Quick Color Trends Dating a Home
Color trends from bygone eras can hurt you if you’re currently in the market to sell your home, so paying close attention to what those colors and finishes are can help you determine if your home is likely to sell. Here are some tips to help you move forward:
the earthy 70s
The seventies were all about wood tones and earth tones. If you doubt me, take a trip back in time and look at photographs of old houses. Do you see many wooden panels? How about on the ground? Is that shaggy rug a rust color? Or maybe it had green rugs? Let’s talk about the kitchen, remember the Avocado green appliances? Or was it Brown or Harvest Gold? The flooring was also generally a wild pattern and you can bet greens, oranges and browns were on them too. Now, if your home is still holding on to the ’70s look, you might want to quickly turn it into a time machine and jump into the current decade. Leave that Brady Bunch house behind.
80’s cakes
You may think your buyer won’t notice your 1980s decor, and in fact, they may not even notice or be aware of your 1980s decor. Does your home look like it was used as a backdrop for The Golden Girls? To help you gauge whether your home is dated, watch some shows from the period and pay close attention to the décor. Whether it’s the Cosby Show or Different Strokes, chances are if your home looks similar, it’s time to upgrade. The wood theme was a big trend in those days. Look for these clues, large pieces of furniture filled with pastel colors and florals are usually a dead giveaway. Brightly polished brass was another popular finish in the ’80s and ’90s. While ’80s home furnishings were overstuffed and larger than life, kitchens were suddenly taking a turn, too, and the county of blue and similar shades. You’ll also notice that oak furniture was all the rage, whether it was in the kitchen or other parts of the house oak was in. Oak and brass were also paired.
Hunter green and burgundy from the 90s
As we left the ’80s behind, someone decided to go from warm, sunny pastels to darker, cooler hues like old hunter green and burgundy. These ombre colors were everywhere, in king or queen flat sheets, curtains, wall color, furniture, and more. What designers didn’t think about in this era was how difficult it is to neutralize this color scheme, and when a color scheme is difficult to neutralize, it’s difficult to combine it with other colors that aren’t in the same color group. What does this mean for a buyer? It means that unless they have all neutral furniture, they may have trouble matching your home decor, assuming they still want to. Hopefully, if your house is stuck in this time warp, a can of paint will make it all right. If not, you may be looking for some more expensive measurements. If this color scheme continues on your hard surfaces and floors, be prepared to shell out some serious coin to correct the problem.
In an optimistic world, we would like to think “if a buyer loves my house, they will make the necessary changes”. However, buyers see “changes” as additional “money” that they have to spend. And if a buyer thinks he has to spend an extra $5,000 to $10,000 to upgrade his home, he might as well look for a more expensive home that doesn’t need upgrades. When you sell your home, think like the buyer, not the seller. Detach yourself from your house, get your head out of the past and look to the future, if you want to sell your house. Otherwise you will find yourself sitting year after year on your little piece of nostalgia and you will have to make peace with that.
