I think it currently has a nice clean look and looks well kept. My only suggestion would be to replace the front doors, and maybe even garage doors, with something in a warm wood tone. The driveway is a sea of grey and some nice wood doors would help. We have CHI garage doors and love the "real wood" look they have in their accent woodtone options. https://www.chiohd.com/homeowners/garage-doors/

I agree. Try our some warm white paint samples or even a tawny color and no outlining.
There are no actual hew/ gawks to tack onto the exterior that would help.
Though I understand it’s often recommended that thd homes exterior and interior “ match up”, it’s rather common for things to be built one way re: “ the bones” and renovated and/ or decorated another way. Given all the variables of location,price, lot, orientation , floorplan, I think many folks can’t be purists and have everything lined up before making an offer/ purchase , nor to re- do an interior if it’s already pleasing to you.
So it’s better to embrace the discord in ways that work for you.

While certain homes “ ask” for certain landscaping styles, I still believe that gardeners have every right to adjust the landscaping to fit what you live and can take care of. Mainly because, as stated before, it’s not always possible to align these , and life’s too short to forgo day, a cottage- esque garden if you love that but bought an MCM - style house, for example.

Attractive garage doors will go a long way in improving the curb appeal. They are the most prominent feature of the house, so splurge a bit.

That house is never going to read Farmhouse. Warm it up by getting rid of that cold gray color. At a minimum, paint the front door some lively un-gray color.

If you want to do more, replace those very traditional style garage doors with more contemporary ones.

Its a very nice house. It could use a new paint color, but, other than that, I wouldnt do much at all to it. Learn to love the style it is, because, it is never going to look farmhouse. Its totally the wrong style for that.

The cool gray colour, harsh white accents and smoothly pruned shrubs can all be changed to make your home look warmer and more welcoming.

But it's a modern exterior - so to my eye, the country-style touches like the door wreath and rustic welcome sign are a mis-match to your house style.

I do like the idea of adding wood - garage door, front door, even the street-facing section of the house could be all wood. Still modern but warm and welcoming, which fits with the interior's vibe. I searched for modern prairie style houses and got some images that could spark some ideas. Not farmhouse at all but warm and welcoming. prairie style ideas

You want a makeover? I've got the perfect one for you.

Hows your budget?

But first,,,,similar home. paint only, some minor landscape.

This is BM Swiss Coffee and Black Tie on the trim.

Now, how's the budget?? lol

I love this makeover:

https://www.brickandbatten.com/white-stucco-house-update/

Here's the before

Here was the planned rendition:

and this is what they ended up with (SW Iron Ore and Seapearl colors)

As you can see, the landscaping is really what finishes this off.

BTW, this brick and batten site will give you a rendition (for a price naturally) so you can see exactly what your own home could look like.

I show you this because merely painting and changing the garage door is only going to take you so far.

Your yard needs a redo.

Are you in So Cal by chance? I used to have that exact same roof tile on my house.

Those flower beds and hedges? out. you have a ton of cement, so getting a pro yard makeover is needed to balance out all of that gray.

the current lavender/gray house color would look nice if it was surrounded by plants and greenery. next to all your cement, it's very cold and stormy-day looking. Lacks warmth.

Just look at the natural wood fence in the above pic. It lends so much warmth to the overall look next to their cement pavers. The grass, mulch, properly placed shurbs over by the fence (not blocking off the entire front of your house).

for example, this also has a lot of concrete. but look at how they did the left side. nice retaining wall, flower bed along the entry, nice door, sitting area, lights, etc.

wood and textures/plants completely make the front of a stucco house.

same w/this one. see off to the right how all the concrete makes for a nice seated area? no grass, but it's a xeriscape type of landscapng.

More modern garage doors, lighting, numbers, dark/light colors.

What if you went for more of a Mediterranean modern? something like this?

want more of a modern look?? try something like this

Or this one.

This is why I asked you about budget.

Here are some other similar stucco homes w/redo's

This one prob matches your inside. the charcoal gray stucco, soft white trim, copper color gutters, wood accents, landscaping and a modern front door.

How interesting you think that house is ugly. I live in SoCal and there are neighborhood after neighborhood near me with homes in that style, built in a certain decade... was it the 70's? I'm not sure. To me, though it's not my style, it's certainly not ugly. What does sort of offend my eyes is seeing someone tear down something like that and build a fake farmhouse (white with black trim, natch).

That said, I don't care for the gray either. You're getting good advice from Beth. Landscape changes are huge. Good luck!

The house isn't "beast" , it isn't "ugly"..it is contemporary. Someone jammed the ubiquitous modern farm bs decor into it? What a SHOCK.

Get a really great landscaper. Unclog the entrance and overgrown bushes. Paint it a white if you like. Change the front door, change trim colors.... but it is never becoming farmhouse. Not in this lifetime: )

I think it's your landscaping that's the problem, not the exterior. Call in a landscape architect or two and get some really great updates planned. You could also paint the stucco, but I wouldn't make major changes in an attempt to farmhouse it up.

That will never be farmhouse so enjoy your interior that is what you like and embrace what the exterior will alwyas be unless you have pockets full of $$$$$$$$ For me the big thing to change is that arcjed window at least then the front will all ,look the same style.

You have what looks like a three-car garage up front? How can that ever, ever convey a farmhouse style?Accept that you bought a house with priceless qualities, family right nearby. This is a very attractive, modern house. @decorpatti nailed it. Go for a warmer feeling and forget farmhouse remuddling or you'll wreck the very nice modern house you do have.

--Remove bushes on the right side and replace with a mix of high and low shrubs that complement landscaping is on the left. Remove the middle shrub in the grouping on the left so the tree can be seen. Leave the red shrubs, which add color, but prune back the left red shrub so it's the height of the red shrub nearest the entry. None of the shrubs should be taller than the windows.

--Replace entry door with a wood double door or a black door.

--Paint the house while with black trim, black garage doors.

Here's a modern farmhouse. Do the rooflines and windows in any way resemble yours? Do you see three garages? This is why what you want to do won't work. Don't remuddle a perfectly nice house. Fix what can easily be changed, the landscaping, paint, front door.

Front Elevation of Contemporary European Farmhouse in White Stucco Metal Roof · More Info

I mean, you can always paint in a warm white/ creme and do different trim color. But there’s not much else exterior-wise that’s going to be possible outside of things others have suggested (new front/garage doors, etc), and maybe doing a new window above your front door to get rid of 80s arch.
I agree you should focus on your landscape. It looks like your burgundy bushes might be barberry— if so you should rip those out first thing as they are a problematic invasive shrub. I would leave the ornamental tree, but otherwise get rid of the tall shrubs blocking the view of those nice large windows which will help the curb appeal. Hire a landscape designer or consult an avid gardener. If it were me I would do large beds filled with lush plantings, but be really simple in doing mass plantings of only a small handful of plant species so that you have flowing waves of plants— maybe lower-height flowering perennial borders backed by mass plantings of ornamental grasses? This would work well with your more modern exterior and help create a lush feel.

Landscaping of houses with a prominent front garages that direct focus to entryway:

Before and after of modern house with new garage doors:

This is great! I’m new to asking for advice online. Thank you so much. This house is in Northern California. It seems like I triggered some people around the word farmhouse. Basically I know we can never have a traditional farmhouse but the inside and outside are totally opposite styles. Inside even has ship lap! Farm sinks all wood floors the whole nine. And it all came that way. But I learned from you guys that maybe it just dosent matter. MCM with traditional farm will have to meld somehow.
I love all the pictures and ideas! Especially regarding landscape and things we can do ourselves.
Most of the houses in this neighborhood have siding on the front and stucco around the side and back. Does anyone see that working on this house? I also am considering brick and battons help but it’s so expensive. I feel like I got so much more help from the experts on this site we might not need to do that.
Thank you everyone! :)

Your ideas about the siding and the brick and batten siding make me think that you are still looking to add country-style elements to your house. Resist the urge to do that. Your house style is very modern, and country finishes will look strange on your house.

For inspiration, don't look at country homes and try to add those things to your modern house. Instead, look for pictures of modern houses that have warmer elements like wood, and that use warmer colours. You will be much more likely to have an attractive result. Beth showed you some, and there are some in the link I put in my post above.

Thanks that is the exact advice we need to hear!

Focus on beautiful landscaping in harmony with your modern house. Don't add a lot of geegaws to something that will never be a farmhouse. Look at modern northern California homes and embrace the style. Most Commentors aren't against old or new farmhouses. What we're all reacting to is trying to turn something that isn't in any way a farmhouse style and graft it on to a modern house with totally different lines, windows, etc. It's great that you have wood floors. And a farmhouse sink is very practical. When you're ready to meld what's there with your own furnishings, come back for some tips if we haven't scared you away! Just make sure to show entire rooms and spaces that open onto each other so everything relates.

Go for warmth with wood, textured materials and finishes.

Beautiful house, congratulations. I don't know what your budget is but here are my suggestions:

- A warm white paint for the stucco

- Black trim and doors

- New front door

- New canopy above front door

- New large black sconces

- Install flower boxes on the 2 larger windows along the pathway

- New landscaping (remove all the big shrubs along the walkway - find a professional for a plan)

Note: If paintable, your window frames would also be nice in black

The black front door and garage door can also be in a nice dark wood

Thank you! I wish I knew about this community sooner. I don’t want to bother everyone but I really love all the help.
Maybe I described the inside wrong. I’m learning about specific qualities of styles. Maybe this is considered transitional or traditional?
Much of the decor is from our previous home.
The last two photos are before and after from yesterday. I took advice from several of you and spent a few hours cutting down the bushes to window level. It looks a ton better to me. Knowing we are going to let the plum delights grow back to smaller size and fill that area with colorful spring flowers. Thank you for all your pro opinions and great suggestions!

@lisedv and Beth- I don’t know how to reply directly to someone but we can’t believe how awesome your ideas/sketch is!! That is exactly the pro eye we need but could not afford or know how to do. You guys are amazing. I would be happy to support any other sites or businesses you have going. 😍
Jen

Glad I was able to help you with your plans, sometimes when you actually see what it could look like it confirms it's "what you want to do" or it's "want you don't want to do"...

I wouldn’t put window boxes against stucco , especially white- painted.

I don‘t think that inside & outside should necesarily match. My home in the desert has a Spanish revival ( or whatever) exterior & I’ve furnished it in contemporary furniture (Room & Board & Design Within Reach ) because that’s what I’ve always liked. Fortunately, my primary home is a MCM modern , furnished similar. I actually like your home, much better than ”Modern Farmhouse” lol , it just needs a paint change & landscape tweaking.

I'm an experienced gardener and will never have window boxes again. Very high maintenance - frequent watering and fertilizer needed and unless the plants are replaced regularly they look shabby. Time consuming and expensive. The beautiful ones you see in photos are either just planted with fresh flowers, or photoshopped.

Many of them leak too, or you splash soil on the wall when you water or fertilize.

@Jen Nelson— that looks a lot better already! A lot less visual clutter and feels more open and welcoming.

And I personally kinda like the boxwood hedges that you’ve left in place— you might want to consider working them into your new landscape design. In my own yard I have some ball-shaped boxwoods lining our front walkway with alliums (globemaster) and perennial wildflowers behind them. But I’ve got more of a cottage house/ garden vibe, so you should definitely think about what you want from your overall landscape plan and decide which of your established plants/shrubs will work with that vision (or work with a pro to develop a master plan— there are a number of places that you can pay a fee for just the design, and then DIY install yourself over time as resources allow).

Big difference, looks good now & welcoming!