Selling your home is by all accounts, an absolute ordeal. Before we even hit the admin side of things, doing all of the odd jobs you’ve been meaning to get around to, packing ahead of time, and feeling like you’re living in limbo until you actually settle into your new home. It’s little wonder that 57% of Brits say it’s the most stressful life event that they’ve experienced – more so than having a child or getting divorced. Whew.
With all of this stress in mind, many buyers will hope to make it worthwhile, especially since house prices can fluctuate so much and the housing market feels like an absolute minefield to many of us.
In fact, average UK house prices increased by 3.5% in the 12 months to April 2023, down from 4.1% in March 2023. Truly, how can you begin to work with a market like this?
Well, start with decorating.
What colours to use when selling your home
So, while historically, many of us were told by our elders that our walls should be magnolia or white when selling a home, this isn’t quite true. In fact, we should be going a lot bolder than that. Maybe buyers are tired of seeing magnolia after years of renting!
According to a study by Zillow, while we should be steering away from all-white decor or the dreaded magnolia, buyers shouldn’t necessarily race to paint their homes in bright or extreme colours. Zillow added, ‘Creativity and courage in colour choices are typically not rewarded by the market, unfortunately’.
According to the study, this means avoiding mint green kitchens, bright green bathrooms, and blue living rooms. They add that sellers should also avoid pink, bright green, and bright yellow. Apparently some buyers won’t even tour homes with those hues on the walls.
Instead, when it comes to your bathroom, go for light blue shades which are apparently likely to make home buyers pay 1.6% more for a bathroom with light blue walls.
For your kitchen, opt for a bright white, light yellow, or dark green. Classic dark shades of grey (ooer) go down well in living rooms and help buyers to visualise living there and finally, dark blues and greens for bedrooms for a cosy feel.
Finally, choose matte paint for your walls, flat white paint for ceilings and a satin finish for trimmings and mouldings throughout the home. Happy selling!