[This is a guest post.]

Making your house stand out is a delicate dance between making your home unique, yet still being able to fit in with the neighborhood. Being too flashy can negatively affect your home’s curb appeal, and it can lead to tension with your neighbors. Follow these three tips to increase your home’s curb appeal without going overboard.

Know Thy Neighborhood

“Know thyself” is a famous Ancient Greek aphorism on the importance of introspection. Likewise, you have to know thy neighborhood before you make any exterior home improvements. If it is hanging a picture, then that can be done by yourself, but more serious problems like a leaky roof, or installations to be made on/to it require the expertise of a professional like Hamilton Eavestrough and Siding Installers. Every neighborhood has a certain ambience that is created by both its houses and its people. A pastel color paint job may be common in a coastal neighborhood in Florida, but it would stick out horribly in a conservative northeastern suburb.

Take a walk around your neighborhood with a pen and notepad. Jot down any noteworthy observations. What is the most common color combination? What kind of landscaping do your neighbors have? Do most houses look like carbon copies of each other, or does each house have an individual look?

Use Landscaping to Interject Your Personality into Your Home

Let’s say your favorite color is a vibrant purple. Painting your home this vibrant purple would be too flashy next to the traditional white coats of your neighbor’s homes. Instead, you can implement your favorite color as an accent by planting purple flowers, such as verbenas or bellflowers.

If you want to go the landscaping route, then your first move should be to consult with someone who has horticultural experience. This could be anyone from a friend with a green thumb to a professional in the home and garden section of your local home improvement store. Whomever you choose, pick their brains for the best flowers to plant given the season and your available space. You can also do some research online to find flowers that match your color preference.

Optimize Your Home’s Individuality with Attention to the Little Things

There are a bunch of little things you can do that can make a big collective impact on your curb appeal. One such little tweak is lighting. Small solar lights for your flower bed or walkway are an inexpensive way to highlight your home when the sun goes down. If you have a front porch, then a porch light can be used to highlight potted or hanging plants. It can also be used to show off a door decoration, such as a wreath during autumn.

Another small tweak to give your property character is to get a unique mailbox. If you go this route, then you just have to make sure the mailbox you choose is up to code before you make the switch. Don’t forget about the wonders that can be worked by a fresh coat of paint. Give your porch, front door, and shutters a fresh coat of paint to restore your home’s vibrancy.

Now that you’re armed with these three home improvement tips, you are ready to take action. Visit an agency like Trust Greene and give these tips a try. You’ll be well on your way to a beautiful home with enticing curb appeal that both stands out and comfortably fits in with the neighborhood.