Whether you are a homeowner or you own a commercial building, you will need to make some updates to prepare your property for sale. In an increasingly competitive housing market, building owners are searching for ways to set themselves apart from other listings. One of the best ways to increase your chances of being noticed is to make updates to the outside of your home or commercial property. Obviously, you will need to make improvements on the inside of the building to bring it up to date. However, today I’m going to be talking about all of the different improvements that you can make to the exterior of your property in order to increase curb appeal. If you are preparing to sell your property and are having trouble finding a buyer, or are in need of some renovation inspiration—I’ve got some ideas for you! Let’s take a look at a few of the ways that you can increase your property’s curb appeal.
Exterior Renovation for a Commercial Building
Renovating a commercial property is no easy task—that’s why I’ve got some suggestions to help you get started
Replacing concrete & stone walkways is a great way to improve your property.
Commercial buildings are designed to serve several different purposes. Whether your property is used for retail, offices, shipping, or another industry, you’ll be able to benefit from these exterior improvements. Let’s take a look!
Exterior Lighting
If your commercial property has lackluster or out of date exterior lighting, then we highly recommend upgrading your exterior lighting. In just the last decade, lighting technology has come a long way. In the past, incandescent or fluorescent light bulbs were primarily used to light building exteriors. Now, new installations are nearly exclusively using LED lights. LED lights are far more powerful than other lighting types and allow for lighting controls via a DMX. A DMX light controller is a type of lighting control that allows commercial buildings to create impressive exterior lighting packages. A DMX controller can be used to change the color, temperature, and hue of the exterior lighting. DMX controllers can even be used to put in complex light shows! These capabilities are perfect for retail spaces or other businesses that want to change their lighting during major holidays.
Exterior lighting is not just for aesthetic purposes or curb appeal either, having proper exterior lighting is critical for employees and visitors to safely navigate your property at night.
Repair Damaged Concrete
Another easy to overlook area for improvement in a commercial property is your concrete. If your building is in an unpredictable climate—particularly one that gets harsh winters—then you will need to repair your concrete every few years. As snow and ice pile up and salt is used for snow removal, the pores of the concrete increase in size. Due to this, more water is able to seep into the concrete. As the water freezes within the concrete, it leads to growing cracks over time. Luckily, there are ways to prevent this! For example, you can have your concrete power washed seasonally to get rid of all of the built up salt from over the winter.
If the concrete surrounding your building has major cracks from years of harsh weather, you should definitely look into getting repairs. By making sure that you repair your concrete every year, you can prevent unsightly cracks from hurting your curb appeal.
Redo Your Entryway
Making a great first impression is important, especially when trying to impress potential buyers or new tenants. One of the best ways to guarantee you are making a good first impression is by redoing your entryway. You may want to add new design elements, improve the landscaping around the entrance, install new doors, and upgrade the lighting. Additionally, consider incorporating welcome signs strategically placed to enhance the overall ambiance.
By making these improvements, you can clearly communicate where the entrance to your property is located and make the best first impression possible. When people feel welcomed as they walk into your building, they will be more likely to want to live and work inside. Plus, you can impress potential buyers with your latest exterior renovation.
Exterior Renovation for a Private Home
You can upgrade your home with these easy changes—some you can even DIY!
Improvements to your landscaping can help sell your home.
If you are a homeowner looking for ways to update your home and increase curb appeal, there are a few different avenues you can take. Unlike renovating a commercial property, private homes can benefit from small renovations that draw attention to the home in an effort to increase interest. Some of these projects you can even complete by yourself—let’s take a look!
Landscaping
One of the easiest ways to improve your home’s curb appeal is by maintaining and improving your landscaping. If your landscaping is unkempt or is too simple, you should consider hiring a landscaping service for some help. Often, landscaping professionals have insider knowledge into the current trends and can get you set up for success. If you don’t want to worry about maintaining your yard’s landscaping, there is also the option of introducing “hard” landscaping. Hard landscaping refers to any elements of your landscaping that are not plants, this can include rock beds, benches, boulders, or even a fountain!
Bring Attention to the Front Door
Truly one of the easiest ways to improve your home exterior to maximize curb appeal is by changing the color of your front door. Over time, your front door will fade in color and disappear visually into the rest of the exterior of your home. In order to make the entrance to your home stand out, we recommend either repainting or staining your front door. If your front door is already painted, the easiest solution is to repaint either with a fresh coat of the same color or a completely different color. If your front door is wooden and unpainted, you should consider staining your front door a darker color.
Renovate Your Mailbox
Another relatively easy and low cost strategy to improve the curb appeal of your home is by renovating or replacing your mailbox. As we discussed before, the first impressions are everything when it comes to selling your home. One of the first things a potential buyer will notice is your mailbox. Depending on where your home is located and your personal preference, you might opt for a street mailbox or a wall mounted mailbox. These days, wall mounted mailboxes are gaining popularity. However, these are only available for homes that are positioned close to the street.
For street mailboxes, it is best to keep it simple. The days of elaborate mailbox setups are in the past and now potential homebuyers are looking for clean, simple lines. Minimalism is still a popular aesthetic for private homes and this extends to the mailboxes as well. You can go the extra mile by looking for a mailbox that has additional safety features like locking mechanisms.
Update Your Address Numbers
Your address numbers are another easy—yet effective—way to improve the curb appeal of your home. Old or missing address numbers not only make it more difficult to find your property, but they also make a bad first impression as a potential buyer approaches your home. Just by replacing these numbers, you can increase the value of your home. These numbers signal that there have been other renovations completed on the property and that the owners take extra care in the small details of the home. Just like with mailboxes, it is best to go for minimalism for your new address numbers. That means searching for sleek, sans-serif numbers to replace your previous address numbers.
We hope you found some inspiration in our suggestions. While these may not all apply to your home or your property, we hope you have inspiration to get started. Deciding to sell your property is a big decision that requires a lot of different considerations to get the best price. By making the improvements we’ve listed, you can make sure that your property is ready for sale and has features that can set it apart from other listings.
