It's a cute house that could look a lot cuter. "Last year I temporarily made a two tier landscape layout" How temporary is it? Its lines, details, character and quality of construction do not go with the house in the slightest. I think it diminishes the look and, consequently, the value of the house. I'm not trying to be purposely harsh, but honest. Of the plantings, the only thing that looks keepable to me is the yew at the far left, which I guess is what you're calling "the hedge." But you do need to learn how to trim it properly. All of its sides must slope inward as they go upward. You have it slightly to the reverse of this which will cause it to lose lower foliage and become a shrub on "stilts." Every thought about widening the steps? Doing so would make your house look overall better and worth more. I would suggest a look with fewer different little things, more like this ...

Creative Visual Concept does such pictures. [Read this thread[(https://www.houzz.com/discussions/please-help-with-exterior-face-lift-dsvw-vd~4184515?n=4)

The facade is pretty busy and shingles would just increase the effect. Is it brick below and other up top? I'm not crazy about the vertical lines on the upper siding and might change that, but not to shingles. I'd remove the faux shutters and see how it looks. They are especially out of place on the big windows downstairs and just make things more busy. Larger lantern lights would be a good and easy thing to do right away. Since gardening is your thing, let the landscaping steal the show. I agree the steps and walk need to be widened. You might go with another material than concrete for those to add interest; some kind of slate or stone would be pretty. What is the surface of the porch? It would be a bigger project but maybe worth the trouble/expense.

Thank you all for your comments. I live just outside of Philadelphia, PA. For some reason I was not able to post all the pictures I wanted so you are not seeing the entire yard. Ken, I will take your advice and remove everything I don’t want and post new pictures. Thank you for the information for the lilac. I like your suggestion re the trellis. I was just at a Nursey last weekend and saw a beautiful trellis with euonymus growing on it. When I saw it I thought “ I wish I had a place for that”, and now maybe I do. Dig Doug’s Designs, I admire your work and always enjoy seeing what you do to beautify a landscape. However, I am looking to create something low maintenance. Your design, though beautiful looks like high maintenance. Celery, You design is more in line with what I think I need. I had not at all considered using rocks/boulders in the design but I love the idea and they are certainly low maintenance. I do’t care for the little pebbles but would like the boulders or large rocks in a flower bed with small evergreens and a few perennials. djacob, I live in an area where the houses are close together and neighbors share a driveway. I am trying to creat a backyard room so that when I am in my yard I do not see my neighbors’s shed or car parked in the driveway. With this in mind, a swing or fire pit atone end of the yard would be lovely. I would probably go with the swing because l would likely use it more that a fire pit. I’ve read through hundreds of these posting and have learned a lot from so many of you. One piece of advice that reverberates in my head is from Yardvark instructing posters on how to take pictures to give a full view of the area. Many of my pictures did not post so I am going to try it again. Looks like I can only post 4 pictures at a time. Stay tuned for more..