How to get Good Curb Appeal

Have you ever driven up to a house for sale and drove away as soon as you saw the front yard or front of the house? That’s known as bad curb appeal. What you want to have—whether you’re selling your house or not—is good curb appeal. This says a lot about you and your house and makes the first impression people have of you when they arrive at your home. There’s no use spending a lot of money on decorations, furniture on the inside if the outside of your house puts people off.

It’s difficult to look at our own house in the same way that other people do, because when we become accustomed to the way something looks and functions, we can’t see its faults. When that matters is when you put your house on the market. That’s when it ceases to be a home and becomes a commodity you want to sell.

So how can you tell if you have good curb appeal?  Well, you could walk down the street until you can give it some distance between you and your house. Turn around and take a good look of the house and the surroundings. Note your first impressions, best features of the house and yard, the worst features of the house and yard, and how can you enhance them.

You might also want to take photos of the exterior or the house. It’s surprising what a photo can tell you. Make a list of the problem areas you discovered. Tackle clean up and repair chores first, then put some time into projects that make the grounds more attractive. Instead of adding landscaping, you may realize you need to remove or trim overgrown landscaping.

Don’t forget the side yard and back yard, too. Also, take a look at your home’s first impression in the evening. Buyers often drive by a house after work. Make sure you have attractive lighting—not only outside but inside the house. There’s nothing more welcoming at night than  an inside window lit by a lamp. For outside ambiance, string low voltage lighting along your driveway, sidewalks, and near important landscaping elements and/or add a decorative street lamp or an attractive light fixture to a front porch.

A Few Curb Appeal Tips

• Give the outside of your home a fresh coat of paint job
• Install a new front door  with leaded glass inserts or repaint or stain your current door
• Replace or polish doorknob hardware