One of the most important things, when it comes to buying or selling your home, is curb appeal. Want your house to stand out, and look beautiful in the neighbourhood? Work on the curb appeal. Want to add some personality to your front yard? You guessed it; curb appeal!

Curb appeal is the first thing you see when looking at your home. We often focus on other work around the house that needs to be taken care of, so an attractive front entry tends to get kicked to the curb (see what I did there?).

First of all, why should you spend money fixing up the exterior of your home?

What’s The First Thing You See?

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The home’s exterior protects everything inside, so you need to take care of it. This includes your roof, your front porch and your driveway. Keep on top of regular maintenance tasks. The longer you let the exterior deteriorate, the bigger problems you might have in the future.  If you are selling your home, home buyers will notice right away if you haven’t taken care of your house’s exterior.

I think it’s sassy, fun, and stands out. But let’s talk about YOUR curb appeal, and some things you can do to improve your house’s outdoor personality.

 

5) Is It Time for a New Roof?

Your roof has an important job to do. It protects your house from Mother Nature, but it also has a big impact on your curb appeal. I was in Memphis last year to work on a roofing job with a wonderful crew. We featured this job on our Roof It Right web series, you can watch that here.

We took down a roof that had black streaks and was also unfortunately leaking. Streaks on your roof are caused by algae, and they are very ugly. A roof is a big expense, so we picked asphalt shingles that would preserve the colour for years to come. Carefully consider the material and colour for your roof-it can have a big impact on your curb appeal. For the Memphis job, we installed Atlas shingles with Scotchgard ProtectorTM by 3M. In Memphis, it’s hot and humid, so we wanted to make sure to use a product that would stay true to colour, and keep the roof looking beautiful, without having those unattractive looking streaks.

 

While you are inspecting your roof, it may be time to replace your old, dented gutters. A simple alternative is to use a construction sealant (like SikaFlex) to seal those gutters.

 

4) Exercise Your Green Thumb for Curb Appeal

I’m not a landscaper but I know the importance of proper landscaping. Because landscaping affects a home in a bigger way that you’d think. Like my dad always says, what you do on the exterior of a house will affect its interior.

Landscaping is also about curb appeal, and that includes your lawn, gardens, bushes, or trees. You can keep it simple if you don’t have a green thumb (like me), or go extravagant. My first landscaping project was for Holmes Makes It Right, and it was a great learning experience for me.

When picking out plants, think about how much maintenance they will require. How often will they need to be watered and pruned? If you don’t have the time required to keep up with the maintenance tasks, think about getting some low maintenance greenery.

One thing I learned from my dad is to reduce our excessive reliance on water – stick to plants that are native to your area because they tend to require less upkeep and watering.

For more landscaping tips, check out these tips from a contractor.

REMEMBER

Simple Yard Maintenance Goes A Long Way. If you have trees and bushes in your yard, try to trim them and keep them becoming over grown. Not only for curb appeal, but this will also help to keep your gutters clear. The last thing you need is a clogged eavestrough.

 

3) Add Some Decor For Curb Appeal

I recently built a cooler with leftover construction materials. On the side of the cooler I built a planter. I know not everyone has the skills or resources to undertake a project like this, but think about adding some fun planters, window boxes, hanging baskets or a funky mailbox to your front yard for eye catching curb appeal.

CURB APPEAL TIP

Your lawn — cut it. Simple as that. Keep it neat and trim, and that’s free and simple to do!

 

2) Dress Up Your Front Door

A little paint goes a long way. I recommend picking a statement colour for your door to give the front of your house a unique, personalized look.

I have a hand-held sprayer that I’ve used to paint doors (and several other DIY projects around the house). It’s pretty easy to use. You can also have someone do this for you, if you could use the help. Pick a colour that you’ll love to look at everyday. For my friend Derek’s door, I picked a nice teal colour which I think goes really well with the yellow siding.

1) Replace Old Hardware

Your front door hardware and mailbox can speak volumes for your entrance. I love Schlage locks on my entrance doors like the Schlage Encode. Smart locks are very convenient and provide an extra layer of security, and they are also sleek and pretty. Replacing the hardware on your front door is easy to do on your own, and it really does impact your curb appeal. If installing new hardware is not in your budget, give your current lock set a nice clean.

CURB APPEAL TIP

Don’t forget about your mailbox. Simply replacing an old, haggard mailbox can improve your curb appeal. It’s always nice to add a few new upgrade!

I hope some of these simple, and a couple not so simple steps, can help you step up your home’s curb appeal! Be the standout in your neighbourhood, for all the right reasons!

 

And don’t forget to get a home inspection if you are buying or selling your home. It can save you a lot of money by helping you make an informed decision.

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