The “Bold” Exterior Paint Color Buyers Hate Right Now
The modern farmhouse is a home design type that thrives on contrast. White house, black trim — copy and paste. This stark, high-contrast look showed up on every new-build and flip from coast to coast. But in a real estate era when buyers are feeling the stress of up and down mortgage rates, possible recession news, and prices that don’t necessarily seem to be coming down, people are looking for something a little less in-your-face, according to some real estate experts.
They say buyers are starting to get turned off by high-contrast and bold colors. The exterior colors that were seen as instant curb appeal a few years ago are now offending the more muted sensibilities of buyers. “Exterior color schemes are one of the highest ROI improvements a homeowner can make,” says Andrew Fortune, owner and real estate agent at Great Colorado Homes. “A modern color palette with strategic accent colors will immediately attract more interest and often higher offers.”
If you plan on listing your house this year, and you have an exterior paint color that you’re now questioning, don’t worry. Three real estate experts are breaking down the high-contrast colors you should avoid in 2025.
Black and White
Say goodbye to crisp black and white exterior paint — especially if you’re talking about those layered gables in alternating black and white or striking black window accents. “While whites and off-whites remain popular, the trend is shifting away from stark black-and-white contrasts that were once widely used to create modern curb appeal,” says Jake Greenhouse, president and owner of JG Development.
He explains that while buyers were previously head over heels for black window trims, bold front doors, and other high-contrast accents, they’re now looking for softer, more approachable exterior color palettes.
Vivid Hues
If you’re tempted to go bold and you plan to live in your house for many years to come, great. Do it. But if you plan on selling your house? Put down the quirky color swatches.
What might have seemed Instagrammable five years ago — or even a year ago — has probably lost its luster, particularly if it’s a vivid hue. “When you see a home in a color like teal, it sticks out like a sore thumb,” says Brady Bell, Realtor at Bellhaven Real Estate.
Tan and Brown
Drive through a mid-aughts suburb, and you’ll see more than a few houses in some variation of tan or taupe with high-contrast dark brown trim (you could say it was the precursor to the modern farmhouse black and white!). “Ten years ago, brown-on-brown combinations, specifically tan with dark brown trim, were very popular. Now most people are over them,” says Fortune.
What Buyers Want Instead
“Buyers are leaning toward simplicity and timelessness, making it easier to envision their own style on the home,” says Greenhouse. Calm, simple, and classic — off-white or white without the high-contrast trims, regular brick, or a more neutral tone that doesn’t feel so dated — is the name of the selling game right now. And if you love your high-contrast modern-farmhouse home, or your funky pea-green ’70s pad, and have no intentions of getting on that housing market anytime soon, don’t worry about what real estate agents say — it’s your house and your life.