Architecture Question... What is this style? How would you boost curb appeal? (updated)

AprilH81 · April 2014

I can't tell what architectural style this is. The brick and plainness say Georgian, but I don't know enough about it to be sure.

Also, it is severely lacking curb appeal. They have removed the flower beds under the windows by the door an replaced it with a (poorly executed) brick patio. If this were your house what would you do to make it look better?

Porch? Patio? Shutters? Flower beds?

vsgal · April 2014

I would do flowers along the walkway and patio perimeter. Shutters, but the windows look a bit too close together, maybe just a trim?

WinstonsGirl · April 2014

Rip up the grassy area beside the garage and add shrubs and flowers, something lower so you can still see the front door. I'd put a tree in somewhere too if I could, though not that close to the house. Maybe in front of the patio, by the chairs, some more low shrubs/bushes and a tree on the far side of the house tied into that, if that makes sense.

ktjanesmom · April 2014

Paint that awful garage door. Maybe replace the storm door. That one looks cheap to me. Something with all glass maybe. I would also change the color of the front door.

lyndausvi · April 2014

I would add shutters to the window. Maybe even a covered porch.

aadd some flowers. Maybe change the color of the front door and/or the entrance color altogether. Over the garage needs to be redone. Maybe adding a wrought iron sculpture?

lyndausvi · April 2014

Garage door should be repainted also.

emmyg65 · April 2014

Landscaping. Flowers and bushes by the front door, around the patio, and along the walk. A small ornamental tree like a dogwood, weeping cherry, or Japanese maple in the front yard. Shutters, but as PP said, the windows might be too close together.

buttercup1958 · April 2014

I would add shutters to the windows and add a bench where the chairs are. I think you should have pots with flowers on the door. I think they should be more vibrant, and I second painting the garage door and the front door. I think you should get rid of the giant bush and plant a tree. maybe put river rocks around the tree too. You could also replace the lights outside too and get new ones. You could also update the walk way as well with new materials. I watch hgtv too much haha.

AprilH81 · April 2014

I thought about a covered porch, but the main floor gets such wonderful light that I would hate to have it blocked by the roof line.

We are considering shutters but we may have to settle for trim because of how close the windows are, several other homes in the neighborhood have trim and it really helps.

Thanks for the ideas, most of them were similar to what I was thinking, but it seems like such a big project and we are scared of doing the "wrong" thing.

BTW, this is the house we are most likely going to be putting an offer in one tomorrow or Tuesday. We are waiting for the owner to get back to us on some questions we have.

chibiyui · April 2014

I'd rip up that brick patio and put in a flower bed. Brick is pretty but good god that house needs color. You could still have a bench in the flower bed if you want the option of out front seating.

I also like a PP's suggestion of an ornamental tree.

AprilH81 · April 2014

chibiyui said:

I'd rip up that brick patio and put in a flower bed. Brick is pretty but good god that house needs color. You could still have a bench in the flower bed if you want the option of out front seating.

I also like a PP's suggestion of an ornamental tree.

You can't see it in the picture, but there is a small planting area in the front yard (closer to the sidewalk) that has a nice sized tree and bushes. So it isn't completely bare, but right around the house looks very stark and unfinished.

This is a very nice neighborhood with a quality builder and homes don't come up for sale very often. This house was used as a rental for awhile so that is part of what happened to the outside. The renters didn't maintain the property... The owner is now doing work on it (mostly inside) to get it back up to snuff.

JoanE2012 · April 2014

If you can't do shutters, definitely trim. It looks "undressed" without anything around the windows.

I'd rip out the patio in the front and put a couple of low lying plants/bushes....don't block those windows. Then, put something a little taller between the door and window. We have a bush that's pruned into a spiral pattern so it looks more interesting than a typical bush.

I'd also add another tree to the property.....we have a beautiful one that we just found out (we moved last summer) blooms pink in the spring....still not sure the actual type but it's gorgeous.

Looking at the picture, what is that bushy thing to the right of the house? Might even consider getting rid of that and getting something more manicured.

I'd get a new storm door (without that cross bar in the front) and paint the front door (red door and red brick seems too much). I'd also paint the garage door. What is that over the garage? Is that siding??

The most important thing to remember if you get this house.....it doesn't all need to be done right away. Don't get overwhelmed.

Blergbot · April 2014

Def shutters and a tree or two.

Ven&Radio · April 2014

The first thing I would do is replace the two patches of siding with brick. I love brick houses, but I think it looks incredibly tacky when mixed with siding. A nice tree and maybe a lamppost would look nice in the front. I think I'd also lose the patio. The front yard is an awkward spot for a patio.

CMGragain · April 2014

It isn't Georgian. Georgian homes don't have gabled roof lines, and they are, at least outwardly, symmetrical. Windows aren't divided into smaller panes, either. Contemporary? I agree that shutters would help.

FiancB · April 2014

I must be overly surrounded by really run down crappy houses because I think it's adorable and perfect lol. I do agree it needs some landscaping, and shutters would look cute. I hope the offer goes well!

AprilH81 · April 2014

scribe95 said:

Is it Colonial?

Doesn't colonial usually have columns or is that Greek Revival (or both)?

B0320 · April 2014

Its a contemporary style (I call them the 90's-2000 cookie cutters because they're so common where I am).

As far as curb appeal goes...
-Paint the garage door a crisp white, it will make the rest of the trim pop against the brick
- Replace the storm door with a plain glass one
- Paint the interior door, navy always look wonderful on brick houses with white trim
- Trim the windows, preferably in white to match the rest of the trim
- Landscape around the path with flowers and low-growing shrubs
- Add a decorative tree (dogwood, magnolia, cherry blossom) with a larger shrub and some flowers towards the front of the yard, if you can trim the area in brick that matches the house it will really bring it together and making mowing easier

AprilH81 · April 2014

B0320 said:

Its a contemporary style (I call them the 90's-2000 cookie cutters because they're so common where I am).

As far as curb appeal goes...
-Paint the garage door a crisp white, it will make the rest of the trim pop against the brick
- Replace the storm door with a plain glass one
- Paint the interior door, navy always look wonderful on brick houses with white trim
- Trim the windows, preferably in white to match the rest of the trim
- Landscape around the path with flowers and low-growing shrubs
- Add a decorative tree (dogwood, magnolia, cherry blossom) with a larger shrub and some flowers towards the front of the yard, if you can trim the area in brick that matches the house it will really bring it together and making mowing easier

We thought about painting the garage white, but I was worried it would be too stark and make the garage a focal point which we would like to avoid.

CMGragain · April 2014

"Colonial" is not an architectural style. Usually it refers to a two story house.
OP, I would suggest that you drive around the neighborhood. There will be other houses identical in style to yours. You can see what other people have done that worked, or didn't work for that style of house. I do like it!

AprilH81 · April 2014

UPDATE: We got the house! We are scheduling the inspection for as soon as possible (which unfortunately looks like it will be next week) and keeping our fingers crossed that it comes back fairly clean so we can move forward.

AprilH81 · July 2014

AprilH81 said:

UPDATE: We got the house! We are scheduling the inspection for as soon as possible (which unfortunately looks like it will be next week) and keeping our fingers crossed that it comes back fairly clean so we can move forward.

We repainted the front door and spray painted the brass hardware today. It looks much better!!! The only thing we didn't paint was the actual door lock, we replaced the whole thing when we moved in.

We will be spray painting the light fixtures at some point. I would love to replace them but they aren't cheap and the oil rubbed bronze spray paint does a pretty good job.

Inkdancer · July 2014

The door paint helps a lot!

The portion of siding over the garage looks strange to me. The neutral color against the brick is very boring. I would probably want to cover that with brick or paint it in something a little brighter so it doesn't look so dingy.

AprilH81 · July 2014

Inkdancer said:

The door paint helps a lot!

The portion of siding over the garage looks strange to me. The neutral color against the brick is very boring. I would probably want to cover that with brick or paint it in something a little brighter so it doesn't look so dingy.

That is another project we are trying to figure out what we want... I think we want to replace the wood with vinyl siding (lower maintenance) but we aren't sure what color. I think the garage door will eventually get painted white.

Inkdancer · July 2014

AprilH81 said:

Inkdancer said:

The door paint helps a lot!

The portion of siding over the garage looks strange to me. The neutral color against the brick is very boring. I would probably want to cover that with brick or paint it in something a little brighter so it doesn't look so dingy.

That is another project we are trying to figure out what we want... I think we want to replace the wood with vinyl siding (lower maintenance) but we aren't sure what color. I think the garage door will eventually get painted white.

Yeah, that seems like a good decision. Only I'd probably do the entire portion where the garage door is-- just having that panel between two strips of brick looks strange to me.

theartistformerlyknownas · July 2014

I would definitely add just a little cover to the front stoop, not a whole covered porch shading the windows. And add some height to the landscaping to balance the garage.

OnceUponAVine · July 2014

I'm not sure what you're budget is but you could also look at replacing the garage door with something with a little more character like this:

AprilH81 · July 2014

OnceUponAVine said:

I'm not sure what you're budget is but you could also look at replacing the garage door with something with a little more character like this:

That will be a long term project. Right now we are in the final planning stages for our kitchen remodel and doing DIY projects as we have the energy. There is a lot of low cost projects we have on the list (painting, spray painting the brass door knobs on the interior doors, re-staining the back deck pulling weeds, etc.) that we are trying to do now while our funds are tied up in the kitchen. I'm hoping this fall we can do some more work on the exterior curb appeal. I want to hire a landscape architect to draw up plans for us so that we can do things in stages and still have a master plan to work from.

pinkshorts27 · July 2014

I love that color on your new front door! Yay for getting the house!

ab6704a · July 2014

@AprilH81 - Sorry if you already mentioned it in a previous post and I missed it but would you mind sharing the brand and color of the blue paint you used? I've been looking for something similar to do our shutters and front door. Thanks!

Senecaf · July 2014

Nice updates! Our front door is that color too

Architecture Question... What is this style? How would you boost curb appeal? (updated)

Re: Architecture Question... What is this style? How would you boost curb appeal? (updated)

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