It would look better if the roof was a lighter color so the contrast wasn't so high between it and the brick. But landscaping can really help with curb appeal if you like everything else about the house.

These are my favorite style of house. Paint it black!

A good cleaning and new landscaping will go a long way. The addition to the left and the window above it will look much better when cleaned up.

Search Houzz discussions. I recall someone also wanting to put an offer on an ugly mansard roof house and people came up with fantastic ideas, in addition to landscaping, that made it looks sooo much better.

Maybe add piers and trim under the mansard overhang, dark planters between to echo the roof? (I didn't do much with the landscaping except indicate that there is some, and I added a green roof on the flat area, just for fun. You could do much more.)

Wow! That's a truly hideous house. You really want to slap whoever thought that was a good idea. If you go through with it, are you going to regret the purchase in a few years?

Homes are a little bit like potential spouses: If you don't go in with eyes wide open, you can overlook the obvious faults until it's too late. AND you don't want to go into a situation thinking you are going to change the basic house / spouse...perhaps you can smooth some minor rough edges, but they are what they are.

@simplynatural ... brilliant, so much better!!!

For me the roof is way too dark, but it looks pretty new. Most people wouldn't replace a roof for cosmetic reasons. I wouldn't paint the house to match the roof because that would be grim. It looks like brick on the first floor. You could paint it a medium gray so the contrast between the roof and the exterior isn't so dramatic, but I hate the idea of painting brick in any circumstance. Does the inside of the house meet your needs? If the inside and the neighborhood are enough to convince you then go ahead, knowing that this will never be a very attractive house. I think simplynatural's suggestions would be an improvement, but that roofline - oof!

One add to @simplynatural’s great idea: extend either the walkway product or something else between the posts and the windows so you can have some outdoor seating. Colorful Adirondack chairs will go a long way to make the outdoors look fresh.

The landscaping would be further out, of course, but colorful bushes would also make everything look better. I am partial to azaleas, and here we have knockout rose bushes everywhere.

About painting the roof - it will cancel your warranty. Don’t do it. Next time the roof needs to be done, choose something else, but please don’t paint it.

My initial thought was the same as someone else - paint the brick on that one wall a darker charcoal - a bit more modern look.

I would spend some money and do a fabulous porch to draw out the area under the roof.

The landscaping is great too. Get some wonderful flower beds and shrubs for dimension.

You already said it is a great neighborhood. If it is priced right and has really good bones, you can embrace the uniqueness and do some up dates.

Good luck

It isn't a mansard, which is sort of a colonial subset. It's a contemporary. They often have very architectural landscaping which is an integral part of the design. So 'fixing' it is probably going to require a good landscape designer who understands the style.

It's not ugly. What do feel about the inside? Does it meet all your needs? It looks spacious to me .

I’ve only bought homes with top priority being location.

I wouldn’t rush into adding to the front or painting the brick. Landscaping goes a long way.

If you truly can’t get past the appearance, move on.

What do the other houses in this street look like?

So just to clear some things up, that's not a mansard roof. Neither is it a Dutch Colonial as @mad_gallica (z5 Eastern NY) seemed to be suggesting. Mansard roofs are French from the 1500's and are not part of the American Colonial design vocabulary either.

That is simply a contemporary mashup that has no overall style. There are elements of a saltbox house which had a resurgence in the 1970's. There's "1980's suburban bland" garage roof and brick choice. There's a flat roof that is "mid-century" and the cantilever and heavy massing at the top suggests brutalism. The flat brick front facade with the unadorned entrance looks like the 1970's approach to urban design that had a lot of racist overtones -- where the outside was deemed "hostile" and thus a fortress approach was presented to the street.

It would be a mistake to ascribe intent or overall style to this - more like the designer vomited.

The 1970's were mostly a dark period in architecture when designers seemed to think that rules of balance, symmetry, proportion and grace no longer applied and were simply quaint notions of a bygone era. Given the 1950's brutalism that they were probably weaned on, it's no wonder.

The windows are tiny, the proportions are truly hideous and cantilever, the roof-line, along with the flat roof on the side, just begs the question - "what were they smoking?" The ugly hostility to the street is a big middle finger to the community. No amount of landscaping will fix any of that.

If you buy it, will you be able to sell it later when the market cools? Will you regret it?

IMO the brick is the best part of the exterior . I would do a trim in a dark charcoal on all the windows maybe a bit widertoo. That will help witha connection to the roof. and all the siding painted the same chacoal. DO NOT paint the brick ever. Landscaping will be the best money you spend to make this more attractive , maybe a new charcola front door too or the planters less formal and black also.

I’m concerned about you buying a house that you describe as ugly….. Maybe you should keep looking.

Are you still interested in this home? I just saw this before and after that reminded me of your project. Is it a mishmash of different styles? Sure. Will people tell you this and that are wrong with it? Yep. Is it interesting and unique? Absolutely. Following rules is never fun.

https://belkcustombuilders.com/2020/11/03/modern-farmhouse-look-inspires-south-charlotte-split-level-renovation/