How do I make the outside of this house look better?

Question

Hello,

I bought a house that I will sell on a lease option and I could use some help on improving the curb appeal. The whole block looks great, while my house looks a bit dumpy.  What are some not terribly expensive ways to fix this up? I am thinking paint the columns black or white, add shutters, and what else? I'm not really a home decorator so good ideas are welcome.

Nicole Pettis · Answer

@Toben B.

Definitely pressure wash and clean up all the overgrown stuff. I probably would trim the bushes or replace them with some nice boxwoods and hostas, along with a planter or two of flowers on the patio. Also I would update the columns, by making them square with moulding at the bottom.

As for the house itself. Get rid of the awnings, add black shutters and then below I have added some color scheme ideas. Right now people are responding best to gray based colors. Green grays/Blue grays/ Warm grays/Brown grays.

Pinterest is a great place to go find ideas for homes if you get stuck. Hope this helps:)

Account Closed · Answer

Ideas:

Power wash house.

Power wash & stain the wood fence a nice dark stain.

Get rid of all the grass growing up in the driveway.

Edge around borders of paved surfaces & trim yard.

Get rid of junk shrubs and put something nice in with flowers.

Hide garbage cans.

I would also pick a nice color scheme and paint the exterior.  I'm also not a decorator, but my wife can pick some good colors.  Ask someone you know who has good taste what they think and get some samples.

Aaron Mazzrillo · Answer

Simple fixes; get rid of the shrubs, add shutters, some flowering plants, some kind of decoration over the garage door - those big stars seem to be popular in suburban areas, one or two patio chairs and a small table on the porch, simple stuff like that can make a big difference. I typically just 'borrow' ideas from the neighbors. I like my properties to conform to the neighborhood.

Hard to tell, but the house looks yellow with a brown roof and white trim. Not very appealing colors, but painting a house is not a small expense. I don't know if your familiar with houzz.com, but you can get a lot of good ideas looking at the pictures on their site. You can also bring in the photo of the house to Home Depot and show it to someone in the garden dept. I've done that and gotten great ideas on how to spruce up the curb appeal for $100-$200 just by putting in better decorative plants.

Whatever you decide, please don't leave us hanging. Take an after photo and post it.

David Frandsen · Answer

@Nicole Pettis has great color ideas. The house needs some contrast in the paint colors. I would do the shutters AND the yellow siding the new trim color. Yes, paint the columns and maybe the front door.

Best of luck.

Phillip Dwyer · Answer

It's hard to tell from the photos what the front walkway looks like. Is there a sidewalk from the street to the porch?  Adding one may help draw the attention to the front door which you could upgrade or paint.

Robert Leonard · Answer

@Toben B. I'm not a decorator either, but I'm a pretty good copy cat!  I look for similar style houses that appear to be well decorated as far as shutters, awnings, color schemes, etc and copy one that I like that still fits the neighborhood!

Jean Bolger · Answer

Awnings should go, but some shutters might help. You can buy them in all sizes cheap online- I forget the name of the place, just google it. Yellow is a tricky color to work with, but I'd start with the idea of a blueish grey (not too dark) and see if I could find something that looks good with the yellow. Then do the shutters and columns in a darker grey.

Kyle Mack · Answer

Maybe pressure wash? Doesn't that make the siding look years newer?

Definitely do away with the awnings

Maybe paint or buy a red or brown front door, make it pop a bit ;)

Kevin Goodwin · Answer

Hard to tell in pics, but if the roof is nearing the end of it's life I'd do it early.

Pics of the neighbors houses? I would ditch the awnings, in my area those are rare & grotesque. Def. could spruce up the landscaping a little.

Toben B. · Answer

OK What colors do I paint it? I don't want to replace the yellow siding so what do I paint the brick to match?

What color do I paint the columns? I am more of a handy man than a decorator.

How do I make the outside of this house look better?

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