As the winter goes along after the holiday season, it can feel daunting to figure out what will set your home apart when you’re hoping to sell a house in markets like San Francisco. A huge part of curb appeal is designing an inviting style for your front porch, a way of making your space stand out and showcasing that, despite the winter being cool, this will be a space that future owners can make great use of.
Start with clean, uncluttered space
Don’t underestimate how valuable it is to just do a good cleaning of the nearby siding, the front door, and the front porch surface. Even the nicest porch can look a little dingier when a year or two’s dirt and dust has accumulated. Then look at what you can remove as far as clutter goes: everything from ashtrays to kids toys can find a better storage spot while people are coming to your home for showings or an open house. This first step will be a great start but many want to go the extra mile and stage their porch with some nice decorations.
Less is more with furniture and personalization
If you have a conversation set or other simple porch furniture that fits the porch comfortably, that’s your best bet for furniture – you don’t want to have every single outdoor furnishing you own cluttering up the front porch if you can avoid it. Open space helps buyers see a space as spacious and focusing on matching furnishings can make it feel newer and more upscale than an eclectic mix (even though many of us live with a few varied outdoor chairs!). When it comes to signs, photos, and other personal items, it’s wise to choose only the ones that could be part of a wide variety of people’s homes: an adorable “Welcome to the Porch” wooden sign would work great, while a framed family reunion photo is more likely to pull a buyer out of their imagination and make them think of this as “someone else’s” home.
Touches of cozy textiles and greenery work well
Front porches during the winter are a tricky business, since cool days can make actual outdoorsy decor seem off, so I tend toward two focal points. First, any plants that can survive in your winter climate are a great fit, and in areas that get too cold, it can be best to focus on evergreen boughs or garland and some accent lighting. Cozy throw pillows on your porch furniture and a warm blanket or two will also add pops of color and remind buyers of how cozy it would be to take morning coffee on this porch.
Neutral and earth tones work well with a wintery day
If you have a good feel for design, make your front porch style your own, but if you’re mostly staging for sale, neutral and earth tones go well in a lot of settings. They will look elevated and
classy without requiring you to do a lot of complex color matching, which means more time to focus on the other aspects of your home’s sale!
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