10 Tips to Improve Your Home's Curb Appeal

First impressions matter. especially when it comes to selling your home, and that usually means having great curb appeal. “Curb appeal” is the impact your home’s exterior makes on visitors. Buyers form vital impressions of homes while standing in the street or sitting inside the car, just beyond the curb. And those first few minutes can make or break a potential sale. 

1.    Clean up.  Sometimes the most obvious way to enhance curb appeal is simply by deep cleaning the exterior of your home. Turn the nozzle on your garden hose to the strongest setting and clean off your driveway, sidewalk, windows, and fence.  If dirt and grime is really caked on your home’s exterior, you can rent a power washer. For maximum sparkle, clean your windows outside and inside.

2.    Give your door a facelift.  A new coat of paint can do wonders. Consider adding molding, which offers a decorative frame for your door, welcoming visitors while serving as a grand entrance.  You can also glam up your door by adding metal house numbers, or a wreath or seasonal decorations.

3.    Have fun with your house numbers. If you’d rather not add house numbers to your freshly painted door, here are some alternative ideas:

·      Add house numbers to a post planter near the front porch.

·      Make use of the front porch stair risers by hanging or painting numbers there.

4.    Add some fun to your light fixtures.  Replacing exterior light fixtures is another curb appeal must. Just make sure your new light fixtures have the same mounting system. And if you want to save on lighting, just try spray-painting them — a can of spray paint costs around $10.

5.     Refresh your mailbox. Replacing your mailbox is easy enough, but why stop there? Try planting a welcoming mailbox garden. Dwarf, compact shrubs are good choices because they stay smaller and require less pruning. Plants such as liriope, daylilies and agapanthus are useful because they don’t get too tall, and quickly fill in, eventually eliminating the need for mulch. 

6.    Bring beauty to your doorstep.  Placing a container garden at your doorstep is a quick and affordable way to liven things up. Not a fan of flowers? Try foliage plants. Just plant something low-maintenance so that they thrive even if you forget to water them. (Dead plants definitely hurt curb appeal!) Choose pots and plants that complement the colors and style of the house.

7.     Install flower boxes. Flower boxes are a quick way to add some life and color to your house windows. If you don’t want to worry about installing flower boxes, the aforementioned container garden is just fine.

8.     Prune the landscape. It’s common knowledge that you should give your landscape plantings a trim before selling a home, but this is also the time to audit your ‘trash trees’ and overgrown foundation plantings. Have the big stuff removed by a professional. Paved paths or patios can bring value to the property because they make life easier without costing much time or effort.

9.    Be deliberate about patio furniture. Limit personal decor and furniture. Just as you would aim to simplify the interior of your home when your house is on the market, the exterior of your home should allow prospective buyers to envision their own style in the space. 

1. Get creative with storing/hiding items. Place a small lattice fence or side of paneling around the A/C condenser, and hide your trash bins behind a small fence or in a garbage can shed. You can also hide your hose in a pot or storage bench.