50s Ranch-style Home Exterior Update and Curb Appeal Help

2 years ago

last modified: 2 years ago

Hello!

We plan to do a larger renovation of our home's exterior and interior in 3-5 years. In the meantime, we would like to clean up and update the exterior to add some desperately needed curb appeal (down the line we plan to re-side, replace the brick fascia, add an attached garage, and adjust the roofline). We would like to keep this project to no more than $3-4k. Here is a list of what we are thinking to give it a facelift until then:

Paint the aluminum siding
Paint the faux fascia accent brick around the base of the house and near the front door
Paint the faux fascia accent brick on the chimney (the chimney is missing some brick and we are thinking we will paint over everything is disguise this (?) - it is cinder block underneath)
Use a solid stain for the porch and deck railings
Use a solid stain on the deck surface
Add a trellis between the two small windows
Take out the railing and add steps directly in front of the front door with a path to the driveway
Replace the patio furniture on the side deck
Add hanging flower baskets to the porch area
Extend "pergola" over side deck and add string of lights
Add ceiling fans to porch

We are really struggling with a color palette, especially when it comes to what to do with the fascia brick areas, chimney, and deck surface. We have been heavily leaning toward warm grays. We gravitate to natural, earthier tones and blues (the porch furniture has medium blue cushions with a blue rug). Any suggestions on color or things we are missing would be greatly appreciated!! Thank you!

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Comments (5)

kandrewspa
2 years ago
If you're going to do a big re-do in a couple years, why don't you just see if power washing the siding helps for now. I wouldn't go through the work of painting it if it's not going to be there for long. When you are ready to replace the siding, allow some funds for perking up your landscaping after the siding is done. IMO your house could be almost any color that doesn't clash with the roof.
Camille Ulrich thanked kandrewspa
Anna (6B/7A in MD)
2 years ago
I have to say, I kind of agree with kandrewspa. I lived with my very unattractive exterior for 13 years before we finally embarked on an exterior renovation. That $3-4K temporary refresh could be put toward the big renovation.

Easy spruce-ups include hanging baskets, new furniture (look at Home Goods if one is near you, they have a bunch of patio furniture right now), paint the missing pieces of the chimney to blend in with the remaining stone.
Camille Ulrich thanked Anna (6B/7A in MD)
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@visualizemaven Thanks for your response, and those photos are gorgeous! Love the earthy/industrial vibes and the stone. We might one day add stone to the bottom half of the exterior right below the midline trim, but it's looking like it's out of our budget for now. All we have planned at the moment is paint/roof/landscape. Metal roofs are very uncommon around here, but I'll look into it. Also appreciate your thoughts on colors; I'll admit that I'm a bit color-challenged. Any ideas on what would be better?
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Budget and building codes permitting, you could recreate your entry. You might ... Remove the first floor roof from above the front stoop -- everything from the brick to the garage. Create a new forward facing gable roof over that area beginning at the ridge of the upstairs -- at least at that height or even above it -- and extending the roof of that forward facing gable to a point at least twelve feet in front of the downstairs exterior wall. About six feet of this will be your new front entry foyer with your front door moved to the new exterior wall facing the road. The rest will be your new front porch. Alternately, you could extend the forward facing gable roof only six or eight feet beyond the front exterior of your home to create your new entry foyer and then add a shed roof with two hip corners for your new front porch. You'll be enlarging the upstairs room on the left by extending the floor of that upstairs room into the vaulted ceiling space above your new porch; then you can move the original window to that new upstairs exterior wall of your forward facing gable. What front door and front porch post style you use will help define/redefine you home. You could also add an arbor across your garage that coordinates with the posts you use for your new porch.
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Could you add a couple of photos that show a bit more to the property lines left and right so we can see everything currently in the front yard? I would make the garage doors and all the trim around them the same color. You don’t want to be drawing attention in that area. The area around the front door I would make brighter with color and good lighting. The shrub in the lawn looks a bit unkempt and isn’t placed with any apparent logic relating it to anything else in the yard, so I would likely move or remove it. I would want something a couple of feet tall and rounded in the bed of purple groundcover as well as in a pot between the porch and garage.. The walkway and steps look pinched, so widen the steps and make the walkway wider. Change the placement of the walkway a bit to swing out a bit further from the house if you want to place a plant in the ground rather than a pot between the garage and the porch.
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Camille Ulrich
Original Author
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
Thank you, both! I certainly understand and appreciate where you are coming from. Waiting has been our mindset for a long time. We have lived here for ten years mostly focusing on saving, doing infrastructure projects, and tackling smaller landscaping projects (it is on 3+ acres and much has been done in the back). It doesn't look like much now (spring has not really arrived where we are) but the beds will be full with plants soon as it warms and we always plant annuals, planters, pots, and baskets. The greenery always does wonders to make it look more welcoming!

We have gone back and forth about waiting. Unfortunately, the paint has been slowly running off the house when it rains since we moved in, some places are down to bare aluminum, and the deck has not been done for three years and is in need of painting anyway. We feel like we need to address it now in order to maintain the house and keep from opening ourselves up to bigger issues down the line. Aside from the painting (which we plan to do ourselves) the other projects should not be impacted when we renovate (patio furniture, trellis, steps, etc.). A good chunk of the funds will go toward furniture and based on our budget estimates. The paint and associated supplies will represent a much smaller portion.
marhop
2 years ago
well , IMO, I think you have this figured out already!
Camille Ulrich thanked marhop
Anna (6B/7A in MD)
2 years ago
Boring as it sounds, i would pick a color from the brick (stone?) veneer for the paint. It would make your home look more cohesive. I would still paint that exposed cinder block on the chimney a color that blends with the brick.

On my screen, the wood reads an orangey color, i would lean away from that.

After you paint the siding, step back and be critical (very hard to do on your own home!) Paint samples of potential wood colors and look at them in various lights. Decide if you want it to blend in or stand out. If you end up not liking your choice, that will only help you make a decision when it comes time to do the big update.
Camille Ulrich thanked Anna (6B/7A in MD)

50s Ranch-style Home Exterior Update and Curb Appeal Help

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kandrewspa

Anna (6B/7A in MD)

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marhop

Anna (6B/7A in MD)

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Comments (5)

kandrewspa

Anna (6B/7A in MD)

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marhop

Anna (6B/7A in MD)

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Camille Ulrich
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