Depends on what your house is made of. There's some very fine stone houses
in industrial areas which have been painted. Once you're into that, you'll
have to keep repainting quite often, especially if you go for a light
colour. The original stone looks better.
I had a brick house which had been rendered and painted white by a previous
owner, probably to hide some dodgy brickwork. It was a pain keeping it
looking smart.
Andrew Vevers