lazydaisynot, I'm glad to hear that you think our existing door would look fine as is because this whole project will be happening in phases. We will replace outdoor lighting right when we move in in a couple weeks, then this spring/summer we will paint the front and back porches and the trim. The pillars and doors will hopefully be a project for next summer depending on how much we are able to save in the meantime. There are so many little projects that we have for the home, so we are forced to prioritize and compromise. So it's nice to know that our "work in progress" may still look somewhat put together along the way!

Thanks, for the ideas, Outside. Do a darker sage instead of black? Hmm yeah I could see that! The spouse was a little alarmed when I suggested black. :) Really, everything goes with the roof. It's quite neutral. The bricks aren't so neutral but not too bad as long as we don't do as the POs did and pick the ugliest one and match the paint to it. Yes, the cheap new windows installed by the PO are sort of cream colored vinyl clad (with 80s French blue trim--where's my goose in a bonnet?). In the back they are still simple aluminum framed. With blue trim. We do have a lot of stuff going on with the brick, stucco, cedar, siding...I had to tone down my landscaping materials because it was going to be just too many things fighting.

mairin - I guess there's a chance they'd mess up the finished floor if they did that now? Anyway, I wanted the newel just 1 step up, same as it would be if we had a bullnose step and volute/turnout, they could still notch it out to snug up to 2nd tread. But 1st guy didn't want to do that, wanted permnission in writing from building inspector (and now 9 months later I'm even more reluctant to go asking), 2nd guy never got back to me after coming out for a quote and nodding his head yes the whole time, and my cousin who has been doing all the trim in my house (and building new window jambs and stools where the builder didn't do them right) says that he doesn't want to do it, even if we put blocking under the first tread. I guess when they're on the floor they actually are attached to a joist? I showed him pics of crazyhouse6's newel and he didn't think it would hold up to lateral forces (swinging), though it was fine for someone just pulling straight on it. So what do you think of my newel options? Which should I choose? It will be 2 weeks to get the oak contemporary newel that I posted first. The 2.5 x 3.5 blocks of cherry are here, just need to get cousin to cut and route them, I can put clear finish on and get them up but I don't know how they look with oak rail. My favorite is still the vertical volute with a newel somewhere near the bottom, but I haven't even thought of balusters (BC newel and rail with oak balusters?), and I need to find someone to install it.

Since the houses you've shown have little landscaping, and since that's my interest, I don't have a whole lot to offer other than to again suggest that the entire hedge needs removal across the front of your house. Note the wide walkways in both of your examples. I would do something similar from the parking pad to your porch leaving a wide entry pad in front of the porch, similar to how wide the steps are in both of your examples, such as from the wall with the door over to the center post. Consider whether continuing the walkway out the road makes sense; does anyone walk to your house or park down by the road? Add a pair of tall pots on a firm surface off the porch to frame the entry, one in front of the pillar and one in front of the wall just to the left of the door, but not where it will hide the door. Choose pots that fit your aesthetic and with colors that work with whatever you do with the house. If the brick on your house goes down to near the ground, put in a bed of evergreen groundcover from the right pot over to the end of the porch and from the left pot over to the shrub at the end of the house. Be sure the bed has a cleanly maintained edge to keep it looking tidy. If you want some shrubs, you can add them to the groundcover bed (being sure that the bed is deep enough to accommodate whatever you choose) or place shrubs or trees further out into the yard to give some feeling of shelter from the road, and consider using some of the same plants used in the garden to the left will provide continuity. If you live in an area with a lot of snow and ice, choose your plants across the front of the house to be able to tolerate snow getting dumped on them, especially if you decide to go with a metal roof. I have a similar area that has groundcovers, perennials that die back for winter, and some shrubs that if damaged by roof dumps can be cut to near the ground and will grow within a few weeks. In doing landscaping, do the home work first such as roofing, painting or repairs, then do hardscape such as walkways, and finally do bed prep and planting. Choose plants that won't overgrow the space they are planted in to reduce pruning work. If you choose to paint your brick to get the feel of your examples, be aware that you will have taken a low maintenance surface and turned it into one that will need ongoing maintenance - cleaning and painting as needed which will add time and expense. I am not wild about your current black shutters and white trim. Perhaps start by choosing colors with a less stark contrast between the brick and the trim such as a sage or the color of the siding on the ell and painting all your trim that same color. Live with that for a while to see if it works better aesthetically for you.