By now everyone's aware of the importance of curb appeal.

With competition strong for buyers' attention and most home searches beginning on the web, how the front of your home looks is more important than ever. It better stand above the comparable listings.

How do you make your home more inviting than the others without hiring a landscape designer, a house painter, and a decorator to spruce up the exterior?

You use these time-saving, labor-saving tips.

Work smarter

Reduce the amount of lawn you have by mulching wide around trees and shrubs.

If mildew is a problem on your home's siding, use a garden sprayer and a product called Wet and Forget to clean it without the hassle of a pressure washer.

Keep a broom handy near your front door but inside the house, and have a routine for giving the walls around the front door a sweeping. This is a good task to delegate to a member of the household. Include the walkway to your home if it collects leaves, papers, or other debris.



If you don’t have a green thumb or can't be bothered with the mess, buy ready-made planters and hanging baskets at a local nursery, garden center, or greenhouse. 

Reduce the decorative clutter in your front area. On a porch, instead of crowding it with multiple seats, planters, wreaths, flags baskets, and tables, opt for a bench and the simplest splash of colorful flowers (they don't have to be real).

What fabric you do have should be clean, and not faded. A good investment is colorful pillows from discount stores. They will make an old chair new again. An even quicker refresh is wrapping last year's pillows with bright, new fabric. Just wrap, don't sew.


If that old chair needs a facelift, spray it the same color is already is. A color change takes more paint and more time and a simple touchup with the spray can.

If your porch flooring is not all that appealing, cover it with an outdoor rug.

Have a system for maintaining flowers and plants. A routine for watering, deadheading, and fertilizing will simplify the chores and increase attractiveness.

Have a reliable and economical source for seasonal plants. Know when to pull the spent springtime pansies and bring in the summer annuals, and when to yank those for the mums of fall.

If your garage door needs a fresh coat of paint, well, painting an overhead garage door is easier than you think.



Studies have shown that people don’t buy based on facts or price alone, but that their feelings and emotions also play a large part in their spending decisions. Capture their hearts from the curb!

Your goal is to create an alluring and inviting space that entices home buyers to wonder, “Wow, if this is what the outside looks like, I can only imagine how fantastic the rest of the house must be.”

For more tips on making your home ready for buyers, download my homestaging eBooks. Click the link for a rundown of what you'll learn, and a one-click way to order. You can start your staging today!