Seven Ways to Boost Your Home's Curb Appeal
Curb appeal is a phrase that until recently was mostly used by real estate agents. In the past few years, however, it has become mainstream and homeowners everywhere are looking for ways they can boost their own curb appeal. But why? It's simple really. Curb appeal can affect the value of a home by as much as 10%, and with the average price of a single-family home these days clocking in at nearly $400,000, 10% is nothing to sneeze at. In this post, we're going to look at new garage door installation and other ways you can boost your home’s curb appeal.
There are dozens and dozens of things you can do to make your home more attractive from the street. However, for the purposes of this post, we're going to go with the ones that produce the biggest bang for the buck, rather than things like new door handles. That said, let's begin.
#1: Outdoor lighting
LED lighting has revolutionized the lighting business and provided landscape designers and architects with countless options they never had before. Homeowners too. If you want to give your home an immediate aesthetic boost install LED strip lighting along the pathways, on the front porch, as highlights for various architectural elements and even shining up into trees and shrubs. Your home will be the talk of the neighborhood for all the right reasons.
#2: Have the driveway power washed
The driveway is a huge component of your Broomfield property and plays an important role in determining how your home is perceived from the street. If the driveway is dirty and oil-stained it is going to drag down the look of the entire house and take your home value with it into the trash can. Power washing the driveway is one of the most cost-effective ways to produce a significant bump in curb appeal and, by extension, home value.
#3: Have the house painted
If your house has not been painted in 10 years or more it will show. Whether or not there is large-scale flaking and peeling, the faded colors of the old paint job will be obvious to anyone who looks at the house. No other project will have such a profound effect on your home’s curb appeal than a professional top-to-bottom front-to-back paint job done by someone who really knows what they’re doing.
#4: Replace the front door
Of all the home improvement projects you can undertake replacing the front door provides the highest ROI. So, from a purely financial standpoint, it's a no-lose idea. But the front door is also the focal point of the front of the house. If it is in poor condition it's going to stick out like a sore thumb. If you replace your old door with an insulated steel door the value bump goes through the roof since that will make the home more attractive, more energy-efficient, and significantly safer all at once.
#5: Overhead door installation
The garage door is the single largest component of the home’s exterior. Even if the rest of the house is in fine shape and your landscaping is impeccable an old dilapidated garage door is going to be the only thing people see when they view your home from the street. Garage doors come in all sizes and styles these days, and you can even order a completely custom one that will really ramp up the curb appeal. A respected overhead door company in Parker like A Better Garage Door can provide all the information you need to find the perfect garage door for your home.
#6: Create a new walkway from the street to the front door
A well-conceived and executed walkway leading from the sidewalk to your front entryway will make your home feel more inviting and warm. But not any old walkway will do. Avoid concrete slabs or asphalt and instead invest in some quality stone or interlocking pavers. And don’t stop at the edge of the walkway. Make sure the landscaping on both sides complements it and helps draw the eye toward the entryway. A walkway like that can fundamentally alter the way your home is perceived by passersby.
#7: Add a tree or trees
It’s no secret that beautiful landscaping will catch the eye of potential buyers. But hiring a landscape architect and redoing your entire property can get really expensive. A more cost-effective way to go about enhancing your home’s landscaping is to plant a tree or trees. According to the Arbor Day Foundation planting large trees that are visible from the street (i.e. not hidden in the backyard) can increase the value of a home by as much as 15%. For maximum value-added plant maples, oaks or elm trees, provided the environment where you live will support them.
Call our garage door repair team today
Of the seven options we presented above, new garage door installation is perhaps the best overall value. The cost won’t send you to bankruptcy court, the impact a new overhead door installation will have on curb appeal will be immediate and long-lasting, and the door will help make your home safer and more energy-efficient. Get in touch with A Better Garage Door today and speak to one of our friendly and knowledgeable garage door sales reps. They’ll tell you everything you need to know about the process of ordering and installing your new overhead door.