Home maintenance can be daunting.
For most homeowners, it’s an endeavor taken care of begrudgingly — a necessary evil to prevent the inevitable leak or rot from happening. But what if…
The most effective maintenance projects actually protected your home and improved its curb appeal.
Instead of being separate initiatives, home maintenance and home design actually compliment each other beautifully.
Below are the most common home maintenance projects that you can use to protect your home and upgrade its appearance from the street.
Table of Contents
- Roof Maintenance / Material Upgrades
- Gutters That Don’t Look Like Gutters
- Exterior Painting (Accentuate the Positive)
- Landscaping and Outdoor Living Upgrades
- Windows and Entry Doors
Roof Maintenance / Material Upgrades
Your roof is the most important structure of your home.
And yet it’s often the most neglected… until a leak springs up. Roofs typically last anywhere from 20-50 years depending on materials and maintenance schedules. But few homeowners know:
Bad attic ventilation can decrease the lifespan of a roof by up to 10 years. That’s 10 fewer years of protection over your family and your home’s belongings. Not to mention 10 fewer years before you shell out thousands for a roof replacement.
Roof lifespan starts with preventative maintenance instead of emergency repairs. Partnering with a reliable Roofing Contractor in Olympia to check your ventilation, flashing, and shingles regularly can prevent most problems before they snowball into expensive repairs.
That’s where design can play a role in your roof maintenance:
Roof materials have come a long way from basic shingles. Today’s architectural shingles, metal roofs, and composite tile all offer aesthetic variety that can change the entire look of your home. When performed with design in mind, a roofing inspection or repair is also the perfect chance to upgrade your roof material.
- Architectural shingles create dimension and texture on your roofline
- Metal roofing is sleek, modern, and lasts 40-70 years
- Composite tiles give the look of slate or wood shake without maintenance
A win-win.
Gutters That Don’t Look Like Gutters
Ah, gutters. The unsung heroes of exterior home maintenance.
You know they’re doing their job when you don’t give them a second thought. But when matched with the right exterior paint colors and properly maintained — gutters can tie together your entire home’s appearance.
Here’s how you make your gutters look great:
- Cleaning your gutters twice a year (spring/fall)
- Clearing out downspouts of blockages/debris
- Inspecting seams and hangers to ensure they’re not pulling away
- Installing gutter guards to minimize debris buildup
From a curb appeal perspective, aluminum gutters in the same color as your home’s exterior create a seamless look. Copper half-round gutters can also create a stunning, high-end detail on classic homes.
Function and fashion, working in perfect harmony.
Exterior Painting (Accentuate the Positive)
Paint makes a huge difference.
Give your home a fresh coat of paint and it’ll look brand new. But paint is also one of the most important home maintenance projects on this list. A freshly painted home creates a moisture barrier on timber elements, repels rainwater, and prevents UV damage to siding. Letting paint peel or crack can cause…
You guessed it. Rot, decay, and expensive structural damage down the road.
Most home design experts suggest soft white or warm white paint colors when listing a home. But whether you’re listing or planning to stay, any bright, crisp paint color makes your home feel cleaner and more modern.
Maintenance tips for painting your home exterior:
- Pressure washing home before painting
- Scraping / priming all areas with visible peeling/flaking paint
- Inspect window and door trim for rot before painting over it
- Make sure you’re using exterior-grade paint made for your climate
A little paint can go a long way towards maintaining and improving your home’s exterior.
Landscaping and Outdoor Living Upgrades
Landscaping is home maintenance meets home design at its finest.
Keeping your yard healthy protects your home from the inside out. Branches fall and damage roofs. Bad grading can direct water towards foundations. Dense shrubbery can hold water against home exteriors for months on end.
Correcting these problems is home maintenance. The results? A more attractive yard.
Just like exterior paint color, almost 100% of home designers agree that outdoor living space is critical to your home’s value. Trimming back trees, adding pathways, and building a deck or patio may start with a maintenance concern. But they also equal big returns by upgrading your lifestyle.
Try these landscaping projects:
- Tree trimming / branch removal to protect roof/siding
- Grade correction to direct water away from foundation
- Lay down pathways or a patio to utilize outdoor space
- Mulch garden beds to keep weeds down and look polished
Maintenance issues equal design opportunities.
Windows and Entry Doors
Windows and doors are a big deal too.
Faulty window seals can lead to mold, heat loss, and high energy bills. Damaged door frames are an open invitation for water damage and break-ins. By upgrading both you address maintenance and design.
Replacing your garage door alone netted homeowners a 193.9% return on investment in 2020. Entry doors were a close second with steel door replacements returning over 188% of their cost. We’re not just talking maintenance here. (Insert drumroll please)
These are some of the highest ROI investments you can make into your home.
- New windows will improve your insulation, decrease outside noise, and bring in natural sunlight
- Replacing your entry door increases home security, energy efficiency, and your home’s first impression from the street
- Both windows and doors come in modern styles and glass configurations that can instantly update your home’s façade
Every single one of those benefits began as a home maintenance project.
Invest in Your Home’s Maintenance as You Would Its Design
Home maintenance really can be a blessing.
The right projects protect your home and pay off in design. Roofing, gutter upgrades, exterior paint, landscaping, windows and doors can improve your home’s value and curb appeal when done right. Every dollar spent maintaining your home can be a dollar spent improving the way it looks and functions for years to come.
That’s an investment most homeowners would make twice.
When it comes to repairing and upgrading your home, try looking at each project through two lenses. Not just maintenance, but home design as well. Don’t just see repairs as fixing a problem. See them as an opportunity. An opportunity to protect your largest investment and make it look good doing it.
Start with the roof and work your way down. Focus on home maintenance that doubles as home design.
