The Color of Money: These Paint Colors Could Boost Your Home’s Value By Thousands

Painting is one of the easiest and least-cost ways you can update your home–and the transformation is often nothing short of amazing. But did you know the paint colors you choose could have a significant impact on your home’s value if you’re planning to sell?

Recent surveys of 1,400 new or prospective homebuyers suggest that certain paint colors could increase your home’s value by as much as $5,000. The payoff for a small investment of paint and painter’s tools is a buyer offering thousands above your asking price.

Here are some of the top paint colors when it comes to increasing the value of your home:

Ocean-Inspired Blue for the Bathroom. Choosing a light blue hue appears to be the way to go when updating a bathroom. Pale blue shades reminiscent of colors associated with the ocean and shoreline are particularly appealing to buyers. Getting just the right shade of blue could put nearly $5,000 more in your pocket, on average. Survey respondents indicated they would pay 1.6% more than anticipated if the bathroom struck just the right blue tone.

Blue of another shade for the bedroom. Blue won out again for the primary bedrooms, though this time around the survey respondents chose deeper, moodier shades to help convey a feeling of coziness and comfort. Done correctly, a blue primary bedroom was associated with a $1,500 increase in value of the average $290,000 home.

Neutral living spaces elsewhere. When it comes to common living areas like the living room and kitchen, survey respondents shook the blues in favor of more neutral shades. The advantages in terms of dollar value are less dramatic as well. Crisp white kitchens could add $500 to the home’s value, while the right shade of light gray could give a small $200 bump to the home’s value.

Painting your walls certain shades of blues, grays, greens, and whites make it easier for buyers to picture their own home furnishings in the space. It offers them a clean, fresh slate.

Just as certain colors can increase your home’s value, there are also those that can have the opposite impact. Choosing the wrong color–even if you like it–could have a negative impact on your home’s value in the eyes of a prospective buyer. Top on the list of colors to avoid are bright, boisterous ones. Painting a kitchen red, for example, is frowned upon by buyers and could decrease the value of your home by around $1,500 in the eyes of buyers. Surprisingly, a bright yellow kitchen fared even worse in the eyes of prospective buyers.

Like other decor, choosing interior colors for your home comes down to a matter of personal taste. If you plan to occupy your home for many years to come, your first choice should be colors that make you happy and match your personal decor. But, if you’re thinking about putting your home on the market, it’s best to avoid colors that could be a turn-off to homebuyers.