Top 10 Items For Great Curb Appeal

At Legendary Custom Homes we take pride in making the exterior of our homes stand out from the rest.  We spend hours upon hours going over our exterior designs.  We believe that curb appeal is the #1 item to consider when purchasing a home, new or old.  Here is a top 10 list of items to consider when building a new home or remodeling the one you currently have!  Curb appeal is very important to us at Legendary Custom Homes because thousands of people will drive by your home and maybe a handful ever truly make it inside.  It doesn’t matter if you have the cutest kitchen or bathroom on the block if nobody can see it.  Well, it does matter and we love cute kitchens as well but you get the point.

1.  Front Door – The front door is a crucial part of your home’s curb appeal and ALWAYS ranks high on list of items with a HIGH rate of return for your money.  Whether it’s a beautiful wood or a brightly painted door to add that extra “pop”, your front door should be a high priority to ensure you have GREAT curb appeal.

FrontDoor

2.  Windows – Grids or no grids?  Grids in both sashes or just the upper ones?  Prairie style or mission style?  Windows seem like an easy part of the selection process, but windows can also make or break GREAT curb appeal.  We tend to add a lot of window grids and transoms to give your eye something else to take in as you are driving by.  Color of windows is also crucial.  Black windows are becoming increasingly more popular, but white is a classic and does add a great “wow” factor with the right combination for the style of your home.

Windows

3.  Gables and Dormers – Again, something we tend to add a lot of are gables.  I don’t think I have ever driven by a home and said “that house has too many gables”.  I have driven by and said that a dormer/gable might be too big or too small for a house, which is another item to watch out for.  Adding a gable or dormer to a home can really add that “extra” that people will love.  Even a faux/fake dormer can do the trick.

GablesDormers

4.  Stone – Adding stone accents is another item to add curb appeal. Whether it’s stone in your lanscaping or a retaining wall or actually on your house, ddding a natural element to your home like stone can make it feel more inviting and appealing.  We like adding dry creek beds to our landscaping as well to add that little extra detail.

Stone

5.  Landscaping – Crucial to any home’s curb appeal is landscaping.  You do NOT have to spend a ton of money landscaping in order to get a lot of bang for your buck.  Adding a dry creek bed in your mulch beds is a simple and inexpensive way to add another level of detail.  Adding stones and small retaining walls can also help.

Landscaping

6.  Lighting – Lighting in your landscaping or in your gables and dormers can also add that little extra that makes all the difference especially at night when it might be tougher to see all the other details that make your home beautiful from the curb.  By putting in lighting you are ensuring that your home looks great from the curb 24/7.(Look at that lanscaping as well.  Very simple and the home still looks great frrom the curb!)

Lighting

7.  Mix and Match Materials – Shakes, board and batten, siding, brick and stone.  Mixing and matching several different materials adds depth and contrast and makes your home completely unique.  (Look at that front door too!)

MixMatchMaterials

8.  Trim Details – Instead of just box trimming out your windows, what about adding some crown or have the header extend out past the side window trim.  These additional details are a minimal expense while you are doing the trim and it makes all the difference.  Gable brackets and little wood details make all the difference.

TrimDetails

9.  Details and Accessories – There are tons of items that you can add that will have people drooling as they drive by your home.  Flower boxes, shutters, shutter dogs (those brackets that hold the shutters open), shutter hinges, mailboxes, address plaques, etc.

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Photo credit:  www.highmark-exteriors.com

10.  Grass – Often not talked about or even consciously thought of while driving by.  Bright green grass and a well-manicured lawn makes a huge difference in standing out.  We add sod to the front of all houses for this very reason.  A little fertilizer and watering goes a long way!  And by god, DON’T cut it in circles, but a diagonal cut or vertical or horizontal stripes.  You don’t need a 5K lawn mower to make a huge impact.

Grass

Thanks for taking the time to read our recent blog!  Please feel free to post comments or questions below.  We love talking about homes so if you have the urge, pick up the phone and give us a call.