If this is the ugliest house on the block your neighbourhood must be quite charming!

-Paint the steps a darker grey or taupe so they don't grab so much attention.

-The shutters under the porch could be removed. The shutters on the upper right could stay or go as you please.

-Paint the siding medium grey, taupe, or a colour. Plum, mustard, spicy red-orange would all work with your bricks and roof.

-Choose a cream, beige, light grey, or taupe for the trim and fascia and porch ceiling. The trim colour will depend on the siding colour you choose.

You could start by replacing the shrubs in the front with fresh shrubs and seasonal flowers. Add a big pot of flowers or greenery on the bit of sidewalk that's at the foot of the steps on the left. Add matching big pots on each side of front door, again with flowers or greenery. I would not paint the steps.

It appears that all your grass needs replacing, or maybe just weeding and fertilizing.

A metal roof would be good looking, in the natural aluminum color. I like your white trim which looks fresh against the brick. You have quite a charming house.

your house is adorable & has lots of potential!! I'm not sure what your budget is, but 'd start by painting the siding, trim and the steps. I'm a big fan of a fun colorful front door. Maybe expand the garden area, add rocks or bricks to define the space and add mulch, some colorful flowering bushes. A new railing & light post would be nice. Plus a bench, some potted plants - i think it will look very sweet.

I agree that this house could look quite charming. Pull those shrubs up next to the house - they are waaay too close to the house. And widen the beds to no smaller than 5’ deep. Then plant new shrubs.

For the railing I would replace the metal with wood and paint it your trim color.

Since the steps are already painted, go ahead and paint them a darker, duller shade so they don't "glow." The paint will make them a bit more slipperythan unpainted would be. You can get paint with sand mixed in for traction on the steps, or you can stick-on strip like sandpaper to provide some grip.

The railings will be expensive. I would suggest looking at pictures of brick houses, paying special attention to the railings. Save the ones you like and/or post some here in the comments and people can give you an idea of how to go about creating a similar look for your house.

Just a parenting note and of course every child is different and every parent's tolerance is different. It's been my experience that babies, toddlers, and even preschoolers are generally quite risk-averse. For example, new crawlers won't crawl over the edge of something (it's hard to teach them to go down stairs backwards because they resist the feeling of their foot reaching into thin air) and new walkers are often hesitant to step from one surface to another even if the surfaces are level to each other, because their brains perceive that the surfaces are different and they won't risk falling. So as a parent/caregiver I would worry more about those railings around a reckless 5 or 6-year-old! Not that they don't need to be changed--they do-- just to set your mind at ease a little bit (I hope)!

I love a pale blue porch ceiling:

Once you get a proper railing on there, the steps will look fine. I'll let Dig Doug do the landscape...

agree it's cute. landscaping will up it's look substantially. But a black or charcoal roof?? that would really look great. I think the white siding next to the green roof, and the brick w/the black, look off,,,to me. I might paint that siding black or replace it w/cedar shake and do all the trim and railing in black. (but there needs to be a dark roof to do this)

black roof and metal roof

an option to tie in your green roof, is repaint the black to this green shade

dark roof, cream trim and brownish siding color.

If you are in a warm part of the country I would not choose a dark roof as it will add to your thermal load - if not then it that would look sharp. A metal roof will cost more but last longer. I would like the path to your stairs to be more curved and in a different material like flagstone or bluestone. Your hose has tons of potential.

To be honest, all the colour recommendations I made assumed you'd choose a roof somewhere between medium grey and black :)

I would recommend a new post for your backyard. It will help you keep your thoughts organized as you implement your various plans. You can post the link here so we can all chase you over there :)

I would only paint the steps if they've previously been painted.

This is a very cute "minimal traditional" house. I would not overdo the porch railing or posts. Change it to a black wrought iron railing with the proper spacing. I think white wood balusters or posts would be much too heavy on this facade.

Dig Doug nailed it! Love the stonework.

It just takes me to the apps menu...

New post is here: [https://www.houzz.com/discussions/how-to-handle-a-backyard-with-a-hill-dsvw-vd~5282200[(https://www.houzz.com/discussions/how-to-handle-a-backyard-with-a-hill-dsvw-vd~5282200)

Hi all, we are in the planning phases now and curious about your thoughts on columns. by the way the porch is 17 feet x 9 feet so plenty of room for us to put a porch swing :)

we like the white wood column + black iron railing best. we want a simple vertical railing style. for the columns... would you do round or square given how the house looks?

That is a nice style for your house. Square columns!

Dig Doug is a styling ninja.

If you want specific lawn care advice, hop on over to the lawn care forum. They can help you make it look like Dig Doug's concept rendering. Tell them where you live and what kind of grass you have now. Posting the picture would not hurt, either.

Square columns, for sure.