Benjamin Moore paints have many lovely neutral beiges. I would start there. BM Shaker Beige is a med tan color.

Sorry, but I think an off white or cream is the way to go.

Go to your local BM or SW store and ask what colors decorators are using in new or existing construction. Explain that you are painting to sell. That way the colors suggested will be customized to your region and the style of construction that is most popular in your region and also to your purposes.

I asked at my local SW (PA) what were the most popular neutral colors and they said those from the Whole Wheat and Blonde sample strips. They said that Kilim Beige and Macadamia also sold well. Those may not be the most popular in your region, that's why it's good to ask.

I would like to see some pics, but, off the top of my head, it sounds like you've done a great job. Sure wouldn't want to see white in a two-story room and a light color against those maple cabs would look anemic, at best.

We sold our last home ourselves and the market was bad. I had pretty bold colors in some of the rooms. Deep terra cotta in the master bedroom, beautiful wallpaper in the bath, a deep green art wall going up the stairs, etc. and the people who came to look were all impressed. They said they would never have thought of using color like that but they loved it (and bought it, lol).

Your colors sound fabulous and might just be the ticket to set your house apart from the rest on the market.

I'd save the $$$ you'd spend on the paint job for negogiating the price down the road.

It will be interesting to hear what the realtors have to say.

We sold last year, in FL, with 8000 listings on our local MLS. I had 14 colors in the house...mustard yellow, deep green, paperbag brown, blue ceilings, etc. Not one of the three realtors we interviewed suggested we repaint. We had a lot of showings because of the area we were in and received not one negative comment on the colors.

In fact, many people found the house "refreshingly different." My competition seemed to be stuck-in-the-80's wallpaper everywhere or totally builder-beiged-out newer construction. We sold for a great price after less than two months on the market. That was a year ago and most of our competition is still for sale.

All that to say that if your color is appropriate (sounds like it is) and there is nothing scary like bright pink or turquoise (sounds like there isn't) you should probably seriously consider leaving the paint as is. Painting is either going to take a lot of work or cost you a bundle and I think those resources should be spent on other staging-type projects (like putting in modern light switches everywhere).

I feel that it is more important to have the place spotlessly clean, make sure every little problem is fixed, and get the place as close to perfect as you can for every showing. It does make a difference in the gestalt of the place and that is sometimes (often?) what sells. Good luck!

I agree that brighter colors should be changed out, simply because the market is so competative right now. But I disagree with your feelings on white or creme. There ae so many choices out there, depending on the Cream you were to choose it can be a very warm color. We put Behr Raffia Creme on two walls in our living room as well as the hallway and we get a lot of compliments on it. It's very warm with a yellowish base. Beige to me is like Travertine, everyone has it, so it doesn't stand out.

This is kind of off topic, but the house we moved into 2.5 yrs ago had REALLY bold colors including a maroon livingroom & colbalt blue kitchen. We dreaded the idea of having to paint and some rooms required several coats to cover. But then we discovered a cool little trick. By mixing 1 oz of black into your white primer (makes a bluish gray) you get a much better cover over any color & the tinted primer is easy to cover when painting over it with lighter colors. Works especially great when covering brighter colors like reds. Good luck!

I think your colors sound gorgeous. I'd agree with some of the other posters--if the paint is in good condition and complements your house/furnishings, I'd put the money toward other staging purposes.

I would have been thrilled if our home had those colors! Instead the previous owners kept everything very white. We haven't yet painted because we're hoping to get new furniture soon that will dictate the color scheme, but we're so eager to be DONE with the white walls everywhere!

I think Carrington Beige is a good color of BM.

I am anxious to see what your realtor tells you. I have had four different realtors come to my home to ask advice about painting before selling, because I do have LOTS of color (when we built this house, my DH said anything but white walls).....and they all said not to paint anything...it is is in good shape and in good taste....and perhaps the new buyers would only want something different anyway. If the paint stands in the way of someone buying this house, I'd gladly have it repainted~~~~

We used a lot of BM Monroe Bisque when we sold our house in 2007 - the market crashed in a flaming disaster just a few weeks after our house went on the market, and the property had some significant flaws to overcome (flag lot, close proximity to a highway, neither old enough to be interesting nor new enough to have the really desirable amenities and styling) so not neutralizing and doing every little repair/spiff-up we could manage wasn't an option. We had two realtor caravans, one pre-spiffing and one post-, and only ONE odd-colored room didn't get growls from the realtors - strangely, the grayed-lavender living room. Our realtors (we did not renew the first one's contract, since we were unhappy with his negotiating skills) did pass along that what THEY were seeing were buyers who wanted houses that were move-in-ready with minimal fooling-around. If you're in a fantastic location and your property has great amenities and no other major flaws, you can afford to take a lot more risks.

SW Navajo White is another creamy color that has a very broad appeal and is move-in-ready for most people. BM's version has a grayer tinge and is not as warm.

I do admit that as a buyer I bypassed a couple of houses because on top of everything else I would have had to repaint the entire interior, which we would have had to hire out because I'm physically unable and DH, well, sucks at it. :-) I would have had to live with some really-awful-to-me colors while we saved up to paint, since the sellers wouldn't entertain a repainting allowance, which would have stunk on ice. The house we did buy is all off-white inside which is also not really to my personal preference - I love color - but it's also something I can live with quite easily until we CAN paint the place because it doesn't clash with my stuff.

{{!gwi}}
Master bath

The agent and the broker went through the home today and said DO NOT PAINT!!! YIPPEE!!!!! They said that it is very 'Pottery Barn' and will appeal to families. I just pray that they are right!!!!

Thank you for everyone's input!!

BTW, the home is not staged yet....I was cooking dinner and quickly took a few shots.
Melissa

Toldja so! hehehe

Good for you!! It's lovely and white paint would be awful.

Hi Melissa, your house looks great to me. I would put it on the market and pay attention to what visitors say. If there are lots of complaints about color, paint it then. I spent weeks working on my last house to get it ready to sell, and ended up selling it to someone who would have liked it better before I did anything to it. A friend of mine spent loads of $ and time on her yard before putting her house on sale. The new buyer ripped out everything she'd done. So, ya just never know.

I also believe a GOOD realtor would immediately say, "Oh it's just paint and that's so easily corrected" when any prospective buyer says something about any paint color. Paint is not a big deal. The bones of the house are what's really important to any smart buyer. Besides, there is no such thing as a color that will please all the people all the time.

Well pictures do tell a thousand words don't they? The colors are lovely and I'm glad your local realtors say you shouldn't need to paint. But as the other poster suggested, I too would urge you to keep tabs on the feedback. As beautiful as many will think the home looks with the colors, there's always going to be another who isn't so into them, just make sure you're on the side of the majority. Happy Selling!

Thanks everyone! We will pay close attention to comments from agents and people who come through the home.

I'm just so thankful that we do not have to put out the $1500 to repaint it. I've already made myself unattached to this home....actually we never fully attached because we have only been here two years (military family). Our new home that we are moving into is our forever home (H is retiring, yea!!!) and we are in the construction phase of that home. Now THAT is a home I will be attached to!! LOL!!

Melissa

Your colours look great so I can't see them being an issue.

AS a buyer, I've not once let paint colour deter me...I always end of painting to suit my taste/furnishings.

As some others have said, if the location & lay-out/bones of the house are right for a buyer, they should be able to get past a paint colour if it's not right for them.

Good Luck with the staging & selling!

Thanks for the pics.....and from one "color person" to another, glad you are not painting these beautiful walls..the colors are lovely. GOOD LUCK

Your colors are beautiful and will appeal to many. Relieved you are not covering over with white or boring neutral everywhere. You have a beautiful home btw.

I like your colors a lot. Keep them.

We had a realtor who specialized in staging come and look at our house. She liked the lighter (not pastel) neutral shades we already had, but didn't like the darker ones (dining room had a navy blue below chair rail).

Her reasoning was that you want to give the impression that the new owners could move right in without changing a thing. Although many on this forum would not rule out a house based on paint color, young families who ae very busy, do not want to take the time to do one thing.

She said you mainly want a sense of flow from space to space - nothing jarring. It was recommended to replace different shades of carpeting in bedrooms with one neutral shade or hard wood, if affordable.

I'm sticking to colors on the SW Nomadic Desert/Latte strips for the downstairs living area including foyer and hallways, except painting the kitchen Clary Sage (after removing the wallpaper).

Upstairs in the bedrooms, I'm going with SW Krypton in some rooms and SW Comfort Gray in the rest.

We have hardwood under our carpeting upstairs, so will remove the carpeting and clean up the wood as well as we can. New owner may want to recarpet or may not like the carpet we chose if we spent the $$$ to recarpet.

Giving the impression that the home is spotlessly clean and well maintained and free of clutter is very important.

Your house looks wonderful and I'm sure you will not have trouble selling it.

Check out this link-- he best color in the world!
http://nestingplacenc.blogspot.com/2008/02/paint.html