I agree with the above comment. Your home is a classic and I don't think the brick needs to be painted. You can easily brighten and update the exterior by focusing on the paintable wood areas. Consider painting the trim, window casings, portico, and dormers in a soft white. Benjamin Moore's White Dove is a color you might like to try. A black or deep red front door would look very welcoming. The shutters could be painted black with either one of these front door options.

As a side note, I would also consider removing the shutters on either side of the front door. If this is a more extensive renovation. You could remove the front door shutters and add a front door with sidelights. Good Luck!

I would keep the brick as is, but I think that it would be a good idea to paint the ocher trim, gable and dormers in white.

I would opt for white on all the wood and trim areas to brighten the look of your house. You might try a light yellow-green for the door.

As others have said, your brick is classic and lovely. Please don't paint it. Consider a light cream, rather than a stark white, for the siding (on dormers) and trim, keeping the grey shutters as they are to complement the roof.

I think white washing it would really cause a drop in the resale value as the brick appears to be in great shape!

Painted brick will be more of a maintenance chore, so something to consider. I too would remove the shutters at the door, and if the others are non-functioning, think about doing real ones for more impact. I love black front doors and shutters- they are so classy. Work with your roof and mortar colors to determine a color for the trim.

While I love the look of painted brick, I would not paint your brick. It's a beautiful color! I'd replace the porch posts and perhaps change the color on the dormers and trim.

I think you have a very attractive brick on your house and like others have mentioned, once you paint it you introduce a long term maintenance issue. Painting the trim, shutters and door a different color is a much less expensive way to change the look of the house. If you decide to paint the trim I think you need to paint the columns the same color as the trim. As white they really stick out.