on the value of your home. Remember that, in addition to increased house value, the value of your entire neighborhood will rise with a new exterior paint job.

Choosing the correct paint colors will be critical in determining the final outcome of your decision. In other words, taking the time to consider the effects of your color choices can be the difference between a stunning home and a tacky house.

Color Popularity and Rankings

According to a recent survey conducted by the Rohm & Hass Paint Quality Institute, the most popular color choice of homes across America is white or off-white. Second is beige, tan, or brown with 28% of people claiming those colors as their home’s colors. Next is gray, followed by blue, then green and yellow. Coming in last on the list is red and pink.

A similar study conducted by Realty Time Magazine offers slightly different results, with white again having the majority of votes, but followed by gray, then blue, tan/brown, cream, beige, green, yellow, and red in last again. It may be obvious that white is the most common color, because white is actually the color with the most shades (even though white is not actually a color, but a neutral).

Choosing Your Home’s Exterior Colors

Prominent Colors of Your Home
There are many factors to take into account when deciding on new colors for the exterior of your home. Firstly, consider the colors that will be remaining on your home, such as the roof color, decks, or any brick or stone walls or structures. Narrow your options first by finding out which colors will go well with these prominent, fixed features.

Surrounding Neighborhood

Next, be sure to take into consideration the rest of the neighborhood. It is typically a good idea to stay within the same relevant context of colors as your neighbors. Remember that your home’s color scheme will have a direct effect on the value of your neighborhood.

In fact, some restricted communities, homeowner’s associations, and historical neighborhoods may have restrictions on what colors you may paint your home, so be sure to research any constraints your community may have.

Mr. Oliver is a marketing agent for N. Chasen and Son. The interior and exterior painting specialists concentrate on painting jobs throughout the Richmond Virginia area. For more information on a painting contractor in Richmond Virginia please visit their website.

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8 Ways To More Curb Appeal

By Aldar Nagy

The best-looking house on the inside will not even get a glance if the outside scares away potential buyers. In the current buyers market, sellers need to do everything they can to improve their odds of finding a buyer. Here are 8 ways to improve the curb appeal of any house and increase the chance of getting that potential buyer through the front door.

1. Clean Up – The first thing to do is also the simplest. Clean up everything lying around such as leaves, papers, and anything broken like pottery, bricks, or concrete. You will also want to clean all windows and the exterior sides of the house. The one-day rental cost of a power washer can be well worth the expense.

2. Bushes and Hedges – Think trimmed and neat. Remove all dead branches and leaves. Remove or trim back from around the windows to dispel safety concerns.

3. Walkways – Clean any paint and stains from cement and brick walkways. There are products at home center stores to clean these. You can hire a professional cleaner for really tough stains. Many homes can benefit from a stone or brick walkway. Breakup a basic yard by installing a walkway; this can be done relatively easily and inexpensively.

4. Grass – Dead or dying grass can be replaced with sod and will do wonders for the look of the house. Most buyers are unaware of how easy and economical laying sod can be, so impress them and do it before they write their offer.

5. Gutters and Downspouts – Make sure these are in place, cleaned out, and in working order. Gutters and downspouts hanging askew make the entire house look like a mess and make any prospective buyer wonder what else is falling apart. Seeing this from the curb will likely make your “buyers” cross your house off their list.

6. Front Entrance – A new welcome mat, a working doorbell, clean glass, a new screen, a new door-knob or opener, no peeling paint, and no stains on the bricks or concrete are some of the things you must take care of at the front entrance. This area sets the tone for the rest of the house so make sure you pay it the attention it deserves.

7. Exterior Paint and Repairs – This includes the repair and repainting of any damaged area of the house. Completely repainting is a major expense and would not really belong on this list unless the house is so bad there is no chance of a sale without it.

8. Flowering Plants – This is one of the easiest and most cost-effective things the seller can do to improve the curb appeal of any house. Try to spread these out along pathways, in planters, or even window boxes. Hanging plants can also be used if the house design supports them.

A home seller today must do everything possible to improve the impression they make on a prospective buyer and this must start with the outside of the house. Many sellers do not give the exterior of their home much thought but this area can often lose the sale before the would-be buyers even get out of the car.

Aldar Nagy is the author of several informational type websites. These include The Real Estate Marketing Blogger, which offers free marketing ideas and daily tips to agents to help you list more sellers, find more buyers, and increase your earnings through better customer service. Real Estate Marketing Blogger can be found at: http://www.realestatemarketingblogger.com

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