10 Ways To Improve The Street Appeal Of Your Property Without Going Broke

Believe it or not but first impressions matter and improving the street appeal of your property can increase the value of your home significantly. There are some simple things you can do to increase the curbside appeal of your property without spending a great deal of money.

If your house fails to look inviting from the outside then many potential buyers won’t even bother giving the inside a look.

The old saying “don’t judge a book by its cover” isn’t applicable for your property. Your curbside appeal is your book cover and it will either draw potential buyers into your home or it will send them away before they even have a look.

1. Have a tidy and well watered lawn

My neighbour across the road from me has the most amazing lawn, as a result I think he has one of the best houses on the street. Come to think of it his house could be disgusting inside and need a lot of work, but the lawn outside is immaculate.

Dead grass, overgrown foot paths and pathways and high volumes of weeds speak volumes to buyers. Believe it or not but you can tell a lot about a property by the way the grass is kept.

Usually people who let their grass grown long and full of weeds don’t take great care of their home either. If your grass is poorly kept then investors will walk into your property expecting there to be work that needs doing, not expecting an immaculate house that they will pay big money for.

I remember walking past a house near me about 100 times. The public footpath was almost invisible because it was so overgrown with grass. The grass on the front lawn was often as high as my knees (or higher) and there had been no effort put in at all.

However, one day I walked past and the footpath was completely there. Someone had cut back all the grass and made the lawn look presentable. I thought maybe the property was selling BUT NO! The property NEXT DOOR was selling and the neighbours had mowed these people’s lawns for them to make a good impression about the neighbourhood. That is how important this is.

2. Get rid of the scraggly gardens and plant some flowers

If you have any plants that have clearly been there too long and are either overgrown, dying or just plain ugly then get rid of them. Rip those suckers out, get some fresh soil and mulch and plant some simple flowers.

Having minimal distractions and a bit of colour is way better than an accumulation of ugly semi-dead plants. It won’t send you broke either.

3. Give your property a lick of paint

The cheapest way to add thousands of dollars to the value of your property (and to boost the street appeal significantly) is with a lick of paint.

What colour should you choose? Just because you like bright blue doesn’t mean your house should be bright blue.

I find a sneaky way to find out what is in fashion is to look at the expensive new build houses in the area (or on the website) and see what colours they are being painted. If it is being built brand new they are using in fashion colours, so it is a good safe bet.

4. Give the roof some TLC

A rusty corrogated iron roof of a roof missing tiles tells a story to potential buyers. A story that says “this roof looks like it could have a hidden problem that might end up costing me $20,000 in repairs”.

Cast that story from purchasers minds by making minor improvements to your roof. If your roof is rusty then give it a fresh coat of white paint, if you are missing some tiles then invest in a couple of new ones, get up there and fix the holes.

5. Fix the fence

A fence is an important part to a home and should be treated with respect. Fix it up if it is broken and give it a fresh coat of paint if it needs it. Don’t leave it in a poor state because it will cost you money when it comes time to sell.

6. Make a path to the door

Do you have a path leading to the door? What will investors walk on when they are approaching your property for the first time.

People are buying a house, they are buying an experience. They call that experience ‘home’.

Make their initial experience of walking up to their home a great one, make it easy for them to get to the front door. A concrete path can be created cheaply and can give a great initial impact to potential buyers.

7. Get rid of any mess lying around

Nothing turns potential buyers off more than mess in the front yard. So put away the kids toys, move the trampoline into the back yard and put away the garden hose and take that broken down car to the tip.

8. Don’t forget the windows

Don’t go to all the effort of painting the house and leading the windows looking sorry for themselves with peeling paint and faded colours. Sand them down and give them a fresh coat of paint, it will liven up the place.

9. Make the driveway like a road to heaven

You buyers will end up driving on their driveway almost every single day, so do what you can to make it look better than respectable. If it has weeds then rip them up, if it has a pot hole fill it up. If it has gotten dirty over the years then get a gurney gun and give it a solid cleaning. Do everything you can to make it look brand new.

10. Remember the blue door in the Notting Hill movie?

People remember front doors. Remember people are buying the experience they call ‘home’ and the door is a big part of that experience. A nice door leads people to envision walking into a beautiful home they would love to live in, a old grotty door leads people to believe the house they are about to enter is dirty also.

Make your door stand out from the crowd. No don’t paint it blue, but make it so amazing people remember it.

Creating Street Appeal Has Never Been More Important

Creating street appeal is now even more important with the introduction of the web. People flick through properties online.

Each property listing with show one thumbnail picture of the property (usually the front), if it isn’t good enough people won’t even click on your property to find out more. They will simply scroll down past your listing and your property is forgotten forever.

I hope these 10 tips to improve the street appeal of your property have helped you realise some of the work you could do to increase the value of your home. So what are you waiting for? Get out there are get started!