If you are renovating a property through a construction or development finance lender, making the house look good from the outside is so essential. Whether you plan to sell it for a higher value or rent it out to tenants, you want the property to look appealing for any potential residents.
If you are looking to improve what your house looks like from the outside, whether that be adding a bit of colour, making some more drastic alterations or to just generally spruce up the front of your house, we have the perfect ways by which you can achieve you dream looking home to majorly improve your curb appeal. We have chosen things which we believe to be budget friendly, which is always great, especially when actively adding value to your home:
- Refinish your front door
- Improve the hardware of your front door
- Window boxes
- Create a pathway
- Re-paint your home
- Keep the garden maintained
- Improve or add to your porch
Refinish your front door
Your front door has a lot to answer for when it comes to the appearance of your house. If your front door is old, outdated, dull or the paint is chipped, you can easily make a huge improve to your whole house just by fixing it up. You can brighten up the exterior of your home by choosing a bright colour, this is sure to be the perfect welcome for any guests, passersby and for the family after a long day at work or at school. You can also consider re glossing your door, if it looking a bit dull but the paintwork is still good and you are happy with the colour.
To redo your front door, it will not cost much at all and should take less than a day to be completely done. The effect it will have on your curb appeal, however, will be priceless.
Improve the hardware of your front door
This is one of the simplest things you can do to change how your home looks.
You can also improve your front door by getting a new doorbell or knocker – there are some seriously interesting ones out there. In addition, you could treat yourself to a number/name plate for identification. Make sure you place this somewhere that it is visible and not behind a bush or is too damaged to be read, or you may find that your post could end up somewhere else!
You can replace the hinges if you think they are looking (and sounding) a little shabby. Along with this, you can replace all other hardware like the key lock and the door handle.
Window boxes
Who doesn’t love flowers to decorate their home? If you build or buy some window boxes, it will give you the opportunity to adorn the outside of your house with bright and vibrant plants. Adding splashes of colour with plants and flowers will make your home look more inviting than it already does, and even more beautiful.
Keep up with the time of year by planting seasonal flowers and plants. You could also use the boxes to grow herbs in, which you can then use in the kitchen to make amazing meals, which is another bonus!
Window boxes are inexpensive and can really make a difference to the “mood” of your house. You can place them wherever you like, whether that just be a few windows or all of them!
Create a pathway
Having a pathway is a must if you want to increase the value of your property as well as it’s curb appeal. A pathway not only looks good, but is very effective in decluttering your driveway from leaves and the like. Just simply having a pathway can be a reason for you to keep it swept or to keep your front garden less cluttered. The pathway will highlight the problem, should it occur, especially when the pathway becomes less visible due to clutter.
If you want to get a stone walk way but find that the price is a bit steep, you do not have to use real stone! You can simply purchase some stone forms and then fill those forms with concrete to make them look like real stone. This can be completed in a couple of days.
Re-paint your home
The ultimate way to spruce up a home’s exterior is to re-paint it. You do not have to change the colour if you do not wish to, but a fresh lick of paint is a sure way to make a massive improvement and increase curb appeal.
You can bring in a professional painter to complete the job, or you can do it one weekend yourself – very easily. Of course, it will be cheaper to do it yourself, so if you are on a budget this may be the better option.
Keep the garden maintained
Doing things like making sure the lawn is mown and the plants are alive can be make a huge difference – so make it your mission to keep on top of garden maintenance.
Depending on where you live and how much sunlight your garden gets, you should find yourself mowing the garden at least once a week during the warmer months. However, during autumn and spring, once every other week should do the job.
Keeping the garden maintained will raise your homes value, curb appeal and will take no time at all – it can also be very enjoyable!
Improve or add to your porch
The overall look of the house is somewhat dependant on the look of the porch, if you have one. The way it looks is extremely vital in creating overall feel of the outside of you home. Your porch, like a front door, will be seen by everyone who passes by, and those who visit, and those who will walk through it.
If you do not have a porch, consider adding one to your property. Adding a porch can add a lot of character to your home, character that may be lacking from the outside of the property, It will also add value to your home as it is a bonus that it can have functional storage qualities!
Additionally, it may be worth considering adding a porch to your home if it does not have a hallway, but rather your home opens up straight into a living area. Adding the porch then will be sure to create the illusion of more space and provide storage.