4 Cheap Ways to Improve the Exterior of your Home

If you are fixing up the exterior of your home, you probably have plenty of great ideas, but don’t have the money to make them fruition.  With some elbow grease and some money saving ideas you can improve the exterior of your home and its curb appeal.  From the front yard to the trim on your home, you can make your home look better than you imagined.

LANDSCAPING/LAWN: Before we get to the house, take a look at your yard around the home.  Determine if your lawn, landscaping, and flower bed areas are free of weeds, and debris? Do you have flower beds that you don’t want to refill with flowers, therefore they are overgrown now with weeds? Consider using ground cover that is self-propagating. Ivy and ferns tend to grow easily and all you have to do is keep it trimmed. If you do like flowering beds, consider planting flowers and shrubs that fit your maintenance level. Choose your plants by how much you will keep them looking fresh, not by how great they look in your neighbor’s yard! If you would prefer a smaller task, consider using potted plants at your front door, and replacing flowering beds with mulch, pine bark, eco friendly rubber mulch, or small rocks.  Mow and edge your lawn on a regular basis and pull weeds by hand.  You would be surprised how good your home looks when the grounds are maintained and neat.

SIDEWALK/DRIVEWAY : Sweep leaves, dirt, and debris off your walkways on a regular basis.  For stains on concrete, consider renting a power washer to remove stains and dirt that doesn’t remove with a regular high force spray garden hose. To add visual interest to walkways, use local rocks, stones, bricks and other hardscape in bedding areas to create unique and artistic exterior appeal. For weeds that are growing between crack lines, use weed control spray to keep sidewalks and walkways free of weed growth. In patio areas, grass plugs can be grown between flagstone stepping stones to give a more rustic and natural approach to your home. This idea allows for less maintenance on your part, while still keeping a purposeful aesthetic to your walkways.

PAINT: This is still the best way to get the most wow factor for your buck.  Take on your home exterior painting in phases to ease the amount of money out of your pocket.  Your front door and trim can be done first, followed by shutters, and accents around the exterior.  Wait to paint all vertical wall surfaces at one time.  Paint will fade with time, and you don’t want to have different shades of paint across the entire exterior of your home. Save up the money to accomplish this task at one time.  Painting fences, columns, and the concrete foundation of many older homes will improve the appeal instantly!

OUTDOOR DÉCOR: Do you have a front porch with chairs or benches? Consider buying new throw pillows, cushions, and a natural fiber area rug to make your porch more inviting and warm. Add whimsical décor touches like new house numbers, refresh the paint on the mailbox or add new door hardware to the front door.  Consider the season, and by using flowers, or a wreath they may be just the touch your exterior could use to breathe life back into it.

The exterior of your home doesn’t have to cost a lot of money to look great.  Be creative, use decor ideas which are native to your neighborhood and locality.  Try these tips, and let us know how great they worked to make your curb appeal great!