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5 Inexpensive Ways To Create An Inviting Front Porch To Attract Buyers

By
Real Estate Broker/Owner with Lizette Realty - Richmond KY 205403

5 Inexpensive Ways To Create an Inviting Front Porch To Attract Buyers 5 Ways To Create an Inviting Front Porch To Attract Buyers

I was talking with my agent, Monica Hess tonight. We were discussing an upcoming article she is doing for a magazine.

As she was trying to come up with ideas for her topic, I told her how I felt a front porch needed to give a good vibe in order for the house to sell.

Some front porches are clean and nice but lack comfortable places to sit or interesting areas.

They are one of the first areas of your home that new buyers will see and gather a first impression. 

Here are my 5 simple ideas that I used on my front porch:

  1. Keep it clean. Each morning when I let my dog out, I spend time sweeping away bugs and leaves. I also take off dead leaves and flowers off the plants. By the time I do this my dog is ready to come back in. 5 Inexpensive Ways To Create an Inviting Front Porch To Attract Buyers
  2. Comfortable furniture. What I have on my porch isn't new. The bench had been in my Dad's Greyhound Station since the 40's, the wicker table I found on a curb that someone didn't want. Check secondhand stores for furniture that can be recycled. I prefer wood over metal. Even a chair with a seat out can be a plant stand.
  3. Look for cheap pillows that if they get wet or stained you can just replace or wash them. These were a few bucks each and can from a discount store. I liked the Mai-tai drink designs on these. I carry these in if it starts to rain.
  4. Plants. Buy a few on the sale table at a garden center that look exotic. 5 Inexpensive Ways To Create an Inviting Front Porch To Attract Buyers I put these in odd containers and in a few weeks they burst back with new life. By putting them on the porch they have a chance to recover. My favorite one now is my Desert Rose. 5 Inexpensive Ways To Create an Inviting Front Porch To Attract Buyers I love the trunk of this one, it looks like a body! I used a tub with a leaky bottom to plant purple petunias. The ferns are very hardy and fare better than flowers in hot weather. I redo them fresh every spring. Don't put the hanging ferns up till after Mother's Day to keep Robins from building nests in them. It breaks all the fronds I found out.
  5. Use rugs or paint the concrete with a stain if the porch is in bad condition. There are some nice outdoor rugs that resist the weather really well.

I like the idea that the front porch should be just as inviting as the inside of your house. Spend a little time thinking of unique pieces to add some pizazz!

It might be all the buyer needs to imagine themselves there with a nice glass of sweet tea and a book.

Next step might be an offer!

Finding a new Kentucky home has never been so easy!

Just click on the link below.

Lexington KY Residential Homes For Sale

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Lizette Fitzpatrick- Principal Broker at Lizette Realty.

For more information on Kentucky Horse Farms and Lexington KY real estate 

click on Lizette.us.

 Copyright © 2009 By Lizette Fitzpatrick, All Rights Reserved

5 Inexpensive Ways To Create An Inviting Front Porch To Attract Buyers

Comments (28)

Dianne Hicks
Realty ONE Group - Poway, CA

Lizette,

Thanks for great advice and beautiful porch. I totally agree, it sets the mood for the rest of the house. You know what they say.... first impressions. I have actually entertained purchasing my own furniture to add to certain places, I think that would be very useful to have on hand for those areas that need a lift.

Here in the lnland Empire, CA, most homes are either short sale or bank owned. The problem with that is, many of the home owners do not even care what their house looks like. They are either anger or depression, that just adds to the problem of presenting the house in the best light.

Aug 10, 2009 02:38 AM
Kim Dillon
Creative Eye Home Staging - West Chester, PA

I'ld love to have a glass of tea thered!

Aug 10, 2009 03:37 AM
Beth Jaworski
Shorewest Realtors - Wauwatosa, WI

Very true! The porch is the first place the buyers will spend any time at & the last place they will see when they leave. Your suggestions are spot on. Thanks for sharing!

Aug 10, 2009 03:42 AM
Lora "Leah" Stern 914-772-4528
Coldwell Banker, 170 N Main Street, New City NY 10956 - New City, NY
Real Estate Salesperson

Whaat a great inviting place to hang out in.  Makes me want to join you there.  First impressions really do count!

Aug 10, 2009 04:03 AM
Michelle Gibson
Hansen Real Estate Group Inc. - Wellington, FL
REALTOR

Lizette - Great tips, porches are an extension of the house, it too must be "staged."

Aug 10, 2009 04:21 AM
Debbie Rumsey
HomeSmart Realty West, Carlsbad, CA - Encinitas, CA
Realtor, Green, SFR

Very inviting Lizette!  Makes me want to have a cup of coffee and read a good book!

Aug 10, 2009 04:33 AM
Margaret Mitchell
Coldwell Banker Yorke Realty - York, ME
Seacoast Maine & NH Real Estate

Honestly, I was just mulling over a less than inviting porch on one of my listings.  Great tips.

Aug 10, 2009 05:02 AM
Joetta Fort
The DiGiorgio Group - Arvada, CO
Independent Broker, Homes Denver to Boulder

Ohhhh ... I thought you were going to tell inexpensive ways to create the porch itself.  (JK) I recently showed a house with a messy front porch - there was even a bowl of melted ice cream covered with flies.  Didn't bode well for the interior. And then another house with two front porches, and the buyer said, "I just can't see myself spending time there." What a missed opportunity for some good staging.

Aug 10, 2009 06:44 AM
Beau Ferguson
JPAR Properties Group - Charlotte, NC
Realtor & Relocation Specialist / Rated 5 stars

great tips, have a listing now that could use a little help

Aug 10, 2009 06:47 AM
Gene Riemenschneider
Home Point Real Estate - Brentwood, CA
Turning Houses into Homes

All very good ideas.  It does not take much to make something look good (No cracks about my ex-wife now).

Aug 10, 2009 08:51 AM
Georgie Hunter R(S) 58089
Hawai'i Life Real Estate Brokers - Haiku, HI
Maui Real Estate sales and lifestyle info

That's a sweet looking setting alright!  I love that old bench from the Greyhound station! 

Aug 10, 2009 09:26 AM
Carol Hanson Sheehy
Prudential Florida Realty - Naples, FL

Great pictures!  Wish we had more porches around here to enjoy your suggestions!

Aug 10, 2009 11:27 AM
Melissa Brown
Helen Adams Realty - Charlotte, NC
Realtor - South Charlotte NC Homes for Sale

Lizette,

 

Those photos just make me want to lounge around on the porch with a nice cold adult beverage!  Great post, and great tips!  Thank you!

Aug 10, 2009 02:07 PM
Susanne Novak, ABR, FIS, GRI
RE/MAX 24/7 - Columbus, OH

Gerat pics, great ideas. Let's have a glass of ice tea!

 

Aug 10, 2009 02:37 PM
Mike Henderson
Your complete source for buying HUD homes - Littleton, CO
HUD Home Hub - 303-949-5848

That's great, if you have a front porch.  Mine is a 3 x 3 slab of concrete, it's pretty hard to make it inviting.  My back porch totally rocks.  If only they could drive by and see it from the front.

Aug 10, 2009 05:18 PM
Kathy Opatka
RE/MAX CROSSROADS - Ocean City, MD
Serving Ocean City, MD, & The Delaware Beaches

Lizette,

Hit the yardsales! Great buys that can sit in the weather and age! Your porch looks very inviting. Do you serve REAL mai tai's?

Kathy Opatka

Aug 11, 2009 05:27 AM
Lyn Sims
Schaumburg, IL
Real Estate Broker Retired

I always wonder why people don't spend more time looking at the front of their house when they sell.  If it looks like trash from the street, people are just going to drive by.  Forget that 'don't judge a book by it's cover crap'.  When the agent is trying to fumble their way into the lockbox, the buyer gets to look around sometimes for quite awhile, and it should look good.  Sometimes it's so dirty, I don't want to touch anything!  Good post with great examples.

Aug 11, 2009 07:08 AM
Barb Mihalik
RE/MAX Elite - Suntree, FL

Nothing like walking up to the front porch with spider webs, dead bugs, leaves and debris to create a negative impression.  As a realtor and ASP, that's the first job I tackle with the seller.  I take pictures to show them what potential buyers see and they're usually shocked.

Barb Mihalik Coldwell Banker Sea Coast Realty, Wilmington, NC

Aug 12, 2009 12:37 AM
Pippa Mac
Chevaux Group Realtor, The Woodlands and Spring - The Woodlands, TX
The Woodlands TX Real Estate

Looks like a nice porch to sit and relax on!

Aug 12, 2009 05:10 AM
Donna LaConte
eXp Realty, LLC - Sylva, NC

Thanks for the advice and ideas. I just listed a historic home... I know the porch is a "great selling feature". I copy and pasted the link to your blog to share with the sellers to help them get some ideas............ again....thank you!  Donna

Donna LaConte, REALTOR, Adams, Cameron & Co., REALTORS

Aug 14, 2009 09:34 AM