The retaining wall is about two feet high between the front yard and the street. You can see it in the pictures with light brown blocks as the wall itself. In the middle of it, there are two planters and a stair as show in this picture below. This is a needed wall due the difference in height between the yard and the street. There is also a small brick wall in front of the house that you can see in the photos as well. The small brick wall nearest to the house is decorational only. I dislike the stone walls that are attached to the house. You can see that around the corner of the house and around the front door. Reminds me of the Flintstone's house. And of course, the air conditioners sticking out the walls of the house have got to go too.

Declutter. CAREFULLY pressure wash the house from the roof to the foundation. I would keep the fretwork ornamentation and the shutters. The swing, accent table and ferns can stay. Once you wash everything, you might not need to do anything more. The home is very charming. Love the soft colors and the brick porch. Add geraniums to the planters.

I would use transparent/translucent polycarbonate twinwall sheets over the existing beams. This company's polycarbonate sits between two aluminum clips that hold them in place and prevent leaks. There are also polycarbonate clips. Here is another supplier. These will allow natural light onto your porch while keeping it dry. HERE is a photo of a porch with this type of roof. There is a difference between weathered wood and rotted wood. Weathered wood can be repaired even if it has some rot. Over the course of his career, my husband repaired many rotted wooden window sills with epoxy. He prefers West System epoxy. It will protect weathered wood from further deterioration. Their website has lots of how-to info.

We need pics of the home from further back se we can also see the area you want help with. Post the pics here in a comment wait for the pics to no longer be grayed then submit. Do not start another post .