Cheap Curb Appeal Ideas for Your Home

Whether you realize it or not your home’s curb appeal is important. It reflects your pride of home ownership and it improves the value of every home in your neighborhood. If you are getting ready to sell your house creating pleasing curb appeal will give you the extra boost you need to stand out among the competition. No matter how you look at it spending time and a little money on your home’s curb appeal is a good investment.

Now let’s consider the cost of creating a visually appealing home exterior. You can go whole hog and spend thousands of dollars on paint, landscaping and hardscape. Or you can take an objective look and concentrate on the specific areas that need immediate help. If you address a few minor cosmetic issues you’ll be amazed at the difference. In most cases, you can make a big difference with a modest budget.

Clean and remove yard clutter. As with the inside of your house, one of the simplest ways to beautify your home’s exterior is to give it a thorough cleaning. Remove dirt, grime and spider webs from exterior surfaces. Use a power washer or garden hose and nozzle to spray down the siding, porches, decks, sidewalks and driveways.

Make your windows sparkle and clean the dead bugs out of light fixtures. Make sure your yard is free of accumulated stuff like toys, bicycles and general clutter. Find a home for these things in the garage, storage shed, basement or attic.

Plant some flowers. Take time to weed the lawn and flower beds. Cut out brown patches of grass and replace with fresh sod. Trim dead tree branches. Add some fresh soil to your beds and flower boxes. Add seasonal color and greenery by way of flowers and colorful plants.

Petunias, marigolds, pansies, coleus and boxwood are all inexpensive plants that can make a big difference to your home’s curb appeal. Place a potted plant on the front porch to welcome guests and potential buyers. If your lawn is overtaking your sidewalks and driveway cut back the excess with an electric, gas powered or manual edge trimmer.

Punch up the color. If your house is painted a single color you should consider adding at least one accent color to break up the monotony. A second color on your front door, porch, deck, eaves, window trim or shutters will go a long way to enhance the curb appeal of your home. Your local paint store or home improvement center can give you advice on selecting a secondary color.

Keep your interior window treatments consistent. Bet you didn’t think window treatments would impact your home’s curb appeal. Here’s a good rule that many covenant controlled communities use to create a consistent exterior appearance: Use white or off-white window treatments or curtains lined with white fabric.

Try to use the same type of window treatments such as blinds, curtains or shutters on each window. This consistency creates the perception of quality. If you don’t believe it just picture driving by a house with mismatched window treatments or bed sheets in different colors on each window.

Pop out your window screens. If your window screens are a little worse for the wear the solution may be to take them down. This is especially beneficial if your house is on the market. Old screening material can make your newly cleaned windows appear dull and drab. This will definitely improve the view from the street. If you don’t want to remove your screens take a quick inspection and replace screens that are worn or torn. It will make a world of difference.

Fix window shutters. If your home has shutters make sure they are in good working order. If they are decorative ensure they are properly secured to the siding. There’s nothing worse than seeing cockeyed window shutters on a house. While you’re at it you can repair or replace any that might be damaged or warped.

Buy a new doorknob. If a fresh coat of paint did the trick to breathe new life into your front door make it look even better by replacing the doorknob, lock set and kick plate. Imagine a beautiful red or black front door all decked out in stylish brass.

Replace the front door. Sometimes old front doors are beyond the help of a coat of paint. At this point you probably need to bite the bullet and purchase a replacement door. While it will cost way more than a can of paint, a new door will spruce up the front of your house plus it is a great return on your investment. Research says your best bet is a steel security door followed by hardwood and then fiberglass.

By trying one or a combination of these tips you can rest assured your house will be one of the best one on the block.