The Best Exterior Designs

Develop a Discerning Eye

• Learn how to recognize classic features. For example, a historic two-story Colonial brick with a covered entrance and shutters still carries great appeal today. The overall shape of the house, the balance of the roof with the exterior and the size of window openings all affect the look of the house. Much of the process of learning what looks great is simply studying home design books and magazines.

Learn the Beauty of Roof Lines

• Multiple roof lines add curbside appeal. A home with several A-shape roof lines facing the front is more interesting than a basic ranch roof. Combining different roof angles draws attention to the home's windows in a different way. A house with sharply pitched roof angles is typically costlier to build due to labor costs. But a house like this carries a storybook appeal instead of just looking average.

Incorporate Multiple Exterior Materials

• Combining various exterior materials creates market appeal. Using stucco, stone, brick and wood together in a visually pleasing way is standard in today's upscale neighborhoods. A beautiful brick home, for example, takes on more character with a cut-stone fireplace and stucco in the eaves areas.

Use Windows for Visual Appeal

• Ample windows give the house more value. There's nothing worse than skimpy windows to make a house look cheap. Envision a bunglow house of the 1940s with no windows and only a single front door. Then imagine this same structure with large windows on the front with multiple glass panes and large shutters. Good-sized windows give a home an inviting look and add natural light to enhance the interior.

Add Roof Height

• Taller roof lines can help break up boring architecture. A two-story house has more options to create an interesting curbside than a one-story house. A one-story with dormer windows in the attic space of its roof is definitely more appealing than a roof with no dormers. Building a house as a one-and-a-half-story structure gives the impression to the viewer the interior of the house is larger.