That sounds like a lot more practical and eye appealing solution. Thank you!

i'd remove the shutters and adding a wider moulding trim around the doors and windows to give the home a more up to date look...and paint all trim white so the window units and trim blend in. then paint the house and garage door in a soft neutral shade of warm gray to work with the gray roof. then add a splash of color to the front door..a deep rich colbalt blue? a deep fun turquoise? i'd then work on removing the awkward stones from the front and simply planting some grass and some grasses and perennials to the bed along the front of the home.

remove the shutters on the lower portion of the house, if not all.

paint the down spout for the rain gutter the same color as the house, not the trim color.

paint the fence, or stain it.

i think gray, taupe, greens, white trim, yellow trim, light tan trim.

build a cool low raised deck out front.

stain the deck and fence the same.

all i did was take off your shutters.

Wow, great suggestions! I'm not sure if removing the shutters is an option in the budget. I will check into the cost but I will definitely pay attention to the downspouts being the color of the house. Being in a drought area, a deck would cut the water use. Palm trees on either side of the walkway were removed which accents the blandness.

well if you are painting you might as well take them off, the siding most likely is behind them, so it might even be a DIY prep you could do yourself.

Modern homes look silly with shutters....the windows are too wide for their height and the shutters are never wide enough for the windows they flank. Instead of shutters, the windows could be given a homey, traditional look with casing trim that's 4"-6" wide instead of the 2"-3" brickmould typically standard with vinyl and contemporary, mass produced windows.

White is generally the colour of choice when one doesn't want to make a commitment to any particular aesthetic (which is why apartment walls, pvc, and vinyl windows are white). The lightness of your roofing shingles would tend to limit choice of main wall colours to shades that are lighter than the roof. Without any historical precedence applicable to your home style, I'd be inclined to reflect the colours of nature for your particular area.

Looking at the siding of the house, it is layered and I'm not sure how a wide trim could lay flush to the body of the house. I will consult a carpenter when asking for an estimate cost. Do you have a suggestion on the color gray for the body of the house? Most of my neighbors have earth tone homes with green/bluish or white trim. I'd like to mix it up a bit and like the suggestion of a warm gray body color. I am having a new entry door with a single door w/sidelights and thought the door could be the splash of color of perhaps a robin's egg blue.

I really appreciate all your advice. Thank you very much!

Yes remove shutters. Color Suggestions: BM Storm AF-700 for body of house, Timid White 2148-60 or Winter Snow OC-63 for trim and Phillipsburg Blue HC-159 for door. And PLEASE do not paint sidelights the door color paint them the trim color. Just the door should be the focal point.