All too often I hear sellers say, “Hey, can’t we just skip painting because the buyers will think it’s OK or we’ll just give them a credit?” And my short answer is, “Well, homes that are clean and bright will sell faster and for top dollar.”

Whether we like to admit it or not, home buyers make first impressions about a home in a matter of seconds. From stepping out of the car to stepping into your foyer, the buyer is “sizing up” your home - for better or worse or somewhere in between. And if you can help a buyer fall in love with your home at first sight or at least want to see the entire home instead of running away, why wouldn’t you??

In reality, today’s buyers are dealing with a whole host of issues during COVD and the majority do NOT want to spend time or money repainting or fixing up a home. They want to move in and start their new lives. If you don’t appeal to this need, then many buyers simply won’t look at your home. Or, they might consider your home, but they will want such a drastic discount (i.e. credit) because they will pay someone else to come paint and that simply costs more than you and I taking up the paint brush.

To illustrate my point, consider the before and after photos of my clients’ home. A former model home it was a stand out in it’s heyday with dark heavy custom curtains, dark paint colors and heavy glazing. But during my listing appointment, we discussed the pros and cons of painting as I’ve outlined above. Taking down the heavy curtains was the easy part. Hiring painters to tackle a 2 story foyer was necessary, but ultimately, more buyers will fall in love with the new, light, bright, and clean look.

Case in point, when I posted this before and after on my Facebook page and asked for comments and photos, everyone loved the “AFTER” and shared similar photos. No one posted a picture of a dark, bold color when they “updated” their homes.