more photos and specific information about what you don't like will invite more suggestions and are you needing to refresh the house for sale or to improve for your own family?

Hi Rayma,

Have you considered replacing the driveway with pavers and crushed stone in between? To spruce up the exterior walls or the fence next to the driveway why don’t you consider an artificial wall garden. They are a low cost and low maintenance alternative and will really help to brighten up the space. In addition, adding some fresh mulch in the flowerbeds with some new plants or seedlings (which you can most likely find on sale at your local nursery) will help your landscape feel like new again. Check out our site for some inspiration: https://evergreenwalls.com.au/

Good luck with it!

Richard

I am with 3DA design and drafting. What this house needs is a new paint colour and some good landscaping ( low maintenance). The driveway can be painted a deeper colour and I would recommend that you look at Nutech paving paint - low VOC and comes in a range of colours.

The house needs a re coat of paint. You could continue with the white, However you need to loose the lime green. Without seeing the house in its street scape it is difficult to ascertain the final colour advise. Paint is cheap but the effects are instant.

A design consultant could be well worth it. Even if you just engage them to sketch design stage.

usethings

Hi there, I think your driveway would look good in a dark tone, something like a matt charcoal or a dark stone colour. Then I'd get some small hedge plants to line the edge all the way up the drive. Your driveway will be welcoming and elegant yet reasonably economical to achieveFiona

I would either go modern, or go all out Spanish as the front windows reflect. Everything right down to your landscaping and pots would have to match the Spanish Mission aesthetic, which there are many examples of in the US

Hi I have always enjoyed working on houses with "Character" like this.

I would suggest continuing the spanish look with arch or arches across the driveway from the front of the house.

It adds privacy and completes/ compliments the style.

nice idea cdvs regarding continuing the archways across the driveway, however this would be costly and I am not entirely convinced the money spent would give you much punch on 'improvement'.

New wrought iron gates would help to add to the 'spanish flavour' or beautifully constructed wooden gates with heavy ornate latch and hinge plates would add to the spanish feel.($$$$)... Even a wrought iron (arched)pegola beside the house with a grape vine growing on it would do the trick

This is house is begging for a new front garden ... think olives, think rosemary, think succulents, gravel, and a bench seat ....

Hello I would take a look at this article by Cherie Barber https://www.homestolove.com.au/3-awesome-home-exterior-makeovers-5541. She updated a house very similar to yours. Went with dark grey/blue for the house and white for the trims. Also built a little pergola for the entrance. If i were you I would repaint the front gate to also match the trims.

I think there are some great suggestions here. I would colour the driveway a dark shade of terracotta with concrete paint, paint the house a warmer shade of stone and the gate to match. Then dress it up with some landscaping. A landscaper can give you planting ideas reasonable cheaply and would be a worthwhile investment. Replace the white pavers that seam to lead nowhere and replace them with terracotta ones leading to a focal point such a statue or pond. Good luck.

I agree with painting the driveway and house façade, paint can do wonders. Remove the bush on the corner so you can see all the windows and I would suggest painting both the house and window frames a white / cream colour to tone down the Spanish look and give the house a more modern look - like my before and after images below of a house in my area, with a paint job and tiding up the garden the transformation was amazing! Also is your front door at the side? I would suggest not only replacing the gates with something more attractive, like oiled or painted timber gates, but also positioning them further back towards the garage so you can see more of the house.

I like the house colours , and even the driveway -- I like its colour and character .

All I'd do is paint the front fence and that gate in charcoal ( black fence stain would look charcoal if you waterblasted the wood then repainted ( fence stained ) it . I assume the stepping stiones are set into the lawn as vehicles park there at times ? It make the lanscaping more difficult , but probably all it needs IMO is one drawcard plant somewhere along the front -- a large cactus or a palm or similar . $300 would change the look and character .

It's all paint and landscaping for sure. i agree nothing wrong with driveway. save $ by just waterblasitng cleaning first (after dirty landscaping prep done tho !) then reassess. lots of local fb pages about so neighbours and family etc would be happy to help out with free cuttings of yukkas etc I am sure. I love stones for paths and can be really cheap ie even simple cheap crusher dust! Get a machine in to scrape lawns, dig holes etc. if $ allow. You will be surprised how little it will cost to totally transform with some grunt, paint and plants. good luck!