Try this on for size.

Starting at the corner of the lawn where the porch meets the driveway, plant a semicircle of trees, say maybe 6 m/ 20' apart toward the road, so that, when your guests arrive, they enter through a gateway of trees, ever widening toward the house.

Part way along the path, add a small semicircular expansion to each side of the path, with a small table and chairs on one side and some containers of fragrant colorful plants on the other side. Welcome to my home! And a nice spot for you to have morning coffee with a neighbor, before starting the work of the day.

Mock it up, see what the family thinks - break the rules - go modern.

Hi Kyl12,

You've got great bones!!

Why not give a pro a go? :)

Street appeal can add tens of thousands to your home and all these are good ideas but you need to consider your budget, not over capitalizing (there's a formula for that) and the finish and colour selections of all of the above can make or break a scheme. I can do three schemes for your house and garden and you can choose the one you love and execute that on your own if you prefer.

Please see:

www.internationaldesign.vpweb.com.au

Warm regards

Liz!

We can take ideas from contemporary double storey homes to bring into 2015 and still looks smart in 2050!

Hey Kyl12 Hourly rate is the fairest for both you and me but worth the invesent in your equity and capital to add value instantly. More bang for buck when you go with a pro!

Warm Regards

Liz

Render the brick in a paler shade, maybe a warm grey or warm white, have faux window frames made to strengthen the appearance and plant an avenue of trees each side of the path and the driveway. You could use pencil pines if you like them and that structural effect can be striking.

Render definitely. Consider the colours to tie in with the roof tiles and surrounds . The front door is very dated - change it . The backdrop is eucalyptus. Plant a native garden and if you can afford it re do the pathway to match the style.

Hi,

Are you able to paint the bricks rather than rendering?

I would paint the roof tiles also to tie in with the colour you render your house. Definetly repaint the garage doors. New front door a good idea, maybe a bright colour? If the inside is now modern and the outside will be the same then I would recommend garden plantings in modern groups. If your house ends up grey tones then try 'red black and pink grasses' or maybe employ a landscape gardener to give you a few great ideas.

A covered entry roof that projects out from the existing roof would define the entry and give the opportunity to give the house some more character. As well as some of the other things that have been suggested such as rendering the walls, a new front door, landscaping would make a huge improvement.

I think the colour of the brick is quite nice as is, rendering can make houses look even more bland. But I would change the roof and garage door colours so that the house is not so brown, that in itself would modernise it. Also replace the verandah with a flat roof so that its not sloping down over the windows and doors, which will help to open the house up a bit, and you can make more of a feature of the windows and front door. An open trellis verandah rather than a full roof with vines or roses growing on it would be pretty too, and help to soften the brick look.

depending on your budget, i think get rid of planter box and replace with about 4 large decorative pots across verandah, rendering would look fantastic in a grey or cream colour either paint window frames or replace windows with new more modern windows, tinted preferred. replace front door either glass slider or double swinging glass doors. paint garage doors. as far as garden goes i would have a round water feature/fountain with a little paving around it hedging at both sides of path from street to verandah with feature center of path.

Wow thank you everyone. So many great ideas. I think if we start by landscaping & changing the colour of the windows, front doors & garage doors we'll see huge improvements. The verandah ideas have been great & I'll definitely discuss some of these suggestions with our builder. For now I think my husband & I will continue the rendering debate & now may also get some prices on the cladding idea. As a first time user I'm very grateful to you all for taking the time to comment on our street appeal dilemma! Thank you.

Don't paint or render the bricks. Painting the roof would be a start. A home opposite us had a similar brick and roof colour to yours. They had it spray painted black together with the garage doors and it looks like a new home. The posts were also painted black. I know it's a pain but the aluminium windows could be painted too. The screen doors need to be changed to something modern.

The garden needs plants, plants and more plants - Trees, flowering bushes, etc.

Thanks kooky_karen. That's along the lines of our current thinking. Think we'll start with some paint & plants then go from there.

I also would not paint or render the bricks - the ongoing maintenance is not worth it.
Your house is crying out for a splash of red. The cream paint work could be in bright red.
I don't like the central paved area with the hump in it. You do need to have your garden done - it would make an enormous difference to your home when done properly.
A bobcat could take of that whole hump, taking the slope away from the house; currently the slope is draining towards the home.
Where is north in the photo?
It looks like a well built home, so be sparing on making too many changes. Its the external grounds that are letting the home down, which is so often the case.