Home Stage the Exterior

Should spring be just around the corner and you are getting ready to sell your home there are a few tasks for getting your yard into shape prior to home buyer visits.

By taking care to clean up your outside yard areas you expand your living space for outdoor play and entertaining of family and friends. Painting a picture of lifestyle benefits of wining and dining boosts a properties marketing appeal and with that the sales price.

Transcend the walls of your home to show your outdoor sitting areas where buyers can imagine taking a break from a busy schedule that is just steps outside the door.

Take a critical look at your yard around you, then get to work! Here is a list to get you started:

  • Remove burlap from trees and shrubs as the weather warms.
  • Remove winter killed dead or damaged branches
  • Prune away winter-killed branches to make room for new growth.
  • Cut back and divide spent perennials to 4-5 inches
  • Cut back ornamental grasses to a height of 2-3 inches
  • Thin crowded beds of daylilies or iris
  • Cut back rose canes that have winter kill to 1 inch below blacked are.
  • pull up old annuals
  • Clean around plants by raking up fallen leaves and dead foliage
  • Prep damaged grass areas for reseeding
  • Sweep hardscaped patio areas
  • Remove damaged pickets or fencing and paint peeling pickets
  • Clean up the bbq or reposition from view

Home staging shouldn’t be confined just to indoors. Home stage the exterior by cleaning up the exterior of your home it extends the feeling home to your exterior spaces. Cooking, relaxing or just hanging out reflects lifestyle benefits that home buyers enjoy, work to capture that feeling of home outside.

Stone Veneer

 

I have been talking a lot about return on investment.  Curb appeal is one of those returns that sells about 50% of homes for sale.  With that said I’m going to give you the skinny about stone veneer because the return on investment is a 92.2% return on investment and can make HUGE curb appeal impact.

Not only does stone veneer look super it also resists weather conditions in multiple climates, and keeps its original look.  I have ugly concrete block around the foundation of my own home and would make my home look a whole lot better.  I understand that stone veneer can be installed easily and relatively quickly, so who knows maybe I’ll have a summer project.

There are a few types of siding when deciding on what to use.  Solid stone siding is heavy and installation is similar to putting together a puzzle.  Stone veneer siding is stamped and stained concrete manufactured to look like real stone that interlocks.  Manufactured stone is manufactured individually and looks like actual rock or clad stone that looks like brick.

Another option is foam siding that imitates actual stone, but it’s light weight, covers a large area and an entire corner of a house can be done in one day.  I’m short on patience and the muscle for the other products so this one might be the way to go for my ugly foundation.

 

After doing my homework I found that some of these products can even be used around fireplaces.  I love this product, there is nothing like the feel of a stone fireplace for that homey feeling with cozy nights, cuddled up in front of a blazing hearth.  This goes to the top of my list for fireplace updates, oh yeah!

Sorry for digressing.  Let’s go back outdoors…if you are looking for a cost to install natural Stone Veneer for a basic 125 square feet project in zip code 47474, the cost to install averages $9.26 – $13.44 per square foot* – but costs in your area will vary.