Selling your home? Paint can help your
house stand out

Sales of existing homes skyrocketed in 2003, but with the possibil-ity of interest rates rising again, who knows how long the boom will last. If you are planning to put your house on the market in the near future, you might want to take steps to give yourself a competitive edge…and have your house look great in the interim.

According to The Rohm and Haas Paint Quality Institute, a quality paint job imparts a well-maintained appearance to a home, which in turn provides a distinct selling advantage. A house that appears well-kept, both inside and out, usually sells more quickly and brings a higher price. As a result, for those who are selling a home, repainting is really more like an investment than an expense.

You may choose to use a painting contractor, or do the work yourself. But regardless of who does the painting, there are some general tips to keep in mind:

Be sure to use a top quality paint, and promote the completion date and quality of the job in the sales literature and ads for your home. A recently applied, high quality acrylic latex paint can last 10 years or more compared to three or four years for ordinary paints. That translates into many years of freedom from maintenance for prospective buyers, a very attractive benefit.

Don’t forget the interior. While a prospective buyer’s first impression of your home will be the exterior, he or she will also be looking closely at how well the home is maintained on the inside. Consider painting at least the rooms that tend to draw the most attention – the kitchen, bathroom and family room are good places to start.

When selecting a color, be conservative. White and neutral colors are often the safest choices, since they appeal to the greatest number of prospective buyers. It also allows them to best picture how their own furnishings will work in the house. And don’t stop with the siding – paint doors, trim and window frames, too.

Include quality surface preparation in the work. This will produce the best final appearance, and add to the life expectancy of the paint job.

Finish painting before putting the home on the market. It is always best to avoid the appearance that the painting is being done just to command a higher selling price … even if that is the case.

And don’t think this advice applies only to houses with wood siding. Homes with aluminum siding, vinyl siding, or stucco can all be successfully painted. In fact, a coat of flat (rather than satin or semi-gloss) paint on aluminum siding will even help conceal minor dents and other surface imperfections on the home’s exterior.

For more information on painting projects visit The Rohm and Haas Paint Quality Institute online at www.paintquality.com.