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.

definitely remove the "blob". update the a/c. widen steps. paint gutter and eaves. kill the awning. texture coat the brick walls. I would suggest removing the lawn (weed killer or cover it with weedmat and let it die is cheaper than having it dug up and removed), remove the slope by placing a low retaining wall and cutting and filling it, weed mat, underground sprinklers, strategically placed plants - I would suggest agaves, dragon tree, dracenas, a large feature cactus? etc..., 100 mm thick layer of a nonorganic mulch of your liking. reuse the existing rocks amongst the mulch (half bury them). costs are high to set up, then it is very low maintenance, not much watering required. you may wish to consider a water feature or even 3 d wall panels instead of texture coating (pretty similar costs).

Hi yecats_h, I saw some people suggested cladding and I think it would be a very nice touch and would bring your house features up. Plants and a lush lawn would be a plus as well. There are a few things you can do to maintain your lawn that won't cost you any money like aerating it or tinkering with your watering and make it drought resistant so it develop deeper roots (you can view some advice here). A fresh coat of paint, a new garage door, a more modern letter box and an exposed aggregate driveway and entrance if it hasn't been redone since the 90s would probably clean it up.

I actually really like the fence... it gives it a country australiana sort of look. I prefer it open to a fortress of corrugated iron. Look, there's not a lot can be done to change the house... it would look even more of a hash. It IS the style and age it IS and it has a charm of its own. As long as it's all tidy and in good repair that's great. It's a good solid house by the looks of it. Instead focus on landscaping the yard. Pull the eye forward to the fence line with some plantings on either side of the wire fence. I'd do a low floral border that sits belownthe top of the fence and then maybe something like agapanthas on the other side so you can appreciate them from the street. I'd favor natives like grevilleas and bottlebrush. large shrubs flowers in a large bed in front of the house. I'd maybe put a few standardised bottlebrushes on either side of the path for height. It would all bring the gaze forward to the lovely native garden which would attract birds. natives tend to have shades of grey in the foliage which would look good against the roofline which is more dominant anyway. https://www.abc.net.au/gardening/factsheets/cottage-garden-natives/12904492 https://www.australianplantsonline.com.au/blog/post/cottage-garden-with-natives