(ARA) – As warmer weather approaches, it’s a great time to take a look out your windows and see what the view of your home is offering your neighbors. Are there any areas of your landscaping or home’s exterior that could use a bit of an upgrade to help boost your home’s curb appeal?
Whether you intend to live in your home for several years, or have plans to list your house on the real estate market soon, enhancing your home’s curb appeal can boost your enjoyment of the property and attract potential buyers.
Plenty of projects can improve the look of your home without requiring you to spend a fortune on remodeling, changing the siding or landscaping the entire front yard. Here are a few ideas you can try on your house:
* Upgrade the mailbox. Mailboxes over time can start to look dingy and rusted from being out in the elements. Building a permanent brick or stone structure to hold a mailbox can add appeal to your yard, and also help protect the metal mailbox from additional rusting.
* Add or update the lights by your front door or along the driveway. A beautiful glow in the evenings welcomes visitors (and buyers) to your home, at the same time providing you with additional security. Many wall, overhead, post and hanging lights styles are designed to work outdoors to add panache to your home and landscaping.
* Brighten up your landscaping and decorate your house with flowers and maybe even some new shrubbery. If you can, add window boxes of vine plants mixed in with colorful blooms. Decorate along the driveway or around the mailbox with small green bushes. If you have a walkway through the front yard, consider lining it with a small and attractive fence. Or add a few pots of pretty flowers next to the garage doors to splash around a little color.
* Replace your old, worn-out windows with new replacement windows. According to Remodeling magazine’s 2010-2011 Cost vs. Value report, installing low-maintenance replacement windows is ranked as one of the best home improvement projects for your money. They can help reduce energy bills and add instant appeal to your home. Plus, windows that meet ENERGY STAR performance criteria qualify for the 2011 tax credit, adding to the overall value of replacement windows.
Paul Delahunt, president of Renewal by Andersen, says of all the improvement projects a homeowner can start, window replacement is one that actually takes very little effort on the homeowner’s part, but can make your house more beautiful and energy efficient – two benefits you can enjoy for many years to come.
“Our experts help homeowners every step of the way,” says Delahunt. “By selecting a professional company that can handle their entire replacement project start-to-finish, homeowners can sit back, relax and let us do all the work.”
Delahunt adds that new windows can also help with those dreaded spring cleaning projects. Since Renewal by Andersen windows are made with Fibrex framing material, for example, they do not require upkeep such as ongoing scraping and painting. He suggests visiting renewalbyandersen.com to see how new, beautiful windows can elevate the look of your home.
Updating and enhancing the look of your house can do a lot for the pride you have in your home and for drawing prospective buyers if you decide to put your house on the market. Tackling some of these projects can go a long way in making your curb appeal stronger.