Before you can get people into the door of your house for a showing, you need to catch their eye with an exceptional exterior. The outside image of your house is just as important as the interior, which means you’ll need to put careful thought into various design elements that will make your property pop. With a few easy upgrades like board and batten shutters and steel plank siding, your home will be market-ready in no time.
Here are a few fast and effective ways to stage and showcase your home’s exterior to find the perfect buyer.
1. Freshen Up the Windows with Board and Batten Shutters
One of the first things prospective buyers will notice is the condition of your windows. If they’re dirty, cracked, or broken, potential buyers might be skeptical of maintenance around other parts of the house as well. On top of cleaning your windows, consider giving them a facelift with board and batten shutters.
It’s the little details that can have the biggest impact when it comes to make or break decisions with homebuyers. Board and batten shutters can increase the aesthetic appeal of your home and add to its value. When the right materials and colors have been chosen, shutters can be a lovely accent that help to tie together all of the elements and materials used to construct your house.
2. Consider a New Garage Door
When prospective home buyers are looking for a new place to live, they want to imagine that their life will be easier and better in their new house. If you have a manual garage door or one that’s broken, now is the time to check out garage door installation costs.
Automatic garage doors are an often overlooked luxury, but their functionality is unbeatable. In addition to making it easy to access your house, new garage doors can offer improved insulation, energy efficiency, and safety from potential break-ins. Newer garage doors come in a variety of styles and colors to mSatch your home’s unique appearance.
3. Go Bold with Steel Plank Siding
Siding can become the bane of any homeowner in the event of hail or other types of damage. While a quick powerwash can typically hose down years of dirt and grime, you’ll need to put in significantly more time, effort, and money to repair damaged siding. Instead, opt for sturdy, durable materials like steel plank siding that will look stylish and timeless.
Steel plank siding is a low-maintenance option for coloring and protecting your home as well as boosting its curb appeal. The materials are long-lasting, able to withstand extreme temperatures, harsh weather, and fires. On top of being eco-friendly, steel plank siding is also growing in popularity in the industrial-style movement, which could give your modern a sleek, modern upgrade.
4. Upgrade to Vinyl or Aluminum Windows
In the past, most homes were constructed with wooden windows. While wood windows add charm, they are also incredibly inefficient as insulators and tend to decay more quickly than other materials. Luckily, homeowners today have plenty of options when it comes to installing beautiful, energy-efficient windows.
If you’re looking to upgrade, vinyl or aluminum windows are both less expensive than wood and more durable. Vinyl comes in different colors while aluminum can easily be repainted, depending on your preferences. Additionally, if you’re looking to keep your energy bill low, both vinyl and aluminum windows help to trap heat in the winter and keep the air cool in the summer, meaning the electricity bill can stay low.
5. When Selling, Use a Drone to Get the Best Pictures
While curb shots of your home are nice, they don’t necessarily give potential buyers the whole picture. With a birds-eye view, either from the roof or above, you can give buyers a complete 360-degree view of the property, highlighting important features that might otherwise go unnoticed. However, be careful to avoid highlighting unwanted features such as clogged roof gutters or unkempt backyards. Be sure to take care of these items before beginning filming.
Drone videos and photos can also help you tell a story that makes it easy for prospective homeowners to imagine living on the property. For example, you could take drone footage from the driveway, moving up to the front of the house, and then around the back to show what it would be like to come home and go to a relaxing backyard.
Making the Most of Your Home’s Exterior
Whether you’re selling now, or selling your home in the future, consider your house from a top-down perspective, taking into account every detail of the exterior as well as the interior. Drones can help you capture the features that make your house unique, like steel plank siding and board and batten shutters. By implementing a few of these upgrades, you can stage the exterior of your house, showcase its beauty, and get buyers in no time.
Max Shafer is a contributor to the Innovative Building Materials blog. He is a content writer for the construction and home improvement industries with an interest in landscaping, outdoor remodeling, and interior design. Max is focused on educating homeowners, contractors, and architects on innovative materials and methods of construction that increase property value, improve sustainability, and create a warm and welcoming ambiance.
