What paint colors can boost your home’s selling price and which colors you should avoid so you don’t lose money

The impact of color reflects directly in the price of a house. Therefore, home sellers, which are often advised to slap on a fresh coat of paint before listing their properties, should focus on some paint colors in order to boost the selling price. On the other hand, there are colors and room combinations which diminish the value of a house.

After analyzing more than 32,000 photos from sold residential properties, Zillow found that specific colors can either boost or crimp a home’s selling price.

Zillow chief economist Svenja Gudell says that color makes a big impact on buyers and can serve as a “powerful tool” for attracting prospective bidders. Still, given that trends change over time, it’s important to consider what tints are most favorable for would-be buyers. Thus, while last year, yellow was a popular choice for kitchens, in Zillow’s 2017 survey another shade has taken its place, CBS News reports.

Blue is the hottest trend right now

Home sellers can earn more money starting from the front door, given that Zillow found that homes with doors painted shades of navy blue to dark gray or charcoal earn a premium of $1,514.

For the exterior it’s better to pick a mix of gray and beige — “greige” — as homes with these shades on their outside sold for $1,526 more than white properties.

For kitchens, Zillow found that, in 2017, the preference has shifted to light blue to soft gray-blue, these colors generating a plus of $1,809.

Even in the dining room, blue paint can deliver an average premium of $1,926, this year’s favorite shades being slate blue to pale grey blue. Navy blue is also popular in dining rooms that incorporate white shiplap, a type of rustic wood wall covering.

Blue is preferred also for bedrooms, especially shades like light cerulean or cadet blue. For these tints, home sellers receive a premium of $1,856.

Prospective buyers can also be attracted by light beige, pale taupe or oatmeal living rooms, the medium extra amount of money they pay is $1,809 for central living areas with these shades, according to the same source.

But the biggest bang for home sellers is the bathroom, where picking blue or purple hues will pay off, according to Zillow’s analysis. The real estate data firm said that powder blue to periwinkle will increase home’s sale price with an average amount of $5,440.

While some colors can enhance a home’s value, others, such as darker colors, as well as a lack of color, can decrease the price of a property.

The real estate data firm found that the colors and room combination which had the biggest negative impact on selling price were:

– Blue living room -$820

– Yellow kitchen: -$820

– Medium brown, taupe or stucco home exterior: -$1,970

– Red dining room: -$2,031

– White bathroom: -$4,035.