Use Romabio on the brick and ditch the shutters

just my opinion..the white trim stands out too much against the roof and the brick..our house, trim, gutters and roof are all darker tones and I like it..other houses in my neighborhood have white windows, trim, gutters etc and I prefer our nearly monochromatic scheme..

Well, darn...a gray roof would have worked nicely with the brick. I agree with jck910 regarding the shutters. Three of the windows shown are too wide for them. I do like white trim with brick, but any downspouts should blend with the siding color.

I'm not much help since the brick is such a nice feature. I'd be itching to change that red roof which is always a challenge IMO. IDK...it will still be red no matter what you do with the brick.

I think painting the brick a light color (I would never paint the brick) would make the roof appear MORE red..

I think that your son found a very attractive house. Killer landscaping is most important and replacing that black metal handrail with a white wooden ( or faux wood) railing. Seriously MANY people would love to have such a nice home!

Can you paint the windows or are they vinyl? The white trim and green shutters aren’t helping things. Maybe a dark greige instead of white?

I think you should just run with the red and use other features to cover up some of it. For example, I would paint the shutters white and make some of them a little wider. (Yes, I understand the concept, but this is about masking some of the red.) I would paint the white downspout against the bricks a reddish brown color. I would concentrate on foundation landscaping all around, which would hide some of the red and just beautify the property in general. Depending on climate, including some white-flowered plants such as hydrangeas would look good.

Romabio for the brick. (go to their website)

Paint that brick, (white, soft gray) paint the trim a darker color, bring in some wood accents , and remove those shutters! (yep, take em off)

take a look at all these pics, before and afters, painted brick, (very similar to yours) and see what you like.

there aren't many brick houses w/red metal roofs that I could find pics, this is the only one that's painted. Your sons house is nicer look than this one.

The landscaping will be 50% of overall look to his curb appeal, so take that into account.

one that isn't painted but has black shutters. (if you do nothing, paint the shutters black)

I'd take off those tiny shutters and modernize the whole look.

darker trim colors that will work w/red. Black will too, but these are a bit softer.

see how they used the dark trim here? and notice the landscaping. and wood , and lighting

Romabio Classico Limewash. if you don't like it, you can wash it off within 72 hours

Love how this one is modernized. looks great. even w/the metal roof it would look great

You could even paint the brick black. or a deep navy. bring in natural wood shutters/door

I would use Romabio to make the brick white. Remove the shutters, eagle decal, and probably change the door to something more appropriate to a farmhouse.

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For me that portico is the eyesore with those pillars and gabled roof that in no way works with that house. My thoight is that painting brick instantly devalues your house and adds a layer of upkeep that was not there before. IMO get rid of the portico and go more into MCM which the house was before the grid windows and portico were added. I do think he needs to post some pics of his style so maybe get him to do that on your post

LOL!! There is nothing, NOTHING MCM about that cute little brick house and trying to turn it into something it is not is not going to generate successful results!

Paint the brick if you (he) likes. If done correctly, it will not devalue the home and quite possibly increase the value. There is a wonderful selection of befores and afters presented here that can provide inspiration. Yes, painting will involve some more frequent routine maintenance than unpainted brick would but routine maintenance is just a part of home ownership regardless of what materials the house is constructed.

A well thought-out and executed landscaping plan will draw attention away from all that redness so that it will be almost unnoticeable. And will definitely add to property values as well.

Just my two cents .... I wouldn’t paint the brick, I like it. Instead I would concentrate on landscaping, that would make the biggest impact. Yes, I would remove the shutters & tone down the too white trim. Again, landscaping is what’s needed, don’t mess with the brick.

What do you do with red on red? Add green! I wouldn't be too quick with the paint, especially if you're not going to change the roof color. Start with adding shrubbery around the foundation, and plant a tree or grouping of trees a bit out from the house to eventually mature and block the red/red view from where you took the original picture. In a year or two, re-evaluate if you want to make any major color changes to the house. Congratulations to your son, it's a very nice looking house.

I’m another vote for not painting the brick; you’ll still have the red roof which will stick out regardless of house color. If youre going to paint,anything, the roof would be the better option.

https://www.wikihow.com/Paint-a-Metal-Roof

I wouldn't be bothered since the roof is new! If it were an old one, I might be interested, but painting it might even invalidate any warranty the new roof currently has.

I agree with whoever above said painting the brick white will make the red look more read (i.e. stand out). So no, I wouldn't paint. Also because I lived in a painted brick house and I am no fan. Definitely work on the landscaping -- lots of trees that will grow taller than the height of the house to minimize the roof (planted far away from the house, of course). I would also paint the portico and window trim something that isn't white -- white just sticks out, a green that matches the shutters might look nice, or change the shutters and trim to charcoal grey.

I also agree painting the brick white (or a very light color) could make the roof color stand out more. You can see that in a couple of example photos here.

I would bite the bullet and paint the roof. Black would be good. Less expensive 'fixes' won't really solve the red roof issue. Get rid of the shutters and darken the trim.

Black roof is likely to increase utility bills, IMO. As I said, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. That roof probably has a long life ahead of it. Better to paint the brick IMO.

I wouldn't paint the roof, wouldn't even consider it especially if you're in an area of the country that gets severe and/or cold weather. Hail pellets beating straight down on a painted roof is going to chip the ever lovin' crap out of the paint, and I would imagine ice freeze-thaw cycle would do a number on it too over time. Also, would painting void the warranty?

Thank you for your wonderful ideas!! My son is a commercial building contractor so he is practical and his style is modern. This house was low maintenance with brick, vinyl windows and trim, metal roof. His last great house deal, needed to be painted, new roof and new windows and he realized that ate up a lot of his time and profit. This time he bought one well maintained, needing less expensive updates. He liked the before after photo below, because of the landscaping and entrance.

I think your ideas about more emphasis on layered landscaping would take the focus off all the red. My son has the eagle, shutters, entrance and landscaping at the top of the update list. So without changing the color of the brick, windows or roof, that leaves shutters, columns, railing, front door. I have very little talent in selecting house and trim colors without an inspiration photo. I tried paint visualizer apps but still lost.

I agree with nicholsworth Z6 Indianapolis and more about the landscaping. Just wish I was that good.

So now it's down to what do to with the entrance and shutters. I'm worried that removing the shutters, would add more red. I love monochromatic themes, but not red. Just thinking that would literally look like hell. LOL

take away the white posts and add natural cedar. and of course lose the colonial style.

ditto w/the railing.

this landscaping looks nice w/the brick path. and flower beds.

the shutters are too small for the windows.

if you have to keep them, make them w/natural cedar, or paint them black.

all those people saying painting the brick leads to upkeep have not researched Romabio. it has a 20 year guarantee.

the After that he likes was painted a medium gray. try a white, or gray. or try the lime wash.

Like I said, try it out on a small portion in the back. if you don't like the look, it hoses off.

Sondra Personal..I'd start planting as soon as the weather is right..find a home that has landscaping that you like and imitate it..leave a service alley next to the house..it's easier to maintain the house and the plants..and consider how the plants will look from inside the house..I enjoy my plants from inside the house as well as how they look when I drive up..

I live in a wooded neighborhood with brick, stone and cedar homes..we have 2 painted brick homes..both were flips..they stand out like a sore thumb..to each his own but I prefer the before looks in the photos on this thread..

I have several houses in my area with red metal roofs; regardless of ranch vs colonial or light vs dark siding, the eye is immediately drawn to the red roof. Painting the brick on this house won’t turn out like any of these painted-brick inspiration photos because of the roof color...

Here are a few examples of painted houses with red roofs ....

All the houses in the neighborhood are natural brick. My son's house is on a corner lot, and the only one with a matching red roof, so it is sticks out. There is one medium tree in the yard. I am trying to find pictures of red brick with gray shutters or or red brick with cedar posts. Until we can start landscaping, we can take down the eagle, winterize the lawn so it will be beautiful in the spring, and talk about replacing the columns with heavier posts. I'm thinking the landscaping budget is going to be a lot bigger than he expected. I asked him to fence the back yard since that adds to the re-sell value. He has two dogs and there is no privacy since it's a corner lot. I hope he will still be glad he asked me to help when we're done.

Honestly, even though the roof is new, that's what I would change. It doesn't have to be metal. A nice medium gray asphalt roof goes with everything.

I would paint the shutters black only because you seem to think it will be an asset to cover the red.

I would get large fluffy shrubbery which will cover half of the brick.

But honestly, it the roof that is the issue. I only like painted brick if the brick is an eyesore. This isn’t. You are going from a non maintenance surface to one that will have to be repainted.

Romabio Masonry Coating for brick.

Painting metal and brick sooooo devalues what was built to be MAINTENANCE FREE! Stick to what he asked=LANDSCAPING. But I would let him know the shutters are silly they need to be resizes or removed.

all those people saying painting the brick leads to upkeep have not researched Romabio. it has a 20 year guarantee.

True. The results in terms of look and feel as well as durability is not like paint.

I'm sure Romabio is a a good product, but plain ol' brick needs zero maintenance for much longer than 20 years. Centuries, not decades.

Hey, plain old brick needs to be washed from time to time and tuck pointed. So NO MATERIAL is maintenance free. If Romabio fades in 20 years, it's not an issue. The real benefit is that it will NOT PEEL like paint.

Embrace the red roof and brick. They are practical and distinctive. They can be toned down with landscaping, which is what you came for advice on. Here it is and you will be surprised. What will tone down red is more red! Dark red, rust red, and purple. Plus green of course. If someone can photoshop a purple beech, ninebark diabolo, Japanese maples, crimson barberry you will see what I mean.

and 20years is still maintenance!! 20 years goes by in the blink of an eye and once painted you are forcing that house into revolving paint FOREVER.

arcy,,,first off, it's not paint.

It's mineral based. and a simple touch up is all that's needed. actually it would eventually wear away, letting the real brick be exposed again. You should do your research on Romabio before posting your drama in CAPS

Lastly, If you own a regular house you have to paint and touch up every 5-10 years

It's part of owning a home.

Brick still needs to be cleaned and maintained, especially 20 years down the road, which would make this house 80 years old? give or take? No home exterior is maintenance-free.

Your son's house looks like my sister's house in NW Georgia, and there, nobody paints their brick unless it's a two story Georgian and the paint looks like it's wearing off. It's really a regional preference I think. I did a very, very crude visualization of darker green shutters and trim with a hint of sage. (and you thought you were bad with color visualizers!). I like the idea of cedar posts, just don[t know how to do that. I think the darker green tones down the red brick.

You need @Celery. Visualization, Rendering images or @Dig Doug's Designs to pop in here and show a great landscape idea.

And BTW, red metal roofs are all the rage in my area of NC. Even some blue ones. He'll be a trend setter.

kitasei2, tozmo1 - Thank you for being so positive!!

THANKS for the recommendations, your visualization and suggestions. These are very needed and appreciated, especially pictures!!

Thanks for the info about Romabio Masonry Coating for future reference. This house is a 2-3 year address/investment for my son. He has been working on a big project in south FL, bought a house, made improvements, then sold the house and got all the money back that he paid out (including taxes, insurance, interest, improvements, lawn care, utility bills) plus $7500 when he sold it 2 years later. Now he's headed to Nashville, would like to do the same thing, but the projects requiring a contractor, like painting, roofing, plumbing were time consuming, messy and expensive. This time he's picked a well maintained house that needed a little curb appeal - landscaping, fencing, outdoor entertaining area. That's why he asked me to help, and I'm free. I'm just not secure in my choices of color or changes to the structure without a picture. Using all your suggestions, this is one of my feeble attempts at visualization. I was sticking to the traditional vibe of the neighborhood, and making impersonal classic updates. Let me know what you think.

The landcaping should give the house more depth, so it doesn't appear so much like a box car with a portico attached Make the foundation borders very deep. I like the symmetry of the trees but even though I suggested red would tone down the roof, I didn't mean red mulch. Unless you want to ratchet up the kitsch factor. But now we're talking about taste, and that is so personal and regional.

Sondra..I think the plants and trees in your design do add curb appeal..I would prefer a color other than white for the trim..someone asked if the windows were vinyl or if they were paintable..if you said I missed it..I'd change the window color too if possible..

Yes! The porch design is totally Nashville. (My sister lived there too). I see you added some porch lights. I think the rule of thumb is they should be 1/3 the height of the door. I can see some nice eye catching ones in black or brass. You may need a railing due to code. @Beth H. :has some nice designs I've seen her post. I know these neighborhoods and grew up in one very much like this in North Alabama. Returning many years later, they still have the same classic look. I agree that window trim should be less stark white and also some larger shutters in a darker color. How do you access the front door? I think a winding brick walk from the street would be nice or from the driveway if that is the access point. I like the trees and agree a deeper front bed is good or depending on where the sidewalk to the front is, even a bed in that bright sunny yard. Love this pro's portfolio on Houzz, here's some foundation planting ideas https://www.houzz.com/hznb/projects/foundation-plantings-pj-vj~2733445

Something that comes more forward into the yard is nice, these are from his portfolio too.

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And of course the requisite liriope and crepe myrtle :-)

If he’s planning on reselling in a few years, suggest letting the next owners decide to change/invest to their liking. Here is a photo with a nicer entrance, Sage front door, black shutters, and nice landscaping.

I love a good mortar wash in white for the old red brick but with that red roof and white house it may feel like it belongs in a sleepy little Christmas village on Hallmark. Perhaps a soft grey color,

and I would certainly add some wood accents (no shutters)...remove those tapered columns at the front stoop and build your wood posts there. These are 12x12 shown here. You can also liven it up with some nice shrubs and flowering trees.

Given that this already mostly nice home will be up for resell in a few years, simple and inexpensive changes are best. Sondra, I like your plan to update the front door, re-place the too-skinny columns (the rest of the portico looks in scale so I wouldn't try to make it any larger), plant two shade trees out front. Consider widening the front steps and walkway -- that always makes a home look generous and welcoming. I do like the wider, hunter green shutters tozmo1 suggested.

None of the options to re-color the brick are ringing my bells unless the roof color is also changed.