Your house is going to show soooo well. What colors of paint did your realtor recommend? Smart to listen to him--I have a friend who was appalled to hear that her 20 year old mauve wallpaper in perfect condition was not a selling point
Back in 2002 I looked at a house with a brand new raspberry carpet throughout! It was NOT a selling point to me.
Thanks for the encouragement. I am so exhausted, and every muscle and joint aches from all the physical tasks involved in having one's entire house interior painted. But I do think it will be worth it.
My realtor said buyers here really like neutral earth tones. When he said that, I pointed to the wall of my den/kitchen and said, "Like that?" and he said, "Yes, they'll love that, paint the living room that color too."
That color really isn't all that neutral, but it is definitely earth tones - - sort of a muddy, rich but subtle, almost-but-not-quite-pinkish tan (Sherwin-Williams "Croissant"). I asked the Sherwin Williams guy what lighter color might go with it and decided on a yellowish cream color called "Casa Blanca". The common areas will have Croissant walls and Casa Blanca trim, and the bedrooms and bathrooms will be the reverse - - Casa Blanca walls and Croissant trim.
I looked online for neutral earth tones and found that linen, beige, and brown are often mentioned in combination. So, I thought about that possibility as well (which looks outstanding). But you know, I really like that Croissant color. It is my heart, and he said it was OK, so I went that direction instead.
BTW -- the colors shown on the Sherwin-Williams webite for "Croissant" and "Casa Blanca" are completely wrong IMO (too pink). If Casa Blanca looks pink instead of yellow on your monitor, those aren't the colors. But the color card for Croissant available at the Sherwin Williams store absolutely matches the color on my den wall so I think those are correct.