Many people here recommend a pergola over the garage. It looks beautiful. Do a search here and you will see some examples.

Enjoy your new home!

I think the overhang for your garage door is about a foot too high. Can it be moved?

Thank you so much for that suggestion mamorella! Will definitely explore that idea!

Kswl- I agree that the "eyebrow" (builder's name for it lol) seems oddly positioned- it seems like they are trying to keep it in line with the small front porch?

The home has a crawl space so the garage sits lower than it typically would with this design- here is what it typically looks like, which looks better to me than what we have:

Another image:

Last one:

The overhang for the garage functions independently of the porch; they do not need to be aligned, and the former is definitely too high. Crawl space or no crawl space should also not affect the garage overhang placement. I would have them attach it to the brick according to the last photo you posted at 11:10 today. Then your expanse of brick will be between the top of the overhang and the bottom of the windows where it belongs.

Ditto, word for word, what kswl said at 12:52.

The garage overhang just looks weird to me. First, what is its purpose? It's like some weird unsupported "eyebrow". Also, what's up with the black globby band above the shingles on the overhang on the brick? Looks like someone smeared tar on the brick or something.

I love the pergola idea. If you're going for a decorative something to break up the space, go decorative all the way!

Also, this is my personal opinion and not something you asked about. But I think there are too many siding colors. I'd unify the color on the forward most part (where the double window is) with the porch area and above. You already have a third siding color in the triangular area. Plus the addition of brick and white trim. Just too many colors/materials going on in my opinion.

Thank you all so much for your input! I definitely agree with what you are saying. We are going to talk to the builder today- fingers crossed- that eyebrow can be moved! Thanks again!! :)

I like your colors.

Hopefully something can be worked out with the 'eyebrow". If the carpenters can move it, have them beef it up like some of the others with thick trim and corbels.

If he will, instead, forget the eyebrow and see if the builder will build a pergola for something different in the neighborhood. Perhaps pull the cream colored paint to the garage side. Look at Google image to find the right type of pergola for your style house. Your side/front porch has Craftsman like columns.

I'm not loving the white garage door. Could it be painted one of the other colors already on your house?

I agree that the "eyebrow" needs to be lowered. My guess is that this was placed there by error--so I would push hard for the contractor to correct it.

I also think the shutters are too narrow/small for the windows. Down the road, if the budget allows, I would consider replacing them with wider operational shutters (on hinges, with shutter dogs). I think that would add a huge amount of charm to the house.

Enjoy your lovely new home!

I think part of the problem is the small garage door really stands out because the color. A pergola would look better in than the eyebrow. It could be made to take up more visual space than the current eyebrow does.

Crazy, out- there suggestion: if the whole house, Brick and all, were painted one color, be it white, gray, taupe, etc ( colors that look well on brick ) I believe the resulting effect would be a double positive. The home would appear larger, and stand out as an elegant " custom" home among all the look alikes. Add properly sized shutters, and down the road you might consider changing the style of the posts. To my eye, they are the only craftsman element.
As it Is, It will be a lovely home after the landscaping is all done. Enjoy!

Agree strongly that the shutters are silly and awkwardly small. Beef 'em up!

Also consider that mature plants will help that misplaced unibrow by growing a vine like ivy or creeping fig over the garage door or even a pair of cylindrical evergreens on either side if it.

Has anyone mentioned the shutters?

Another thing that would add visual interest is for the top part of the garage doors to have some windows to break up that bland expanse. If that's not possible, the pergola idea is a great suggestion, too.

Delete duplicate

This post was edited by kachinee on Sat, Oct 25, 14 at 3:35

I would extend a gable roof out a few feet from the face of the house to cover the garage door and use the same type of architectural columns used by the front door.

This post was edited by kachinee on Sat, Oct 25, 14 at 16:47

That last photoshop makes the garage door the most important element of the facade, which would be an unfortunate architectural mistake.

After the garage overhang (the most pressing design issue) is remediated, I def agree with the shutter recommendations. I also think the two colors of siding look like another mistake and would also bring this to the builder's attention. It had to have been either a mistake made by the crew foreman that no one wanted to pay to redo, or two siding colors were used to complete the building on schedule because that's what was available. Either color goes equally well with the brick, but I would insist on siding uniformity before closing on the house.

"That last photoshop makes the garage door the most important element of the facade, which would be an unfortunate architectural mistake."

Actually, no. The gable roof would minimize the importance of the garage doors. Adding a third gable on the right side to balance the two higher gables with the identical roof pitch on the left, and an overhang featuring the same architectural columns as the entry are not "an unfortunate architectural mistake." How provocative..

Meanwhile, it is common for builders to use a different siding or material to feature an architectural element and to avoid monotony. Changing siding would not address the problem and is not what was requested by the original poster.

This post was edited by kachinee on Sat, Oct 25, 14 at 16:46

Agree with kswl on not making the garage doors the most important element of the facade. Also agree with above posters on two colors of siding being a mistake, lowering the eyebrow and painting the garage door the color of the siding, insist on larger shutters and replace porch posts to fit style of house.

Some of us are suggesting major changes to the house, where I am not sure that much advice was asked for. The OP and her husband might as well cancel their contract and look for another home! With all the suggested changes on here, there would not be much left of the original house that they are buying.

If you look at the photos of the neighboring homes that she posted, you will see that the style of these homes is the same and that they feature the two-tone look and beefy columns. Not at all uncommon for neighborhoods planned by one general contractor. There may even be a covenant against changing the architectural details and siding looks.

OP, were you successful in talking the contractor into changing the position of the brow?

If you can't move the overhang (which I assume is supposed to add some rain protection for the garage area), maybe this will work:

There is a trim band underneath the eave on the brick side. It's not repeated anywhere else. So maybe if you add a trim band to visually connect the gutters on the left side with the overhang over the garage, you unify the house a bit more by using repeated elements & a continuous sight line. Landscaping will help ground the house and add a transition from yard to siding. Doesn't solve the problem of the too high overhang, but at least it ties everything together better. Also add trim around the garage.

Thank you all so much for taking the time to give us advice! We seriously appreciate it! I really see how larger shutters especially will look better!

Here is the update- the builder said the eyebrow is only 2 inches too high, and that moving it would cause damage to the bricks and that replacing the damaged bricks would look worse than a 2-inch-too-high eyebrow, so it will not be moved.

We did find out that they mistakenly did not complete the eyebrow though- that will be fixed this week.

Here is a better photo of the house:

And this is what the eyebrow is supposed to look like (this is a different floor plan than what we have):

So although the eyebrow won't be moved, I think once it is finished, along with implementing many of the fantastic suggestions (can't wait on shutters and changing the white garage door especially) along with landscaping, the exterior will be something I can be happy with!

Thank you all again- I really couldn't put my finger on what could be changed- you were all immensely helpful!!! :-)

Awm03- I LOVE your idea of tying it all in together- thank you for that!!! And also for the visual with landscaping!

Okay- I played around with the idea of larger shutters and the garage door color in Photoshop- they make a huge difference!

This post was edited by emh40 on Mon, Oct 27, 14 at 10:20

Much better! Perhaps your builder will take a trade on the current shutters and order some wider, but give you the credit for the smaller shutters. Surely he can use them on another house.

Once you get the landscaping and bulkier trim around the eyebrow (and possibly the garage? Although it is siding instead of brick, I like the trim on the home in post: Tue, Oct 21, 14 at 11:10) the house will look spectacular! I'm sorry, but that eyebrow has to be more than 2" too high.

This post was edited by newhomebuilder on Mon, Oct 27, 14 at 11:19

Your most recent photoshopping is great! Love the bigger shutters and the darker garage door.

I do agree with newhome that your eyebrow is much more than 2" off - if you look at the correct eyebrow placement on the pic of the other house, you will see that the eyebrow is 3.5-4 planks of siding lower than the windows. I guess that is neither here nor there but maybe since that was their mistake they will replace the shutters for you or make another concession.

Unfortunately, none of the suggestions made above resolve the architectural error.

This post was edited by kachinee on Mon, Dec 29, 14 at 0:13

Your builder is wrong about the 2"--- the error is obviously much greater. Of course the bricks would be damaged from removing the lag bolts used to install the overhang. It was probsbly only attached to three bricks--- four at the most-- and those can easily be replaced by any brick mason in about an hour to an hour and a half. We had that done when we had to move a 14ft motorized awning. It's not a big job, just one your builder does not want to do.