Way to go! Nice house! Everybody will have their own opinions about what looks aesthetically pleasing... For me, I'd enjoy a row of spruces, the nearer the curb the better. Why not have your soil tested and have the utility companies come out spray paint your grass for stuff you'll need to avoid. How long do you intend to live there? If you plant larger trees they give you privacy quicker but cost a lot more. Additionally, plant some 1/2 barrels and put flowers on that patio. Update your front door to something nicer? Just my opinion, your mileage may vary. Gus

Camarodreamer, I'm just biting my tongue rather than respond in kind to some of the folks who posted ... All I can say is, don't take it personally. Some people have "arrived" (or think they have) financially and socially, but have somehow lost, or never had, a grain of understanding or compassion. I live in an area where property values have skyrocketed; people are moving here to get away from the city - They bring with them their city ways, demolish modest homes that have been standing for decades and replace them with the all-too-familiar "McMansion" that is too large for both lot and neighborhood, and attempt to ride roughshod over a way of life that has been cherished here for generations. I'm a "transplant" here myself, having been here a mere 30 years, but sensitive to, and appreciative of, what this area has to offer. I love houses and in my travels have seen many. A house is a shell - nothing more. Granted, some have more aesthetic appeal, more architectural merit, than others ... but it is the people who live in them who make them *homes*. If it is one's "calling card", one's announcement to the world that one has "made it" ... then it isn't a home, it's something else. I admire and appreciate your desire to reduce your living expenses while simplifying and increasing the quality of your life. I worked for 8 years in a hospital setting - five of those with hospice and cancer patients and, sad to say, it often took a virtual death sentence before people woke up and distilled their lives down to what was important. I hope I'm not rambling too much, but this is coming from the heart; not always in the best order, and with some of the stinging parts edited out. You know better than anyone else whether this house (or any other one) is right for you and your family - I believe someone has already stated that. Some of the kind posters have helped identify and clarify, and possibly remedy, some of the drawbacks. If the benefits outweigh the drawbacks, then you can overcome those drawbacks and the property will reflect the thought, care and love that you put into your life and become a *home*. Whatever you decide, please don't let it be because of rude, shallow people ... and I wish you the very best. Diane

Here's what I'd do. 1) Increase the post diameter slightly to make more substantial posts. 2) Paint porch eave white (natural wood presently it looks like) and add arched fascia trim between posts to make porch more visually substantial 3) Add white cornice trim to upper story to balance lower porch fascia - make the width of the cornice board wide enough to bring it down to the top edge of the windows 4) Increase the width of the upper window shutters (not the middle window) to be correctly proportional to the windows, they are too narrow now. 5) Add matching shutters to main floor windows flanking front door 6) Change the house color slightly darker and away from pinkish toward one of the reddish brown tones in the stones from the main level. 7) Add some fypon gable trim in the triangle 8) Possibly paint the front door an accent color. This post was edited by beautybutdebtfree on Wed, May 21, 14 at 8:55

In the garage door (pic is hard to see) if those are arched as well, sometimes those panels can be replaced. You may be able to change the two "arched" components with a rectangular glass such as in the center. Not sure if it's a similar situation in the front door, but the same applies... sometimes just the panel can be changed out. This would eliminate some of the arches, leaving you just the front picture window and the curves on the garage door frame, which I would leave at the moment. Embrace these arches. They will grow on you. As to trim/landscaping, clearer photos would be helpful. It's such a cute house!