Tag: home aesthetics - Mary Ann Benoit-Northern Lights Home Staging and Design

Choosing the right exterior paint color can be daunting; it’s not just about personal preference but about making a choice that the entire neighborhood sees! Plus, a misstep can be pricey to correct. Why is exterior paint selection so challenging?

First, determine your purpose: are you painting to sell or are you refreshing your home’s look for your own enjoyment? If selling, you’ll likely lean towards universally appealing shades rather than personal favorites. On the other hand, if you’re painting for yourself, choose a hue you’ll adore for years to come.

Next, consider any fixed elements like your roof. If you’re not updating these, your new paint should complement them. Additionally, take a glance at neighboring homes. You don’t need a carbon copy of their colors, but you also don’t want your home to clash or be overly conspicuous.

Lastly, think about the natural surroundings. Will your chosen color vibe with your garden or the broader environment? Decide if you want your home to stand out or seamlessly blend with its surroundings.

When it was time to paint my own house, I knew I planned to stay in my house for a long time. Here was my method for picking my paint colors. It started with determining what options I liked, and what limitations I needed to consider to narrow down some options.

Alaska color consulting with Northern Lights Home Staging and Design — My house before painting. See Part 2 to see the final reveal!

Determine What you Like

During a leisurely drive around my town with a friend, I paid keen attention to house colors, aiming to understand my preferences. Interestingly, it was the combinations I didn’t like that offered the most insight. For instance, there were numerous homes where the colors seemed at odds with the roof. Others had trim or door shades that didn’t harmonize with the primary wall colors. A surprising number opted for neutral hues for their walls, trim, and doors, resulting in a forgettable facade—just a splash on the front door would have made all the difference! Then there were those homes that went the other extreme: they were so vividly colored that they’d be blindingly bright on a sunny day. Such saturation seemed too intense for long-term appeal; I was more inclined towards deep, rich colors.

Among the vast sea of colors, a few schemes did stand out for me: a charcoal/blue home with white trims, a gray/green one also with white, and a house that sported a light teal/gray combination. To ensure my choices were not just passing whims, I viewed these homes under varying light conditions. It’s fascinating how light, whether from a clear sunny sky or a cloudy one, can alter the perception of color.

Consider Your Limitations

I took into account my “fixed finishes,” particularly my roof, which resembled Benjamin Moore’s “November Skies” with its blue-gray hue. Given its relatively inconspicuous appearance, this color wouldn’t significantly influence my overall palette. Additionally, I had wooden decks and railings, initially stained but now requiring a decision: should I continue with staining or opt for paint? Ultimately, I chose to paint them. Had I gone with staining, I would have needed to regard this color as one of my enduring design elements.

Visualize How Your Choices will Look

I decide to try some of the color combinations I liked using the visualizer on the Benjamin Moore website. I selected some body and trim colors I liked. I also considered colors in my landscaping and flowers for inspiration for a front door color.

Test Your Colors to See How they Look in Different Light Conditions

Next, I tested these colors on the back of the house, assessing their appearance under different lighting conditions. Curious about the results? Discover what happened in “How to Pick the Perfect Exterior Paint Colors Part 2!”

If you’re gearing up to sell rather than stay, grab your free report on the “Top Paint Colors for a Speedy and Profitable Home Sale” to guide your color decisions.

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Why Work with Northern Lights Home Staging and Design

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Ready to put your home on the market? Assemble a top-notch team to ensure a smooth and profitable sale. Your squad should include an expert home stager, a skilled real estate photographer, and a Realtor who excels in marketing and truly champions your interests.

Wondering how to pick the perfect team? Begin with your home stager. I recommend taking the initiative as a seller to make this selection. Choose the best in the business! For insights on why this matters, check out my blog post titled Why Hire a Professional Home Stager to find out more.

Home Staging is Like Meeting the Person you Want to Marry on Your First Date

Considering selling your home? Proper home staging can significantly boost your final asking price. In fact, effective staging not only recovers its cost but often yields a profit! Additionally, you might be eligible to deduct staging expenses as advertising costs from your home sale taxes.

However, a word of caution: avoid Realtors offering staging services unless they’re professionally trained. Ineffective staging won’t produce the desired effect. An exceptional Realtor will likely suggest, and perhaps even cover, the cost of a professional home staging consultation.

Exercise caution if your Realtor offers to choose and fund the staging. While it sounds enticing and can lure clients, many just opt for the most affordable stager. Some might even inflate this cost for you. Remember, cheaper options can result in an unappealing presentation, leading to prolonged market time, several price cuts, and mounting monthly expenses.

Often, Realtors request “light staging” or “minor fluffing,” a minimalistic approach to make a property appear staged on a budget. This strategy, which might involve sparse furniture or sporadic décor, isn’t effective. Instead of a charming home, it renders the property peculiar both online and offline.

Your best bet? Personally hire a top-tier stager. This investment, done correctly, offers maximum returns.

For tips on hiring the best home stager, refer to my article, “Five Common Mistakes Homeowners Make When Hiring a Home Stager.

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