Here are a few more photos to give you sense of how prior owners set up their stuff. This is NOT my stuff

And a couple more

The house has a lot of potential. I'm assuming the stained wood around the TV area is a built-in. It's difficult to tell from the photo how complicated removing it would be but taking it out would make a big difference in that room.

The floors are pretty bossy. I'd consider getting them refinished before you move in. It will make a huge difference and is much easier to do when the house is empty.

Bumping this up so others can see it on the first page and give their advice.

Whew it’s a lot of house and it’s going to take a while to get it to where you like it - patience is a virtue :)

agree with dee that I’d be tempted to tackle the floors first while it’s empty - I’d also paint out the darker grey wall to get rid of the contrasting box moulding

I think it’s easy to go too undersized in those huge great rooms - so I would imagine the sectional would be fine as long as there ample space for traffic flow

Thanks, La La do you mean repaint entire home to get rid of those white box things at entry way? Eg paint entire home SW chattily lace? Or are you saying paint the grey stone fireplace (which is one of only features of the house I actually like?)

Well you have lots of windows so which way do those face ? Lighting is one of those things IMO that you can never have enough of I love all LED 4000K it mimics bright daylight so colors stay true and start by changing every bulb in every ficture that is there now. I would not spend money on teh floors until you do the kitchen since that will impact the floor . New to you spaces need time to work for you and IMO that is at least 6 months so do the minimum purchsase for furniture keeping in mind it will need to be moved for floor refinishing down the road .I would aslo not choose wall color right now . I know the temptaion is to get it changed as quick as possible but in my experience homes have a way of telling you how they want to fucntion and when you fight that it ialways is a bad idea.

The quickest way to add more light is to change the LED light bulbs to higher wattages that are still safe for the fixtures. Your house has lots of ceiling fixtures that can be checked for bulb brightness.

An additional step is to carefully prune the trees and any overhanging shrubs that are blocking the light outside the windows- check to see when the best time of year to prune is.

And you both suggesting redoing floors which makes sense! If I did them now and then redo kitchen won’t they have to fix that later? (Island will move/wall will come down) and would you suggest a light whitish like this? Kitchen will be white cabinets so maybe too white? Thanks a million for your input

Definitely refinish the floors before moving in - I wish I had done that before I moved three years ago. The house doesn't look too dark in the pictures. There aren't a lot of dark paint colors. Maybe now that everything is at peak folliage the trees are blocking light. But if those big windows face west or south you should be happy you have a lot of trees. If they face east or north maybe the only solution is to remove some of them. But you should think hard on this and wait until you're in the house a year before doing that. Removing large trees is very expensive and can't be undone. The kitchen is dark. I think remodeling the kitchen, refinishing the floors and fresh paint will change everything enough. I don't think it needs to be white paint unless that's what you like.

@particia front of home faces north. Back (the great room w fire place and large windows) faces south. Maybe that is why it is perpetually dark no matter time of day?! It seems like adding recessed lights all over main level is no regret move while i potentially wait to paint/redo floors? And maybe replace front door to one w more glass? Add transom/better side lights now too?

A medium brown floor without a lot of grain would be your best choice for the long term. Some have slight gray undertones which will work with your gray upholstery choices, Floors that are predominately gray are falling out of favor and will limit your decor choices.

I would go ahead and do the kitchen flooring now and buy a couple of extra boxes of flooring for the kitchen remodel.

I think no matter what you will need some sun control on those south facing windows or all your flooring and furniture will be faded in no time . I use solar shades to control heat and UV and allow you to keep the view .So I like 10% and the darker the color of the weave the better the view so usually either charcoal or bronxe depending on your decor . Yes to pot lights but remeber lighting is all about layers of light so pot lights, floor lampms table lamps pendants all need to be part of really good overall lighting.

Sorry for the confusion - i just meant the walls where that contrasting box moulding is - def not the fireplace

The previous owners’ furnishings and decor are very warm and for the most part suit the house. You are using white and grays and asking how to warm up the home. I suggest not using grays, except in small doses, and definitely don’t use gray in the flooring. If you are going to refinish floors, I would do a medium to light stain in a neutral tone. I would not paint those cabinets white unless you are changing the countertops too. It will just scream, we painted old cabinets. I wouldn’t paint them white at all unless the current finish is in poor shape, as it is expensive to do properly with sanding and a cabinet coating and then still isn’t as durable as a factory finish. You will get more bang for your buck changing your tops. I would start with finding rugs with colors that you like and choose paint colors around those.

Congrats on the new to you home. It looks really nice. Don’t gray it out

Do nothing for six months while you live there and start a list. In the meantime, notice what parts of the days and nights you like and want to keep and which parts of the house annoy you so much you must change things. I waited ( and took notes) for a full year before we remodeled our kitchen. It is almost opposite of what I thought I wanted the day we moved in. Painting any of that wood is almost irreparable so hold off. I thought is wanted a white kitchen, but living through the cold, snowy first winter convinced me to listen to my house and choose warm colors and wood tones. Living with the Army green tile in the en-suite gave me time to search for the perfect design for that bathroom. I always start with a notebook ( we have moved a lot) and jot down my first impression ideas. I measure to the inch each room and on the opposite page note my ideas. Seldom in reviewing my notes three years later do I reach the same conclusions about what is beat for the house and the way we live in it. I also find this notebook useful in budgeting, noting what I am willing or able to spend on window coverings, paint, built ins, flooring, etc. I keep track of the color and quantity of paint we have used in each room. A little patience will reap big rewards when you don’t need to undo or redo your first ideas.

I agree that things shouldn't automatically be changed just because they aren't the latest style. But, people shouldn't be shamed and be told that might need to "rethink your approach to life" because they want their home to reflect their likes and taste. I suspect this house was chosen because it was close to family or good schools and the new owner is trying to figure out how to make the interior her own. No shame in that.

Do nothing for a year. Figure out how the house is working for you, as well as how it's not. Save your money in the meantime for whatever project you decide to undertake.

Remember -- you decided to buy this house. Focus on the things that made you decide to buy it and enjoy them.

That said: You already have a potentially big open space on the back side (south side) of your home. Think about how that can best suit your needs. IMHO, opening the wall between the kitchen and the living/dining room won't make the LR/DR any brighter -- and it could create some structural challenges that will be pricy to address.

Thanks Deegw. Fyi all, We have moved 10x times internationally.

This is our kids (teens) first usa home. We selected it due to schools. Didn’t love house. Need to be in this school district though.

It is a very overwhelming international move. So I appreciate you all being patient.

I don’t think I need to rethink my approach to life either…I am just trying to be smart now that we have a more permanent home.

great news that you got into the schools you wanted - we did that in our last move, it took a bit of time to get our house in order (the bedrooms had royal blue trimwork 😅) FWIW I focused first on simpliying/removing fussy elements to get the bones right - then added back/layered over time

I think your new home looks like it has been well taken care of and has lots of fabulous windows — i am sure it will be wonderful family home

Sorry for sounding harsh, tone doesn’t always translate well. I was speaking from experience, as one who had to back away from friends who were constantly looking to “upgrade” and spending too much time looking at forms of media that left me feeling discontent with what i have. Even on here, people will come looking for ways to freshen their home and get told not to do anything unless they gut it. Nothing wrong with a gut if you can afford it, but there is something wrong with putting people’s homes down IMO. I was trying to look thru your idea books to find out your style and what the lighting thread was you mentioned and saw your posts about making a huge mistake and it being a depressing house when you haven’t even moved in yet. I think knowing now your actual situation, I can understand that it is likely the overwhelming move and huuuge change your embarking on that is triggering those thoughts. If it has a great location and no structural problems, you absolutely can make it have finishes that you love in time. And if the house doesn’t ever work for you, you may one day find something more in line with your needs. In the meantime, don’t let a house depress you :). Fill it with love. I hope your move goes well. It must be very tough. If you post pics and floorplan dimensions after you take possession, you will get great ideas. Again, I apologize for my choice of words.

Enlarged the pictures for easier viewing.

I think it's a very nice home, congratulations! We also bought a house with potential to be in the school district we wanted. The things that jump out to me most are the white applied trim; I would paint those the same color as the walls. Any chance you could color match to avoid painting everything? Or do you want to paint everything?

And are the floors hardwood right now? I think folks are suggesting that you sand and stain them before you move in, which makes sense. Your pictures above that show laminate scare me--please don't put laminate floors in this house. If they are wood and you redo the kitchen, it could probably be matched. I also think new light fixtures would make a big difference. Colors are definitely trending away from grays and toward warm tones, so I would take it easy with gray. However, I don't think you need to cancel your sectional order. These spaces have gray sectionals but still feel warm.