Neutralize Your Home for Sale.

Simplify Colors

• We want to appeal to the widest possible audience. Neutral colors are key.
• Freshly painted walls and new carpet can simply transform a house.
• Don't use a strong colored or a white carpet.
• If buyers see pink and purple walls, they see WORK. Remember, buyers are in the process of moving, and are already overwhelmed with things to do.
• If you have dated wallpaper, consider painting the walls instead of replacing paper.
• Light colors can be very appealing, but stay fairly neutral.
• Grayed yellows, sage greens, creams, light browns, and tans are muted colors that contribute a "designer" look.
• One of the problems we often see in kitchens is worn out cabinet finish. Enamel paint and new cabinet pulls work wonders.
• Often dark worn paneling can be painted with enamel paint for a fresh new look.
• Benjamin Moore Paints has a product called "Howard's Restore-a-Finish" that works wonders on scratched cabinets

Neutral Background

• Strong political or artistic statements are not helpful. We do not want buyers to focus on these matters while viewing your house.
• Large groups of family photos are distracting. It is hard for buyers to look past these and visualize themselves in your house.
• Create a clean, simplified background. Within this background, use nice pieces of furniture, books, art and other objects to add color and beauty.
• Flowers in the entry and kitchen are very nice touches.
• We will work with you to prepare your home for sale. Finding the best visual presentation must be done at your house with your furniture and possessions.
• The goal is to reach the buyer emotionally, and sell your house quickly and profitably.

Tips for Touching Up Walls:

Clean
Before using paint – reduce the need for touch up by cleaning the walls first.  This goes a long way.  Just a bowl of soap and water will work.  If you need a stronger product, here are two:

• Clorox Clean Up comes with a spray top, and removes smudges, stains, fingerprints, and scuffs.   
• Mr. Clean ERASER deep cleans doors and woodwork.

Spackle
Use spackle sparingly, and it will make nail holes disappear.  Fill the hole and wipe with a damp cloth so that there is no excess on the wall.

If you need to touch up the spot just use a Q-Tip with a drop of paint.  It will be less visible than a pass over the area with a paintbrush.   
 
Paint
If you need to touch up the walls, try to use the same batch of paint that was used for the original paint job.

Use a throwaway plastic bucket with a handle to hold the paint safely as you move around.

Mix some water with your latex paint to thin it down.  The light coat will cover, but not be as noticeable as a heavy layer. 

If you must have new paint mixed, be prepared to paint the whole wall.  Paint swatches that are not matched exactly will not appeal to buyers.