As the old saying goes, first impressions last a lifetime.
While the phrase is often used with regards to social settings, it is applicable to your home as well.
Whether your current home is getting ready to hit the market or you plan to live there the rest of your life, your outdoor aesthetics are an important factor to your home’s overall curb appeal.
If you are wanting to boost your home’s street appeal to give it a more welcoming and inviting look/feel, several options exist that can help any homeowner achieve their goals.
How To Improve Your Home’s Curb Appeal
If the year 2020 has taught us anything, it is that our home can serve multiple purposes.
With travel down and time at home up, many homeowners are choosing to invest their money and time back into their home.
DIY projects are a great way to practice a new skill set, teach the value of hard work, and increase value in your home.
Outdoor home improvements are a great option for homeowners looking to boost curb appeal and home value.
From simple updates in landscaping to more advanced building/paint projects, investing in your curb appeal is a great way to increase not just the look, but value of your home.
Anyone from a first-time DIY-er to your home renovation expert can take these simple steps to help increase both the appeal and value of a home.
1. Lawn Care/Landscaping
Put on your gardening hat and gloves for this first suggestion.
A little effort can go a long way in increasing your homes curb appeal.
A well manicured lawn gives others the impression that you care about your space.
Pulling weeds, shaping shrubs, and pruning any low-hanging branches are a great first-step to take to give your space a fresh, clean look.
When you pull back overgrown areas it opens up your home to feel warm and inviting.
2. Replace Natural Grass with Artificial Grass
Pulling weeds, reseeding dead areas, and the overall maintenance required to keep a natural lawn looking vibrant all year isn’t for everyone.
For homeowners looking to take their weekends back while still maintaining their home’s overall curb appeal, artificial grass is the solution.
Synthetic grass has increased in popularity during the last decade due to the advances in technology that allow for the same look and feel of natural grass without all the hassle.
In more drought-prone areas where water can be scarce, artificial grass is the perfect solution to keep a lush green, natural-looking lawn without the waste of watering that a natural grass lawn requires.
In addition to improving curb appeal, artificial grass has a number of benefits including:
If you are ready to make the switch, check out how much artificial grass installation might cost by visiting our artificial grass cost calculator.
For help deciding which turf product is right for you, check out our complete buying guide to the best artificial grass.
You may also be interested in a custom artificial turf putting green design for your back or side yard.
The versatility of manufactured grass means that you’ll have more than a dozen residential artificial turf applications to consider for your home.
3. Paint the Front Door
Replacing your front door can be expensive.
The most cost-effective alternative to update your entry without emptying your bank account is a simple paint refresh.
Painted front doors have increased in popularity over the years and no color is off limits.
Painting your home’s front door is a great way to show off your personality while welcoming guests into an inviting space.
The best part of a front door refresh using paint is that its low-cost, high impact, and if you don’t like the color you chose, it’s easy to redo!
4. Refresh or Replace Garage Doors
Similar to the front door refresh is the garage door upgrade.
Garage door faces often take up proportionally a large amount of curb appeal real estate so ensuring that they look their best is a great way to boost your overall curb appeal.
A fresh coat of paint, new hardware, or even a completely new door is a great way to make a dramatic impact to curb appeal with a few minor updates.
5. Paint Exterior of House or the Trim
Painting the exterior of your home is a great way to make a big impact on your home’s overall curb appeal.
The paint on the exterior of a home makes a big difference visually and aesthetically, peeling paint, gives people a negative first impression.
If you have the ability to take on the task yourself, you can save a good amount on labor.
If you don’t have the time and/or funds to do your entire house, refreshing the trim around your home can be a low cost way to update your home’s exterior on a budget.
6. Plants, Shrubs, Trees or Flowers
Add some color and texture to your lawn with the addition of some new plants, shrubs and/or flowers.
Foliage is a great way to make a big impact on a budget.
Check with your local garden center to find out what types of plants thrive in your area and work with your existing landscaping to bring your space to life.
Flowers are also a great way to show off your personality while boosting your home’s overall curb appeal.
7. Install Window Boxes or Shutters
While not every home’s aesthetics are complimented by window boxes or shutters, those that can pull off the look can see a big boost in overall curb appeal with their addition.
Both projects have plenty of DIY plans available online, many of which are great for kids to participate in as well.
Window boxes can be complemented with an array of foliage that can provide color while shutters can give a home a vintage, classic look or have some fun and throw on some color to make your shutters pop.
Either project is a great way to bring some life to your home’s exterior.
8. Outdoor LIghts/Lighting
Outdoor lighting has come a long way in the last decade.
From motion censored to solar powered outdoor lights are a great way to set the mood/tone for your outdoor space.
While the look and feeling outdoor lighting provides is great, the additional benefits to upgrading your outdoor lighting is safety.
Ensuring your family and friends have well lit pathways to navigate is a great way to show that not only do you care about your loved one’s, but your space as well.
9. Outdoor Furniture
Bring the inside out with outdoor furniture!
Adding a simple bench, porch/bed swing, and/or a colorful outdoor rug is a great way to extend your living space while making your outdoor space inviting and friendly.
Several options exist to add more living space to your front yard/porch space from simple chairs to complex, yet fashionable swings, adding outdoor furniture is a great way to get more use out of your home while boosting overall curb appeal.
10. Upgrade Mailbox
One of the first things people see when arriving at a home is the mailbox.
While a necessary function of life, the mailbox can also make a big impact on your home’s curb appeal.
If your mailbox has seen better days, look at ways to give it a refresh.
Paint is one option while some homeowners have opted to move to brick.
Either way upgrading your mailbox is a great way to boost your home’s curb appeal.
11. Install New House #’s
Ever driven right by the house you were visiting?
Often, homeowners forget about the unique numerical values given to their homes importance.
Adding new house numbers to your home is a great way to improve your curb appeal while increasing visibility for potential visitors, deliveries, and your meal delivery person.
While simple steps exist to let your numbers shine through such as cutting bag trees or overgrown shrubs, you can also show off your personality with new numbers.
This is an inexpensive, fun DIY that can really bolster your home aesthetic.
12. Pressure Wash Your House, Driveway, and Hardscapes
Over time, dirt and grime can really build up on your home surfaces.
Driveways, walkways, and vinyl siding can be cleaned with ease using a power washer.
These can be rented from almost any Lowes or Home Depot.
Taking the time to wash your hardscape surfaces, including your home, is a great investment that will boost your home’s look and feel.
13. Replace Roof
While one of the most important factors into a home’s value is the age of a room, the look and age of a roof is often overlooked in terms of overall curb appeal.
While the upfront cost of a new roof can be daunting, the long-term investment is not only beneficial to your home’s overall appearance, but if you are planning to sell it can increase your overall resale value.
Roofs have come a long way over the years with various materials, colors, and styles for homeowners to choose from.
Final Thoughts on Improving Your Home’s Curb Appeal
We all want our homes to look and feel welcoming.
After all, at the end of a long day, you want to pull up to a space that brings your warmth and peace.
The curb appeal of your home is critical as it is the first impression you and your guests have of the home.
Several of these suggestions are low-cost, DIY friendly while others may require a professional and larger up-front investment.
Replacing your natural grass with artificial turf can not only boost your homes curb appeal, but is eco-friendly, environmentally conscious, and over time, cost-effective.
If you are interested in learning more about how Ideal Turf can help you love your lawn at first glance, give us a call at 800-204-4650 or visit our website and click “GET A QUOTE” today!
