Tips for Exterior Design Home Improvements
If you want to add value to your home there are many exterior design home improvements that can get the job done. Often, homeowners focus heavily on the interior design improvements, understandably so, because it improves how you live in your home, but the value of exterior design home improvements should not be overlooked.
Putting a little effort into exterior design home improvements will up your home’s curb appeal, and help you to have a house you love coming home to. Spruce up your exterior and enjoy unexpected benefits.
Let’s Start At The Top
Roofing contractors are a great resource when it comes to improving the exterior of your home from top to bottom. A reliable roofing system protects your investment and ensures that the exterior of your home looks as good as the interior.
Before you get started on any exterior design home improvements contract for roof repair services from a trusted roofing expert. If you are not sure if you need roof repairs, have a roofing company come in an do a roof inspection.
Many homeowners decide to start their exterior design home improvements with brand new metal roofing. Metal roofing has become very popular over the last decade. It delivers unmatched durability, it looks great and gives you the worry-free property protection that you can count on for years to come.
If a brand new roof is not in the budget, you can spruce up your old roof. A roofing contracting company can make any repairs, and get your roof in like-new condition. Your roof system is such an important element of your home, it is always a worthy investment.
Once you have your roof and gutters in order, there are a couple of other things that you may want to consider before you get started on the exterior home improvements. If you are a DIY aficionado, make sure all your tools are in good condition before you get started on your projects. Instead of getting stuck buying new tools, consider tool repairs to get your tools in tip-top shape.
You also may want to consider the value of connecting with a company that specializes in personal property appraisals. Getting an appraisal for your home can benefit you in two ways. It will help to direct your exterior home improvements, and it can give you the documentation that you need to refinance your home, or set up an equity line of credit with your bank.
Being able to go to a lender with information about the value of your property already in hand, can help you to secure the financing that you need to pay for your exterior design home improvements at a reasonable rate.
The Best Exterior Places to Put Your Money
Great exterior home design improvements deliver a combination of benefits that should include:
- Aesthetic improvements
- Functional improvements
- Comfort improvements
The best projects will improve how you live in your home, how your home looks, and the function of your exterior elements. For example, painting your clapboard home will help to refresh the look of your home, it will also help to protect your home, and can extend the life of the exterior of your home.
Of course, you do want to be sure to make a list of priorities. The list of priorities should start with addressing functional issues first. For example, faulty garage doors should be replaced before you break out the paintbrush to paint the exterior of your home. New steel garage door installation will ensure that your doors are highly functional, and look great.
Taking the time to make a list of the things that are “musts” is important not only for budgeting purposes but also, as a way to ensure that you are addressing problems that can reduce the value of your home.
Consider the projects that improve the function of your home and put them first on the list including:
- Porch and deck repairs
- Residential garage door installations
- Driveway repairs like resurfacing
- Fencing repair or replacement
Exterior design home improvements should focus on how to make your outdoor areas more functional first, then you can get on to the exterior design home improvements that improve the look of your exterior.
Many of the exterior improvements can improve how you live in your home as well. For example, replacing old patio doors with new ones can improve both the exterior of your home and the interior of your home.
The right projects will improve how you live in your home, and how you feel about your home. In other words, choose which projects you invest in wisely, especially when it comes to big-dollar projects. While it is important that you have the exterior that makes you feel good about your home, keep in mind it is equally important that you ensure you will get the ROI that you want from the investment.
Landscaping The Exterior of Your Home
One of the most popular trends in exterior design home improvements has to be landscaping, but not just adding flowers, bushes, and trees. Creating outdoor living areas for your home, can add immediate value to your home, and improve the quality of life in your home.
Almost all healthy living tips lists recommend getting outdoor more. When you love your outdoor spaces, it makes it easy to get up off the couch and enjoy your outdoor spaces more. It can be easy to create great outdoor spaces regardless of how much space you have.
Consider these weekend projects as easy to do exterior design home improvements to improve your outdoor living areas:
- Create a patio area using patio blocks
- Create raised garden beds and fill them with flowers, or better yet with vegetables
- Build a brick fire pit
Most landscaping projects can be done as a DIY project over the course of a weekend. If you can enlist the help of family and friends, the project can be done even faster. You do not need special skills to create a complete transformation in your backyard.
Plants, trees, and shrubs are typically very affordable and can easily dress up your outdoor areas. Learn about native plants in your area to help keep maintenance down. If you find that landscaping is not your foray, consider hiring a landscaping contractor for designing and doing the initial planting.
Simple things like adding mulch to an area can be a real game-changer for the aesthetic of any property. If dragging bags of mulch and spreading is not your idea of a good time, hire a company that has bark blowers which can get the mulch where it needs to be in record time.
Landscaping, and creating great outdoor spaces will expand your living space and potentially add about a 14% value increase to your home. Of course, you also get to enjoy your home more. You do not have to build your dream outdoor kitchen to really start enjoying your outdoor spaces. All you really need to do is get creative and roll up your sleeves.
Custom Exterior Design Home Improvements
In some cases your exterior design home improvements will need to be left up to the experts. For example, if you are lucky enough to live on a lake, river, or an ocean inlet, one of the best exterior design home improvements will be to connect with custom dock builders.
A custom dock that leads out into the body of water that your home is situated on will up the value of your property, and of course, help you to enjoy your property much more. After all, you did buy the property to enjoy the water. A custom dock can deliver easy access to the water, a great place to gather and expand your outdoor living space. You can make the most of your property by investing in a custom dock.
Of course waterfront properties are not the only unique properties that can use some custom support. If you live on wooded acreage, your exterior home design improvements can include things like tree care, removing dead trees, and more.
Consider building paths that wind through your property and encourage family and friends to get outdoors and take a walk through your wooded lot. Exterior design home improvements do not have to be over the top or even expensive to make a world of difference in your exterior spaces.
You can highlight the uniqueness of your property with some well thought out exterior improvements. A beautiful gazebo in a favorite spot in the yard can be perfect for your urban yard. Pallet benches, pallet seating areas, surrounding a fire pit in a small yard can add the perfect amount of value to your exterior. A winding path through your acreage that ends at a peaceful spot to sit among the flowers is also an option. Choose the exterior home design upgrades that will highlight your property’s unique qualities.
The Easy Stuff
Not everything is hard when it comes to exterior design home improvements. Some very simple and easy to do projects can really improve the exterior of your home. Painting your exterior, the trim, and windows can be an instant upgrade.
Adding an overhang area to your front entranceway when you do not have a porch can also add a great deal of value to your exterior and improve the aesthetic. Simple changes can be very affordable and be a big change for your exterior.
While painting the exterior can be a lot of work, once it is done you do not have to worry about doing it again for about 5-10 years. Of course, you can always hire a professional to do the job for you. Choosing the right color paint can make your home look larger, and improve the overall look.
Of course, in all cases, painting the exterior of your home is not possible. For example, if you have vinyl siding, painting it is not an option, but you can renew your exterior with a pressure washer. Pressure washing can get rid of all the old dirt and build up and restore your property to like-new condition.
Pressure washing your decks, porches, sidewalks, and more can help you to easily restore your exterior spaces. You can rent a pressure washer from your local home improvement store or hardware store.
Cleaning, and painting is not the only easy way to upgrade your exterior. Consider adding a deck, or even adding a porch area to the front of your home. These are not difficult changes to make. With some materials, the right tools, and a little effort you can easily transform your home with exterior design home improvements.
Saving Money
Like all home improvements it is important that you save when you can. One way you can save on exterior design home improvements is by learning how to do it yourself. If you have never invested sweat equity into your home, there is no better time than right now to get started.
Even if you have never picked up a hammer in your life, there are plenty of ways to learn the skillset that you need to do many exterior home improvements. For example, there are online resources that will talk you through the entire project that you have planned.
If you are more of a hands-on learner, many home improvement big-box discount stores hold workshops to help you learn the skillset that you need. Tapping into the resources that are available to help you learn the skillset that you need is a great way to build confidence and take on many of the home improvement projects on your own. You can save some money by taking on projects as a DIY project.
Another great way to save money, is to repurpose items that you already have to improve your exterior spaces. There are plenty of ideas online that you can use to improve your exterior using materials that you already have on hand.
Evaluate the materials you already have to see where you can put them to use in your exterior spaces. You may be very surprised by the changes that you can make with the stuff you already have. Put the work in and get all the benefits of exterior design home improvements.
More Topics: 1950s brick house, 1950s farmhouse exterior, 1950s house exterior, 1950s house front door, 1960 bungalow exterior makeover, 1960s house exterior, 1970 brick ranch homes, 1970s ranch exterior remodel, 1980’s home exterior makeover, 1980s house exterior makeover, 2 story white house with black shutters, 50s house exterior makeover, 70’s house exterior remodel, add curb appeal to a ranch home, adding a patio to a house, adding a patio to your house, adding craftsman details to a ranch home, adding shutters before and after, backyard building plans, backyard patio renovations, brick exterior renovation.