There are some homes that just exist, and then there are some homes that feel like they have been carefully maintained. The difference isn’t necessarily always in the money spent, but the finer details in the right places that give the impression of such.
While some outdoor features are highly impactful on how expensive a home feels, not all of these features are the most expensive. Yet they seem to represent care and maintainence. On homes where these features exist, the impression is one of intentionality. Homes that don’t have these features appear to be neglected.
Sharp Edges
One of the easiest ways to make a property feel more expensive is to keep the edges of various aspects crisp. For example, between grass and flower beds, patios and lawns, driveways and landscaping.
Those people whose borders are blurry because they are growing in and out over time don’t necessarily create a bad impression, but homes that seem to have well-maintained edges look as though they’ve put more time into the details. There are even times when maintaining edges means no materials were used to create borders but rather just keeping things mowed/trimmed.
Outdoor Lighting
Likewise, homes that benefit from thoughtful outdoor lighting do not look as expensive as homes that sit in the darkness after sunset. Professional landscape lighting installation illuminates architecture, pathways and extras in a way that an outdoor porch light simply cannot replicate.
When you drive through a neighborhood at night where everyone has outdoor lighting, it’s apparent which homes are better taken care of—whether they are or not is another story—but outdoor lighting creates depth, illuminates nice paths and extensive plants. Homes that appear neglected at night are those without any lights or decent garage/motion lights.
Hardscaping
Hardscaping—patios, walkways, retaining walls made with good materials—makes a property look exponentially better than generic concrete. Concrete serves a purpose but stone pavers and flagstone create a finish that an amateur project cannot boast.
Additionally, the more professional the installation, i.e., stable work with a good foundation, the better it will look 10 years later instead of sinking, moving or cracking. Cheap implementations of inexpensive materials go awry too soon and make properties feel neglected by proxy.
Mature Plants
Properties with mature trees, bushes and gardens look established. They have old-time charm and presence. They make people think of homes their parents or grandparents lived in.
They come at an additional expense but mostly time—when things have time to grow into themselves, they take up space that proves they’ve been there for a while. Established properties feel settled.
But mature doesn’t mean overgrown—nice company trim bushes and dead branches while keeping things looking alive. Overgrown shrubs blocking windows or lack of pruning do not help appeal either. Mature plants need to be maintained.
Water Drainage
Properties with water issues—standing water in some places or muddy pits in others—also fail to impress. Homes where proper grading occurs so rain flows away with adequate gutters make it feel like it’s been engineered successfully over time.
French drains, grading and gutters prevent homes from looking cheap—when there’s no water running down driveways and creating muddy waterways, properties look instantly more expensive over time.
Coherent Materials
Homes which use consistent materials/colors throughout their exteriors (encompassing fencing, stone work, mulch bed color) feel more put together than those which expand too many different options wherever possible.
One home with stone on the walkway that mirrors stone on the patio and other exterior landscaping looks well-planned. One home with concrete steps to brick pavers to stone that’s just lying around looks like a pieced-together collage.
Quality Fencing
Fencing makes a large appearance—especially in backyards—as cheap chain-link or warped wood makes homes look tired or distressed. Quality white vinyl or wood makes homes feel more expensive.
It’s all about detail here as well—with nice posts, even paint and basic trimming for gates, these fencing elements make spaces feel defined without making them look juvenile or half-done.
Lawns
Thickness of grass goes a long way in making a property feel maintained. Lawns that are patchy or feature patches of dirt look bad regardless of how nice things may be otherwise.
This doesn’t mean golf-course standard; this means healthy grass without weeds and actual coverage versus sections of earth without nutrients. Basic watering and trimming takes effort but serves as baseline for further efforts to be built.
Defined Outdoor Areas
Patios versus ground days versus fire pits—areas defined can make homes feel more intentional than outdoor areas where there’s just “something” somewhere randomly.
Hardscaping creates spaces as does furniture placement, but fencing also helps create these options as well as planted areas—anything to denote intention versus lack of integration helps create purpose.
Mulching and Covers
Fresh mulch beds make homes look instantly appealing. Colored mulch creates symmetry in color and indicates someone has been there recently instead of neglected dyed wood shavings faded with seasons over time or soil beds due to life crawling beneath.
Ground cover where grass fails also helps—it’s better to use ground cover plants or stones or something decorative instead of dead spots of earth because that’s just sad.
Basic Suggestions
Basic little details make the biggest difference—a mailbox that’s not crooked, house numbers not coming off, gutters hanging properly instead of detached with leaves stuffed in them—these low-cost measures make homes look good.
It’s cheap not to pay attention to them daily—but at the same time, homes that look like they’ve put time into these details are much more appreciated by others looking in from the outside.
Impression is Everything
The homes that look the most expensive are the ones that exude maintenance quality consistency instead of selective planting features that come and go with seasonal suggestions.
The newest addition isn’t the most appealing; it’s avoiding what makes homes look neglected from the onset—and then everything else falls into place on it own accord.
The compound effect isn’t additive; it’s each detail helps every other detail along. Good lighting helps hardscaping show up at night; a good lawn accentuates other features if there aren’t dead spots; good drainage prevents erosion but also unattractive mud under hedges.
The more features go in together, along with common care components, the better overall impression made. Homes do not need one expensive feature; they need a combination of options working together since it becomes apparent when they’re all forced apart looking shabby or neglected instead.
