Please explain where the main entrance is and how the deck, & bench is going to be used.

Please add pictures that are taken from about as far away as the second picture, but move to be in line with the center of the house and take all pictures from the same location, only panning the camera. Start by showing the left neighbor's property and sweep all the way to the right neighbor's property, slightly overlapping each picture.

The main entrance is on the deck. The other entrance goes into a mud room. These are the only pics I have as I'm out of town. But woods come up to both sides a few feet from the house.

I don't know if the bench is going to stay. As for the deck, the lattice is

coming out for sure.

Is the path to the deck hidden?

I agree with both Yardvaark's first two points. More pictures are needed to get a feel for the layout and how things work together here. And you will need to have some way to make clear which is the front door since right now there is nothing to tell a visitor which door they should use. I notice the little evergreen tree in the lawn is poorly placed currently since in the long term it will block visibility to the front door, so it will need to be moved at some point, but where it would be better placed, I don't know since I would like more photos.

In all honesty I wouldn't plan to plant before fall, partly because it is easier on the plants not to be installed at the beginning of the longest, hottest days of the year. You will want to get settled in and have a feel for how you use the house and yard before finalizing plans. It will also give you time to do any changes or repairs you find need to be done on the house (to avoid damaging newly installed gardens.) Also, one of the things that may end up need to happen is installation of walkways or other hardscape, and that will need to happen before planting as well. I'd plan to get some good-sized pots (half whiskey barrel-sized) to plant with bright flowers for the summer.

Some things to think about:

How will you be using the front deck?

Will you want some privacy - is the road busy?

Where will your family be parking and entering? Will that block the access to the main door?

Absolutely needs a clear path to the front door. It's very confusing as it stands. I don't expect we'd use the front much at all as the road is sort of busy and there's a large, private backyard with deck. I just want it to look a little more... like a front entrance. Thanks for the advice! I'll come back once we're settled and post better pics. At least with waiting until fall, we'll have more time to plan and see how things flow.

If you don't plan to use the front deck, consider removing it. Again, not necessarily immediately, but it really does contribute to the confusion, and so think about it.

In the first picture I see a handsome mid-century modern house, laying low on the land. Moving in closer I notice jarring intrusions. The raised deck disrupts the connection with the ground, the way raised ranches missed the aesthetic point of the ranch style. The white lattice highlights it and is another mixed metaphor. My inclination is to swing toward modern, which means streamlining and editing both the building and the landscape. I imagine a magnificient, curved sweep of a grass or low shrub. Emphasize the horizontal, with only the most well considered vertical punctuation points...

Of course it you bought the house because you saw a modern cape, then go the other way. Just choose.

I agree mapping a clear entrance. Without investing a ton of work and money this is what I would do. Remove the distracting lattice. Move the bench up onto the deck to the right of the door. Perhaps add another chair to create the impression that this is a cosy front entrance that we sit beside sometimes. Even if you don't . If you are ready - paint or stain the deck to blend with shingle color. Then repeat the red brick color of the small walkway/patio that the bench is sitting on now - perhaps paint the bench the red color. Pick up some walkway stones in the same red and make a walkway from the parking area up to the patio and deck. Picture the red as your connecting line to lead the eye to the entrance. I like the whisky barrel planters idea for a quick landscape fix in front of the deck, repeat the color and style of planting in another container placed near the entrance door. Nice house! Congratulations

Thank you to everyone who weighed in. All of this is very helpful. I really have no eye for this stuff so you're saving me from being "that house" with the weird front doors and confusing landscape.

Paint the front door screen a color so it stands out as the front door. Kathleen Squires' advice is good if your budget is very low. If you have a larger budget, remove the deck and install a generous front landing with floating concrete steps down to ground level for a modern look. Size it to be in proportion to your house (not as large as shown in this photo). [Example[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/perilstein-residence-bainbridge-island-architect-coates-design-contemporary-exterior-seattle-phvw-vp~764460)

That's beautiful! It looks balanced and clean. Thank you so much!

You're welcome. I hope it inspires a positive direction.

I too am in zone 5B, and I would NOT do much planting in mid-June or in July or August. Especially as that's when you are moving in. You will probably have enough to do with the inside of the house during your first couple of months.

You could, however, spend time getting READY to plant. Like removing the deck, which seems really awkward, and constructing a new sidewalk leading to the front door, as pictured by Yardvaark.