I was driving in Lacombe the other day when I decided to go and take a peek at a house I used to own.

I was delighted to see that it had a new fence and was shocked to see that the siding colour had changed from white to a stunning charcoal grey!

The house looked completely different with the updated colour and as I drove around the neighbourhood I realized that several homes had received new siding; probably due to the hail storm in that city a few summers back.

It completely reinforced my opinion that the exterior of a home has bearing on whether or not people will be interested in your property – it’s all about curb appeal, people!

The experts will tell you that yellow and blue are the hardest homes to sell and have the least amount of curb appeal but it is also about co-ordinating with your existing roof and trim and whether you want the house to impose on the lot or to recede from the front of the property.

If you are stuck using your current roof and trim colour than you must be savvy about choosing the new exterior colours. Grey is the go-to colour for exteriors but if you have a brown roof or tan coloured trim work then a blue-based or charcoal grey will not enhance your home.

Lean towards the brown based greys or neutral tones.

Also, be aware of what the neighbourhood looks like before choosing a brash colour.

You may annoy a few people in the process of painting your home fire engine red and while your home will stand out from everyone else, this may intimidate or put off a potential buyer who may not want quite that much attention!

A good idea may be to put a strong colour on the front door or shutter accents to bring some punch to the exterior instead of blanketing the entire home with a jaw-dropping shade – remember they are called accent colours because they accentuate the other good things about your home.

White exteriors are safe and the most maintenance to keep looking fresh, so you might consider a subtler shade especially if your home is large and has a flat face (like a bi-level). These types of homes in the bright sun can just look like large blank screens if there are no architectural interest on the face like angles, varied roof lines, dormers or bay windows.

If you have deep recesses in your home (front door) avoid dark colours as these recessed areas will disappear from view and will take away from your curb appeal.

Sometimes painting your front door a hot colour is not enough punch and you need to consider putting the same treatment on the garage door for additional fun, especially if the front door and garage door are next to or in line with each other.

A recessed front door can often stand alone but will look odd if sitting next to a white garage door.

It can be fun to change the entire look of your home with a new exterior colour, it will feel like you are living in a new home without ever having to pack a box!

Kim Wyse is a local freelance designer. Find her on facebook at ‘Ask a Realtor/Ask a Designer’.