Need advice- ugly house lacks curb appeal
Joe Rudy
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
I just bought a new home in North Texas, and as you can see in the photo the front of the house needs some love. As of today there is no curb appeal, which I blame on the small windows (no plans to change) and lack of landscaping. I have no landscaping experience, so my first inclination is to plant a few shrubs below the two windows and call it good....but I'm not sure that will be the right fix. This will be a rental unit so anything that goes in will need to be low maintenance. Any ideas???
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Ugly Ranch needs Curb appeal ~ Advice Please!
Comments (4)I think that some fairly inexpensive things could make a dramatic difference. First I would replace the iron columns with some more substantial 6x6 supports (with some moldings perhaps) and add some railings. Also, I would not paint the porch, but stain it. I think taking out the concrete porch would be a very big project. I would also add railings and wider wooden steps to the front door. Paint or replace the front door for pop and in your individual taste. The shutters look out of place and out of scale for the picture window. Shutters should look as if they would actually work, these do not. Once this is done the right of your house would be heavy and you would need to balance this out with a nice curved bed on the left with a fairly large tree to add balance. Zone 5 maybe a nice magnolia. Fill in the large bed around the tree with some nice plantings. Towards the road cries out for a small fence with a gate or maybe some hedges with more beds. A flagstone path up to the front steps. A small tree (maybe a Japanese maple) on the right and curved beds along the walkway and driveway. I think this would take your home from plain to fantastic with the least cost and with things that you can probably do on your own. I am sure you can. I do like the idea of shutters, but think you should look at different sizes and styles. I don't like being critical, however I think that by asking for help you are probably looking for honest evaluation....See MoreNeed Advice on Curb Appeal for Mountain Home
Comments (12)No answers - jst some questions, what side faces the road, is it visible by people passing by on the road. I think the exact definition of "curb appeal" has to do with the public face a house presents to the world. Around these parts plenty of rural houses both old and new have the functional utility door (usually to kitchen or rear entry) that everyone uses and the more formal front door facing the road that rarely is used.] Does that little road or path on the left side of pic go to your front door? Where does the little path to the right go? I assume your guests would park in driveway in front of the doors - where do they go from there? if its that little road on the left or that little path on the right - then how can that be made more appealing/welcoming? A common recommendation is to never do anything major to a house the first year If you live there a while eventually you will know what you can live with, what really bugs you, and by looking at pics, talking to people eventually things start to make sense. You may discover some reasoning for why house was built as it was. Or not! By living with it you start to know how you use the house and what things if any you need to do to modify it to make it work better for you....See MoreHELP! Home lacks Curb Appeal
Comments (27)"if I widen the shutters, won’t the two on the right touch?" A general statement of advice does not imply that you take it to the extreme. You should always be seeking balance and a sense of good proportion. What "punch" does white trim have when applied to an already white house? None! Observe houses that have exact matching trim and body colors and see if they do not evoke a sense of coming about via a government bureaucrat's decision making. In design there are trade-off's. That a different (pleasant) body color will somehow make your house look MUCH smaller than it actually is does not seem realistic to me. The good news is that you can experiment with paint colors, without commitment and for free by using one of the many "visualizers" available on paint manufacturer's websites....See MoreNeed advice to update curb appeal of old house!
Comments (9)What's dark? Too much shade? Or the paint? If it's the paint, I'd advice picking a shade of cream that works with your siding and painting the brown stuff. You might get more light on the porch with just painting the ceiling white, light blue or cream. If it's the shade, you could, over a few years, remove some of the lower branches of the tree. A bigger, brighter welcome mat would help. One that is the width of the door. Flanking the door with pots with some kind of dry grass might help, too. And, of course, if it's dim at dusk, put in porch lights....See More
Joe Rudy
8 years agoJoe Rudy
8 years agoJoe Rudy
8 years agoJoe Rudy
8 years ago
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