How to Improve Curb Appeal With Your Garage Door

Property evaluation is not always an exact science. The current state of the market is often the main determiner of how much a property can be sold for - and the price tag may not always reflect the value that either the buyer or seller may have in mind. Appearances always play an important role in the market value of a property, which is why it is essential to keep your home in presentable shape, especially when the time comes to sell it. Aside from good, regular maintenance and occasional renovations where appropriate, one of the best things you can do to ensure that your property fetches a decent price is to improve its curb appeal.

What exactly is curb appeal?

When real estate agents talk about the curb appeal of a property, they are simply referring to its level of attractiveness. This is not only a matter of catching the eye of a passerby; it is about creating an image of home, making a property desirable to a potential buyer. It is a key part of marketing your house as a quality product. A home with high curb appeal has an attractive facade, a well-kept yard, fresh paint, intact sidings, quality garage doors, etc. However, it is not just a matter of maintenance. Creating great curb appeal requires the homeowner to think about their home as a buyer would, and consider what would be most appealing to a potential buyer.

Why does curb appeal matter?

When devising a strategy to sell a property, curb appeal is one of the most effective tactics at your disposal. Curb appeal grabs the buyer’s attention and sets expectations for what they will find inside. Prospective buyers will be more inclined to walk inside and explore the property if they are impressed by its outward appearance. It provides that all-important first impression, which can either draw the buyer inside or prompt them to walk away to something that looks more appealing. Therefore, when maintaining your property (even if you don’t intend to sell in the near future), creating a beautiful exterior is every bit as important as upgrading the appliances, flooring, and decor on the inside of the home - perhaps more so, in many cases.

Does curb appeal actually increase the value of a home?

A property is really only worth as much as buyers are prepared to pay for it. That may seem obvious, but not all sellers grasp this fact completely. The value of your land and buildings may be relatively easy to calculate objectively, but there is no guarantee that this value will equate to the price your property ultimately fetches when you put it on the market. The relative values of other, comparable properties, as well as buyer sentiment and perception, will both play a decisive role in setting your selling price. Curb appeal speaks to both of these factors. Raising the curb appeal of your home will enable you to ask more for it and sell faster. On average, although it can be difficult to determine property values precisely, homes with attractive facades and well-kept lawns can sell for around 7% more than those that have blatant exterior blemishes or unkempt front yards. If you want to sell your property for what you feel it is worth, and get the highest possible financial return on it, raising and maintaining curb appeal is essential.

The best ways to improve curb appeal

Considering how important curb appeal can be to the sale of your home, it is remarkable how easy it can be to achieve. Here are five simple steps you can take to make your property more appealing. Remember that maintenance is always easier and more affordable than upgrading or repairing, so once you have taken these steps, be sure to keep the various features in good condition at all times.

• Focus on lawns and landscaping: What looks better from the outside than a home with a lush green lawn and beautifully manicured yard, with a well-placed tree or two to add shade? No matter what else you do, focus on keeping your yard in impeccable condition. It is well worth the effort and expense (neither of which is considerable if you focus on routine maintenance).
• Check and repair your roof regularly: Even a beautifully maintained yard will not make up for a roof that looks old and in bad repair. You should regularly check your roof for loose tiles or shingles to ensure that your home always looks structurally sound as well as beautiful.
• Clean and maintain sidings and exterior walls: The exterior of a home gets dirty very easily, and even fiber cement or vinyl sidings can show some wear and need repair or replacing at times. Every few months, walk around your house and check the exterior. Dirt can easily be removed with a power washer, panels can be replaced when necessary, and a fresh coat of paint goes a long way.
• Make your front door the centerpiece: Both for people walking into your home, and for those driving by, your front door is one feature that is impossible to ignore. To begin with, choose a door of exceptional quality and aesthetic value, then take good care of it as the years pass. 
• Choose a quality garage door: Your front door may be a central part of your curb appeal, but your garage door, being larger and more prominent, is perhaps even more important when it comes to grabbing people’s attention and creating the right impression. Take a good look at your garage door and think about the image it gives your home. Upgrading this one feature will make a considerable difference to your home’s curb appeal.

Upgrade your garage doors

Single and double garages often extend outwards towards the front of many modern house designs. These layouts are referred to as snout houses. With snout houses, the garages make up the majority of the building’s street frontage, and are therefore even more important to your curb appeal than your front door. Even with designs where the garage is on the same level as the front door, or positioned further back at the end of a driveway that extends along the side of the house, the garage door is still a large and prominent feature. If you are seeking to improve curb appeal, installing a new garage door is a great idea. 

Choose a high-quality custom garage door with plenty of visual appeal. There are many styles available, as well as a range of materials, including wood, steel and fiberglass. You can choose a modern or traditional style, and add features such as windows, relief patterns, cross beams and more.

Use color

There are several different ways to approach the coloring of your garage door. If your front door is visible from the street, it is a good idea to draw attention to it, meaning that all other features on the property work to draw the eye towards the front entrance. In this case, it is best to neutralize the garage door. Choose a color that will make the doors “disappear” so as to highlight the front door. 

On the other hand, if your garage door is the main feature of the front of your home, you should make it into a striking design feature. In addition to choosing an eye-catching design, you should also choose the right tone to make it stand out in a bold but tasteful way. Whatever color you choose should complement the style of the door, as well as the walls and roof.

Accessorize

Another great idea is to add features and details to help the door stand out. Carriage house doors already come with built-in ornamentals, such as windows, or arrow hinges. You can also add a few potted plants, shrubs, or trees to frame the entrance. Decorative stonework surrounding the door, or inlaid on the driveway below it, can also help to accentuate its features and make it stand out. 

Light it up

Exterior lighting is a great way to highlight the features of your garage door and improve your curb appeal even further. Choose lighting that complements the color and style of your home. You could install uplighting in the ground along the edges of the driveway and/or mount a sconce on the wall on either side of the garage door. The effect of well-designed lighting can be quite dramatic and can transform your home when the sun goes down.

Choose Tri-Lakes Garage Doors for your new garage door

A family business founded and run by Jim Hatley, a second-generation garage door builder, installer and repairman,Tri-Lakes Garage Doors serves homeowners and businesses all along the front range. We have built a solid reputation based on quality parts and service, quick response, and a family-based, personalized approach to customer care.Contact us for the perfect garage door upgrade to help you improve your curb appeal.