When you’re preparing your home for sale, a fresh coat of paint can make a $50,000 difference in your sale price. (No, seriously.)

I’ve already shared my own tips about which colors you should paint your walls to give potential buyers the best impression. But there’s another wild card to consider in the color game: which colors are “on-trend” in the public eye? By incorporating these colors into your staging, you’ll subconsciously convince prospective buyers that your home is truly a modern wonder — and one they should make an offer on before someone else does.

But wait, I know what you’re thinking: “Eileen, I don’t want to paint my home tangerine or pomegranate or neon green just because CNN says it’s popular.” I hear you, and I agree. No one wants to walk into a room whose tones feel oppressive or overwhelming.

Luckily, 2016 marks a change in color trends that’s worth paying attention to, because it could have a big effect on your home’s sale price.

Let’s take a look at 2016’s new colors of the year, and then I’ll show you three ways you can make these colors (or any other trendy picks) enhance the staging of your home for buyers without going overboard. [Read more…]

Let’s assume you already agree with me that it’s critically important to paint your walls inside of your home when you’re planning to sell.

Let’s also assume you understand that it’s not necessary to paint every single room. And you already know which rooms you absolutely must re-paint.

If we’re not on the same page, before you read any further, please go read my article, The Most Important (and Cheap) Investment to Make When You Sell Your Home. Then, when you finish, come on back. I’ll wait for you.

Now that you understand why it’s so important to paint your walls, the last thing you need to decide is what colors to choose.

Take a second to look at the Behr website. Not such an easy choice.

There are thousands and thousands of colors to choose from. Totally overwhelming.

So how do you choose?

Here’s how. [Read more…]

People have absolutely no imagination.

Not you, of course! But let me tell you a true story.

A friend of mine and his wife were in the market to buy a home. They fell in love with a particular neighborhood that had four models of houses. After looking at several, they narrowed it down to just two choices.

One house was a lot nicer, though similar in size. But it was also $50,000 more expensive.

They were faced with a rather tough choice.

But then they realized something strange. These two houses were exactly the same! The same layout. The same rooms, bathrooms, kitchen, family room…

So why did they seem to look so different? There were a few nice touches in the “nicer” house, like crown moulding and newer appliances. But that’s not worth an extra $50,000.

My friends bought the less expensive home. The other home did end up selling for about $50,000 more.

Want to know the single biggest reason? The color of the paint on the walls. The cheaper house was freshly painted, but with a pink “fleshy” color. The more expensive house was painted to feel elegant and upscale.

“But Eileen,” you say, “that’s not worth $50,000 either. Not even close!”

Well, you’re right. But that’s how big an impact paint can have. It can completely transform the feeling somebody gets when they walk into a house.

Why does it have such a big impact?

And do you need to paint every room? No! Keep reading for a checklist of which rooms are essential to paint and which are not. [Read more…]