First Impressions: Does Your House Make A Good One?

First impressions are important; that’s why we dress up for job interviews, first dates, and important meetings. When you’re inviting guests over to your house you also make an effort to clean up and make everything look presentable. Unfortunately, the interior isn’t exactly the first impression your guests will get of your house; the exterior is always the first thing they say. Take a look at your house from the outside. Is it making a good first impression?

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Maintain your lawn

You’ll save yourself a lot of fights with your neighbours if you keep your front in an equally good condition to your back garden. Always make sure your hedges are trimmed and the grass is mowed. Your house doesn’t have to look like it fell off a magazine cover, but you can always look at real estate pictures to get an idea of what looks presentable. Once you’ve finished the lawn, you should also take the opportunity to clear your lawn of any debris, dead leaves, or weeds that are coming through the cracks. Follow up with a thorough cleaning using a pressure washer to remove dirt and grime. From here, you should start patching any cracks or holes in concrete surfaces with a concrete resurfacer.

Clean your gutters

It might be a hated chore around the house, but you only need to do this twice a year to keep your gutters in good condition. If you see evidence of animals nesting in them, you’ll know for certain that it’s been too long since you cleaned your gutters. Mice, birds, lizards, frogs, and even feral cats are all likely to find a home amongst all the compressed debris in your gutters. Eventually, you might also see signs of plant life growing in those gutters. Sooner or later, your gutters will start to sag from all the weight of wildlife and debris in there, and it will all start to damage your roof. Any gunk down in the gooseneck can be cleaned out by shoving the garden hose into the downspout.

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Check your roof

Once you’ve cleaned your gutter you should inspect your roof for any damage; the sooner you spot anything, the better your chances of fixing it in time instead of having to buy a new roof. Inspect your roof regularly for curled and missing shingles, rusted and pitted flashing, and cracked caulk around pipe collars, skylights and other roof penetrations. Make a note of anything that needs doing, then hiring a roof expert to get it done; roof repairs are something you should never attempt by yourself.

Fresh paint

If the paint on your whole house has started to fade a bit, set aside a sunny day to repaint the whole house. When the painting is complete, it’s a good idea to invest in a high quality exterior wall coating. Carefully applying it to the outside of the house will help to weatherproof your property and can reduce the risk of problems such as damp arising inside your home.