Nice house! The yellow could go, but the picture on the bottom looks good.

http://www.bobvila.com/slideshow/8-exterior-paint-colors-to-help-sell-your-house-47419/off-white-house#.Vs_kmvBHarV

The above link is a good one, I love the putty and gray houses. You can't go wrong with neutrals.

You have a beautiful home. My favorite is a white house with black shutters, but I think a light gray - almost an off white - would also be lovely. Maybe Benjamin Moore Classic Gray?

Thanks all! Oddly enough one of the colors in that article was yellow.

Maybe an off white is the way to go.

A few off whites I like are BM White Dove, BM Simply White, BM Ivory White, SW Alabaster, SW Dover White, SW Creamy, and SW Antique White.

I've read BM Ballet White is a a great off white color too, but don't have any personal experience with it.

Personally I would prefer a gray house over a white house any day of the week. It really is a personal preference. Some buyers will like the white or off-white and some won't.

One thing I forgot about until this morning, the trim around the windows are aluminum clad in a bright white that doesn't get painted.

I think BM Classic Gray or another one of their "off-white" colors with black shutters would be beautiful. It would give you the same effect as far as that georgeous farmhouse look but still offer some color and contrast with the white clad windows and porch.

Have to mention again what a lovely home you have - I really love the siding, shutters, roof lines, and dormers. Hope you don't mind if I save your picture to use as inspiration when we change the roof pitch and add dormers to our 1 story farmhouse!

I really like the pale yellow...

but if you must paint it, maybe a warm off-white.

Gray can be a little chilly.

Realtor Story Warning!

(As we go through the years, we accumulate bushels of these stories.)

A fellow Realtor bought her 'dream home' & re-did it the way she'd always dreamed of.

beautiful pale grays & blacks & whites, silver accents (nickel faucets & light fixtures etc).

When it came time to sell, she had a "pre-marketing" open house, & the comments were all the same, along the lines of:

house feels cold, chilly, uninviting.

Undaunted (gotta be *one* person who wants that same décor, right?), she put the house on the market, only to take it off 6 months later to re-paint & put down area rugs to cover the gray carpet.

put it back on the market...

& sold it.

Your mileage may vary.

,tnfarmhousefixin

Thanks, we have loved this house for the past 18 years and are torn about selling it. When we first looked at house plans and building my husband didn't even know what a Dutch colonial was, now he's a convert.

The house is based on a plan by William Poole called the Essex. We raised the ceiling heights and tweaked a few things but overall it's that plan. Look it up if you want actual drawings and dimensions.

Cpartist, a grey green is my dream color! I have always wanted it that color but my husband has a green color blindness and every grey green swatch looked brown to him. Hence the yellow, it was the only color we could agree on. Now that we are selling he said he doesn't care what color we do, whatever sells. Maybe now is my chance?!

Thanks for the info! I'll look up the Essex plan - love William Poole designs.

Why do you want to paint it before selling? The yellow looks nice as is (and I'm also not a yellow person). Is the finish still in good shape?

Quiet moments is a pretty blue-green-grey color.

Does it need to be painted? If only one side needs to be painted (peeling paint in sun or discoloration on north), I'd match the sides that are good.

I personally like the yellow, love gray, but wouldn't be crazy about anything that reads towards green. My point is that you don't know what people like, and your yellow may appeal to as many people as it won't.

I agree with nosoccer and tnfarm that if it's only because you think it may sell better by changing the color, then don't bother. However, if it needs to be repainted because it's peeling, etc that's a different story.

I'm in the process of selling our condo right now. It's in mint condition. Hardwood floors, granite countertops, etc. While I decorated with my tastes in mind, I also made sure not to go hog wild with any color or thing that would be so out there, it would be a turn off. Here's the listing: Cpartist's listing

Well wouldn't you know it that we have someone who is supposedly writing us an offer this weekend? Except she dislikes the wood floors (she prefers tile) and she doesn't like the dark wood color in the bedroom (prefers it white) or the colors of the walls (she prefers turquoise). My point being you'll never please everyone so don't even bother trying. Keep it the yellow neutral it is now if it doesn't need to be repainted and move on.

I like the yellow and the landscaping in the top picture. It adds to the cozy feeling.

I think yellow is perfect!

I love that yellow and landscaping in the first pic. I personally wouldnt change it. It is a beautiful home.

A 2 story house I passed by frequently was gray with black shutters. They started painting white with black & I wondered why. When it was finished I have to say it was striking. I was surprised how much nicer it looked

Yellow is not my favorite color, and still I wouldn't paint it, at all. Very lovely home.

The chemistry between you and certain house is, at least partly, magical and hardly explainable. People who will love your place will love it yellow.

I would stick to the neutral colors also. The off whites with dark shutters. That has the most appeal to buyers. A ranch across the street from us was painted a bright yellow last year. Looks horrid. Stands out like a bad sore thumb.

Do you HAVE to re-paint for some specific reason? If so, I would definitely go with a pale to medium gray. With your dark roof and bright white window trim, I think it would look great. I am not a fan of yellow - your yellow looks pale and faded. Is it an old paint job?

The pics are actually 2 different paints, the first is the most recent. The house needs to be painted, the back, south facing, is looking kind of haggard :D.

How about just painting the south facade if the rest is good shape and just power washing that? Not sure how much prices are in your area, but in mine, painting a house of that size is easily 10-12K.

If just the back is haggard, just paint the back. Make the back look inviting with lots of plants, some tables and chairs and no trash cans, garbage, etc.

I agree that the yellow is charming and suits the house (I have seen yellows that are awful, but this is not one) so I would not paint it. But, if you must, then I wanted to say that I painted my house Glidden "High Tea" ( a sort of sage green-grey) with trim in "Bleached Wheat" by Laura Ashley, nearly black green shutters, and a red door (can't remember the color name) -- all mixed in Sherwin Williams paint. Ten years on I still get compliments from neighbors on the color.

"Quiet Moments" is also a lovely color that would suit your house.

BTW I was able to paint both aluminum and vinyl white trim around windows successfully.

I like the yellow but not everybody does. Neutrals are the way to go if you are selling - white, off white, creams, pale gray, etc. Its one thing if you are staying, if you are painting to sell, yes, white or cream is probably best. Yellows and greens are lovely, but are not everyone's cup of tea. Maybe paint the house a neutral white or cream and paint the front door in a color that pops, that seems to be a plus to buyers.