Paint Samples vs. Renderings and HOA Rules

Paint Samples vs. Renderings and HOA Rules

Whether you just purchased a new home or are planning renovations for an existing one, the color of the paint, deck, door, and roof can affect its street appeal for years. Your choice of colors will determine whether that appeal is positive or negative. However, your choice will be limited if you live in an area governed by a homeowner’s association (HOA).

The Role of Homeowners Associations

The main aim of an HOA is to protect property values in the area they govern. By enforcing their rules, the organization maintains neighborhood aesthetics and ensures you can sell your home for a reasonable price.

This is a good thing in an ideal world. In most cases, the architectural review board of an HOA is far from proficient in design. Most usually approve new paint jobs or additions that they are comfortable with, i.e., existing options. If that is the case and your heart is set on a color they may disapprove, you need to build your case. In this case, showing rather than telling them that you need a different color that can fit the neighborhood scheme is your best bet. Renderings can prove invaluable here, but keep in mind that these can appear different under different lighting. Anything you can show them to help them visualize the result can work in your favor.

The Importance of Digital Imaging

Digital imaging can help you see how color schemes look before presenting them to an HOA or spending money on paint. In other words, it helps you see what a paint job will look like in advance. The team at Crash of Rhinos has professional color consultants on board who can help you pick out shades that can work well in every type of lighting.

Choosing the Best Color for Your Home

Here are some of the best ways you can narrow down a suitable color for your home:

Size Matters

Before choosing a color for that paint job, get the basics right first. For example, consider the size of your property and the pre-approved colors from your HOA. It will help you decide whether you should go for a dark color palette, or a light color scheme. The latter can make your home look larger than it is, and it will also change in different light conditions. The former will make your home look smaller, but it will also help it blend into its surroundings.

Consider the architecture

Also, consider the architecture of your home and the neighborhood before finalizing a color scheme from your color consultant. While you don’t have to stick to the rules completely, stray too far, and you could find yourself having to re-choose colors and resubmitting them for your HOA’s approval.

Use a color visualizer

Once you have a basic idea about which color would look great and can pass HOA standards, use a color visualizer to find the perfect shade. Most paint companies offer this option, and even though each has unique interfaces, they use the same method to determine paint options.

All you need to do is upload a picture of your home and test out different paint options. You will find out how different shades appear on the walls under different lighting. This is a great way to experiment with different colors and get inspiration for a specific scheme.

Consider paint samples

Once you have narrowed down your choice of paint color, confirm the color samples with them for your home. Visualizers are a great help in this regard, but the results they show may be vastly different from the colors you can see on the actual walls.

No need to get a full bucket. Just purchase some sample size paint color and apply some on your exterior walls. The light on the north side of your home will be different compared to the south side. Apply paint on both walls to see how it comes out. Visit these areas at different times to see how they appear under different lighting.

Seeing the paint color on a wall before it is applied on all of them can save you a lot of time, money, and hassle by taking the guesswork out of a job.

Contact Color Consultants at Crash of Rhinos

If dealing with the HOA makes you break out in a cold sweat, or you just don’t have the skills to determine the best color for your home, contact Crash of Rhinos color consultants. Our team will start by filling out the necessary paperwork your HOA may need and get a list of approved color schemes for your neighborhood.

We have helped several homeowners like you this way and know what should be done to ensure your home looks aesthetically pleasing and up to HOA rules. We will handle the paint selection process but will only apply it once we have your approval.

After getting HOA approval, we will use digital renderings to show you how the chosen paint will appear on your home. Once you are satisfied, we will come over and apply it to designated areas to show you how it looks under different lighting conditions.

So if you are ready to take your home’s aesthetic to the next level, get in touch with us at Crash of Rhinos for a free proposal today!