How to Know Your Home Needs Exterior Painting Before Selling
When you get ready to sell a home, you look at all the different aspects that might make the property look better or worse. If the paint job on the exterior has been around for a couple of years, you might wonder if you should redo it, or if you can just repair a few patches and call it good. Here are four reasons to get a new paint job before putting your home on the market.
1. It’s Been a Few Years
No paint job lasts forever , especially on the outside. Exterior paint is designed to be somewhat weather resistant, but the constant shining sun could literally blister the paint right off your siding. Weather exposure can lead to chalking, cracking or peeling paint. This is not a good look for your home’s curb appeal. And while most of these problems may not be visible unless you look at the siding up close, it is still something that buyers do not want to see. If your paint job is not particularly new, a refresh is just a necessary part of home maintenance.
2. Paint Job Is Looking Faded
Lift the furniture in a particularly sunny room of your home, and you might notice that the carpet under the couches and chairs is darker than the rest of it. Paint can have the same problem over time. Sun bleaches a lot of things , and can take your lovely light gray into an off-white that is not quite as appealing. Some buyers go for that faded beach cottage look, but for a lot of people, it just looks old and poorly-maintained. You do not want buyers to think either of those things for your home, and covering over a faded paint job is not particularly difficult or time-consuming for a professional.
3. Color Choice Is Inappropriate
There are times when you make home improvement decisions that do not always fall into line with the latest selling trends and best practices. You might love the bright white you put on the home in 2010, even though white is not the trending color. Leaving your paint job in a once-trendy shade that has gone out of vogue will show that your home is not updated, and it will turn buyers away. Show that you pay attention to what buyers are looking for , and ask your real estate agent for the best colors for your region and home style. You want the home to catch the eye, but not because it feels “so last year.”
4. The Exterior Isn’t Looking its Best
On occasion, homes have an exterior that is simply in poor condition. This might be a result of a weird weather pattern, siding that needs to be replaced , or a poor installation. You will notice this quickly, when you see that there are spots all over the exterior that are cracking or even peeling off in sheets. If you only have a couple of places that need work, a touch-up job might be all you have to do. But if half of the exterior looks like it needs repainting, it may just make more sense to get the entire exterior done before it is scrutinized by buyers.
Knowing when you need to put new paint on your home can be difficult. With these tips, you can determine if a new paint job is what your home exterior needs to compete on the selling market.
