R- Guest Blogger: How to Enhance Your Curb Appeal for Under $100

 Guest Blogger #871,  Entry #2114, February 16, 2013

You may have begun to notice that the curb appeal and first impression your home provides is not exactly the warm and inviting one you’d prefer. With peeling paint and overgrown hedges, your house is the one on the block that all the neighborhood kids are afraid to come near. Every time your in-laws come over they can’t seem to stop themselves from mentioning the sorry state of your patchy lawn. Unfortunately, you don’t exactly have the cash on hand to hire a landscaper and a handy man to make over the front of your home. So what can you do to improve the curb appeal with an extremely limited budget? As a matter of fact, there are plenty of projects you can tackle on your own for minimal expense, and here are a few that will cost you less than a hundred dollars.

Image via: Romani Landscape Architecture

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Weeding and seeding.

When you fail to weed your plants regularly they become wild and overgrown, not to mention lousy with dead branches, stems, and vines. So your first order of business is to head to the hardware store for a few necessary gardening tools. You’ll certainly need clippers and you might want to get a heavy-duty spade to dig up any plants that are beyond salvation. A sturdy pair of gloves might be in order, as well. From there you can get some bulbs and seed packets to install a whole new bed of flowers on the cheap; they’ll spring up over the next year or two. And if you have money left over, think about getting a few mature blooms to liven up the landscaping post haste.

Filling in the lawn.

A patchy or dead lawn is most unattractive and it can really make your home look unloved (or worse, unlived-in). However, you don’t have to spend a lot of money on rolls of ready-made sod. With a rake you can clear out a lot of the dead grass, and a piece of rebar will help you to aerate the soil for maximum retention of water. Then all you need is a bag of grass seed (choose a hearty, drought-resistant variety to cut down on the cost of watering) and you’ll have a new lawn within months.

Paint the façade.

In case you didn’t know, you don’t have to paint your entire house. If you can match the color you can purchase just enough paint to slap a coat on the side of your house that faces the street. You’ll pay a little more for paint and primer in one, but the incredible coverage will ensure fewer coats, actually saving you money in the long run. So pick up a couple gallons of exterior paint and give your façade a facelift.

Image via: Lauren Olenius

Create a walkway.

If the only walkway to the front door leads in from the driveway (leaving guests to navigate around your car or walk across the lawn) consider buying a few concrete pavers to create a new path from the sidewalk to your stoop. This will not only make for a convenient upgrade for visitors, but it will also protect your lawn from the damage of frequent foot traffic.

Spruce up the entrance.

You might not have the money to call in TPO roofing to repair unsightly shingles, but there are plenty of things you can do with your limited budget. Consider painting the door a bright color that complements the hue of your home. If the mailbox is hanging by a hinge, replace it with a new model or simply hit it up with a fresh coat of spray paint and secure it back in place. You might also replace fading or cracked house numbers, toss your ratty, old doormat in favor of a new one, and add a couple of potted plants. And if all you have is a bare bulb for a porch light, think about springing for a fixture that matches the style of your house. Any of these items can be had for less than $100, and if you’re really thrifty you can get several.

For more landscaping ideas on Stagetecture, click here.