A Guide to Giving an Older Home Curb Appeal
Our coastal home was built in the 90’s, so we’ve done a lot of renovating and updating over the last few years. While a lot of our projects have focused on interior design, we’ve wanted to refresh the exterior look a bit. We recently updated the look of the front doors, but are taking further steps to update more! Our front area had a lot of vegetation that was overgrown and blocked the front view. We also have a tall 2-story porch that didn’t feel quite as homey as we liked. So, we decided on the process to give our home more curb appeal and I am here to share those steps with you!
What is Curb Appeal?
Curb appeal is imperative for not only the value of your home but also helps to make sure that the view from the street is optimal. Curb appeal can include lawn, landscaping, front door, and porch areas. Updating your curb appeal can increase the value of your home in so many ways!
The Process for Improving Our Front Exterior
To update the curb appeal of our home, the first step was working with Yardzen to obtain renderings. Yardzen works similar to e-design where you submit inspiration photos, wish-list, your budget, etc. They then give you realistic renderings to help you get a plan in place for improving your home’s exterior.
I loved this process to get a visual of what the end result could be. Not only did we feel supported each step of the way, but we were also surprised at how many ideas we were given that we wouldn’t have considered if we tackled this project ourselves. It also helped us to establish some priorities of what we could accomplish first, given our budget. The main recommendations given were around paint, landscaping and adding some architectural elements, like pergolas.
Some of the changes that we are tackling first are updating the look of our front doors, painting the exterior trim white, swapping out planting beds, and changing lighting fixtures on our porch. We already did the front doors and love the way that they turned out! For the planting beds, we plan to remove large vegetation to create a warmer environment with more flowering plants.
Managing the Budget to Update Curb Appeal
Throughout the process, we have worked to stick to a budget that makes sense for a project this size. To help control the budget, we did DIY some of the tasks. We are painting some of the areas ourselves and leaving it to the pros for excessive ladder work or intricate details. When it comes to the greenery and plants, we plan to plant new shrubs on our own.
If you’re looking to update your curb appeal, sticking to a budget is crucial. It can be overwhelming to think about all the things you’re wanting and create a budget, which is why Yardzen was an easy decision to make. They helped us realize what our priorities were and what the best investments for us at the time are. Spacing out updates based on priority will absolutely help you stick to that budget!
Why We Recommend Yardzen
I can’t recommend enough going with Yardzen. The process was simple, and really, pretty fast. Honestly, the only thing that slowed down the process was deciding the inspiration photos to submit and ensuring all the photos of our home were submitted properly. It’s so worth it to get amazing renderings and ideas. I also love that they were able to help me get ideas that I wouldn’t have considered on my own. Yardzen will take your current exterior and your vision and help you implement a few or a lot of changes to help you reach those curb appeal goals. They really break it down so you know the materials, costs, plants, etc. to implement the plan, too!
If it’s not an option to work with a company like Yardzen, there are a few ways you can still update the look. Consider revamping your landscaping in the front, including adding lighting to any planting beds. Local nurseries are great for ideas of what to plant in your front. You can also pull inspiration photos and align paint colors and porch decor to your favorite inspo photos.
What is on your current wish list for updating the curb appeal of your home? Let me know in the comments below!
