We owned 5 rental houses for 20 years and always painted them off white. That will not offend anyone. If you go with more of a decorator color, you run the risk of it not going with everyones furniture. I did paint a couple of accent walls over the years (using up paint from one of my projects) and found that people were not renting the houses because of those colors. I ended up having to paint over them with off white to get the houses rented.

I'd do a neutral off-white too, or very light beige, warm but w/o much in the way of yellow or orange undertones. A satin finish on the woodwork will look a little lighter. Or, a soft fresh white.

Yes, it's boring, but a fairly basic off-white is the most sensible way to go, to attract the widest range of tenants. To many people's eyes (although not mine, I'm weird) pale colors make rooms seem larger, and I don't know many rental apartments/townhouses that couldn't use the illusion of being a bit bigger. ;-) I like SW Navajo White - BM's is grayer and can IMO look a little dingy in some lights - and I know several landlords who have also used it. My brother used to have rental apartments and he laughed himself just about sick when he heard that after dozens of paint chips and weeks of dithering we chose SW Navajo White for a house we were renting (landlord allowed us to paint as long as it was some variety of off-white and one color housewide), because that was the same color he bought by the 5 gallon bucket to use in all his apartments! It's a warm off-white with a little yellow and a little green and a little brown so it goes with pretty much everything. In our living room we had it with various shades of green, burgundy/rose and brown, the bedroom had plum and sage, the guest room was in shades of blue and the kitchen was forest green, shades of beige, and white, and a wide range of hand-me-down wood furniture in each room. It worked out very well and the landlord kept the same color for subsequent tenants. I know the girls who rented the house after us really loved it. It made up for the utterly hideous pink-and-mauve - I'm NOT kidding - outside color scheme... blasted HOA!

If you really wanted to go to a beige, SW Kilim Beige is a pretty reliable one, as is Softer Tan. But as a past renter, I'd have favored an off-white apartment over a beige one.

I'd suggest a plain off-the-shelf white in a good-quality scrubbable satin or semigloss for the trim, doors and cabinetry. The reason for using ready-mixed white is for ease of matching should you have to do any repairs.

Does the brick actually need to be painted or could you get by with just a good scrubbing? Too many coats of paint on brick looks gloppy and gummy.

I'd go with a basic Navaho White tone, or slightly darker, light beige. It's pretty non-offensive and looks pretty with white woodwork.

For the fireplace, if it's too big or too ugly, paint it the same color as the wall to blend it in. If it looks okay, paint it a shade or two lighter or darker to make it stand out because fireplaces are big sellers.

I hope that since they "trashed the place" you had a good sized damage deposit, doggone them.

I swear by Behr paint from Home Depot. It goes on smoothly and covers amazingly well. I've had a lot of painters agree with me on that too. It also holds up well to scrubbing.

I always disliked my off-white flat apartments where the walls, ceiling and trim were the same color. I agree with Oceanna, that a nice Navajo White with white trim is light and looks less like an apartment. I would also paint the ceiling the color of the trim in a nice white to brighten up the rooms.

We also have some rental property and had to paint one the them (again!) recently. I got the paint from Home Depot and was struggling over the color as well. They had a 5 gallon bucket of some oops paint (at a very good price!), that I ended up buying and using. It is more of a beige/tan color like is being described. Since we painted, that tenant moved out. I was surprised how nice the walls were. They did have a lot of "stuff" and a small child, but what I noticed most it that most of the finger prints and things like that didn't show up because it was a little darked than a traditional off-white. It is still a very neutral color and not so dark that it made the room look too small. The new tenants really liked that is wasn't a stark white, too.

Robbi

A nice neutral is BM Bone White. It looks great with white trim.

Our local Sherwin Williams says that Kilim Beige and Softer Tan are the go-to colors for real estate professionals trying to sell or rent property.

I agree with lafonda ranch about finger prints being less noticeable on beige/tan. My college aged daughter, her large messy dog, and large messy friend have rented twice. The beige(softer tan) apartment walls always looked clean. The white apartment walls showed smudges, dog hair, etc. This could also have alot to do with the quality of the paint as well.

Good luck with your rental!

We have some neutral beige/creamy tan in our house and it would go with just about anything. It looks good with white trim too - there is enough contrast but the color is not dark.

It is Lowes Valspar (was Amer Trad I think) Woodrow Wilson Putty. I love the color but for the room we have it in I actually wish it was a little deeper - but we have it in our entry and hallway and love it as well as our guest room.

hope that helps.

Ruth

Thank you all so much. That really helps. I'm going to make myself a chart with all your suggestions and brand names and see what's the cheapest, most durable, etc.

And no, Oceanna, I didn't have a damage deposit. They did pay last month's rent up front but then they didn't pay last month's rent so there was nothing left for damage.

We have 5 rental propertys we painted all beige.Keep it simple.

I went to SW today to look at the Navajo White and Kilim Beige. I love the Navajo White and was amazed how "un-white" it is. Its almost a light tan. They suggested the Extra White satin for the trim which is a stock color and is a great contrast to the NW. Is that the color you all would suggest for the trim and cabinets? Will it hold up well on kitchen cabinets?

The Kilim Beige is a beautiful beige but I think it may be too dark for a rental. I don't know.

SW Navajo White is a close match to BM Bone White and they both look wonderful with SW Extra White trim which is what I used.
I love Kilim Beige but to me it is too dark for a rental.

SW's Navajo White is really my favorite "off-white" of all - it is a definite misnomer to call it "white". It's not quite tan/beige, not quite white. If I had to do off-white anywhere ever again it would be that one (although I'm a color ho so it's unlikely I will!). Yes, Extra White is exactly the kind of white I was suggesting for trim, just plain stock white. Whether it will hold up on kitchen cabinets depends on what specific paint you use much more than on the color. Prep well and use a good quality paint and it will hold up better than if you don't prep and use junk paint.

Remember not to be pennywise and pound-foolish - spending a little extra for a more durable paint now may mean not having to do a complete repaint in between every tenant but rather just a wash-down and some touch-ups. One of the good things about choosing stock colors like Super White and Navajo White is that you can get it by the 5-gallon bucket which does save you some money. The painter I hired for the last house preferred to use SW; he thought SuperPaint was the best paint but considered ProMar 200 to be a good paint as well and it is cheaper. ProMar 700 is total garbage, ProMar 400 is mediocre and not so much cheaper than the ProMar 200. If you have to squeeze every penny until Lincoln screams, spend your money on the trim/cabinet paint and go cheaper with the walls because painting trim is a PITA.

I just got sticker shock today from my prospective painter. He had painted my new home and did a beautiful job. But this is a 1600 sf townhome and he said it will cost $5350 labor and materials. Unfortunately, there is a lot of wallpaper that will need to be removed (some of which is foil) and that's why he said it will be a lot more. And his price is two coats on walls and woodwork plus primer and retexturing where the wallpaper was. He said it would be a mistake to use just one coat. I asked about using a primer and painting OVER the wallpaper but he said the seams will show through. (The previous tenants started removing the wallpaper in one bathroom and never finished.) I thought they could just put mud over the wallpaper and smooth it out - I don't care about the texturing.

I just don't have the time and live too far away to do it myself. Think I'll have to get some more bids. I don't want to cut corners where I'll be sorry but this sounds so high.

Always get 3 quotes but make sure the other guy quotes for the same quality of work. Don't paint over wallpaper - that will end up coasting you more headaches in the end. Good luck.

I'm going to suggest you take that one over to Paint forum. Michale and paintguy can give you guidance on pricing work.

Hi! I have several rental units. Use a paint with primer so you only need one coat! :) Behr's only cost $4 more per gallon. -Never buy cheap paint!!!!! Take the extra time to smooth the walls of imperfections & use an easy to clean satin. Never use flat! Builders always use flat. You'll have to repaint after every tenant. Use a caulk with silicone & glossy for baseboards. *Other tips: buy a nylon, easy to clean carpet. Never buy a cheap carpet! Or, cheap faucets. Use 3" screws on your exterior door plates... Back to paint. If you have a small, gloomy room limited to natural sunlight, white or light colors do not brighten the room. The room needs yellow undertones without looking yellow. Valspar has the perfect color! Homestead Resort Antique Lace. Is sooooo nice!! It's warm & bright :)). Search images on Google. I don't recommend Valspar paint, btw. I thinks it's terrible. Have the color duplicated. Always have a standard color in all your places. For painted cabinets & trim Westhighland White is awesome! It appears white, but it's creamier & doesn't look stark.

Behr cottage white, cozy cottage, and raffia cream are also good creams/light neutrals. Eggshell is a good option for your walls since it cleans better than flat and still touches up well. And whoever suggested painting the ceiling white is right. Its looks brighter and fresher and may help the property show better.

I work in a paint dept. and while you can luck up and get a good oops paint sometimes, dont count on it. They're mistints that are usually changed by adding black. Plus if you dont save some you cant recreate the color. As for brands, i love SW Superpaint and i heard PPG was good too. If you must go big box (nothing wrong with that), then try the Behr Premium Plus Ultra with primer. Costs more but covers pretty well from what I've seen . I've also heard Ace Royal is decent affordable paint but i never tried it. As for trim, i've used the regular Behr satin and thought the coverage was mediocre. There are definitely better options for trim.

Behr castle path is a nice neutral tone also

Harmony by Benjamin Moore. Beautiful color and very neutral.

I like ivory/cream, but a taupe shade, if the trim is white, would be attractive as well as match any color furnishings. While not a trend follower, darker colors seem to be more popular and even bring a coziness into a space.

I have a rental property that I used to live in so it has lots of colors. I started out using Behr and keep using it since I try to just touch up instead of full repaint. Some good creams are Swiss coffee - very light, almost white. Plantation white - creamier, goes with almond counters, bisque appliances and Belgian Lace - very creamy, looks yellowish next to stark white and is a good color with hardwood floors.