There is very much hope for your landscape. It appears that there is not much there which gives you and your landscaper a blank slate. You would need evergreens including low growing boxwood as an example to maintain color and substance in the winter. Flowering shrubs, perhaps some short grasses along the walkway that appears to run from the garage to the front door would work. You can easily create a flow that draws the eye to the front door and creates an inviting image. The lack of plan material might allow a lower sale bid than a completely manicured landscape would require.

Love it! Thanks for the ideas!

Post your results on this same thread when you're done with the project!

It's like a French Country ate a Mansard...Dytechture? Anyone? I'm stumped, other than flower boxes at every window dripping in vincas, ivies...lots of ivy? Hmmm...??? Hoping someone can make this beautiful for you.

I think it has possibilities but you are going to have to ask yourself if you are willing to spend some serious money to change it. Obviously the current owner took care of the inside but did not tackle the outside. You are going to have to get into roof/ siding/framing changes. Don't assume those are cheap to do.

I would try to find out if there is a way to remove the columns. I suspect that this was designed in the 1970's and that those metal dormers sit over some kind of arched top. You would need to have somebody look at it up close.

I don't think you have to remove or change anything; just pump it up a notch and go with the bit of extreme French in the design. Expense of stucco would be the issue.

The type of window you have don't match the style of the house. I would start by changing those. Decoenthousiaste provided some good pictures of French style houses, with the right type of window. The next thing you should do is paint the siding under the second floor windows to match the roof. Flower boxes at each second floor window will reinforce the french feel. Bigger lanterns on each side of the door will give it more significance. The walkway is uninviting, so perhaps framing it with boxwood hedges would make it more appealing.

I agree with the French Normandy look, and if your budget allows, put copper shake on the tops of those dormers that will get a lovely Verdigris Patina as it ages!

I like the stucco reference and idea. If budget is an issue, I think that differentiating the roof from the rest of the house possibly by painting the brick would be something to consider. Perhaps painting the brick something like a blue gray, but certainly something different in color than the roof. The area under the three windows also could be painted, perhaps a darker shade of the same blue gray. But do think you need a different color from the roof for the house.

I think that this house can be much better looking. It already has symmetry, repetition and order. There are some things that are off like the windows as mentioned above and I think it might get expensive to fix. Unless you have some money to put into updating the exterior I would move on. If all else is great about it and you can either live with it for a while or spend the money now it might be a good place for you. But if you do fix up the exterior, find an architect who can help you do it successfully. This is not a job for amateurs. Yes an architect will cost you but the value they can add could return you significantly more in a more valuable property. Hope that helps.

I think its interesting and cool...but it looks very autere and the structure needs softening. You need to hire the right landscape artist for this who understands how to do this. I'd also talk to an exterior renovation company like scicora from MN.

It will take a lot of $ and it will never be right french country. You could maybe go mod. If you stain all the brick a deep taupe gray and spray the mansard roof the mid tone gray, then paint the vertical insets pale dove gray taupe then replace the entry with a double modern pair in bright sunshine yellow or bright turquoise. Crestview.com for the mod doors with the three big squares.

The proportions will always be mansard high hat - might as well take it and play with the austin powers elements. one thing to figure out out is flat roofs can have a great many more issues and that is what these really have.

My goodness. What a lovely house. Very French and crying out for some brightening and a formal garden. I made this little pic for you today, with some freshening ideas. Of course, you can make the front door, anything which grabs your fancy.
Mo

Check out this blog, "badmansard". It's rather hilarious, and it might give you some ideas (they show how someone renovated their home from bad to good mansard) http://badmansard.blogspot.com/2009/11/avant-and-apres.html

hopefully you can see these...

It's a very stylized house. I'd think with a little paint --- perhaps only those brown bits and the trim it --- it could look pretty good. It looks to me like with some thought, it would be a beautiful house.

To Slaser_86: Between spending a lot of money to turn the house into "the right kind of French" and turning away from buying the home in the location, there are a lot of options. I think the house's curb appeal can be improved without redoing everything. I wouldn't turn away from a good house just because it is not perfect. If it's in the right neibourhood, is priced right and passes inspection, I see no reason why you should pass up this opportunity.

I think the best way to handle this exterior is to not fight it. Use the finest finishes you can afford on it. Doing so will help the house shine and lose its current shabbiness--which I think is hurting the look. Like others have mentioned, really play up the landscaping.

Make sure new light fixtures are larger than the current ones too, btw.

Dark windows and trim would be helpful for this house.

Just say it with me, "I'm not afraid of a mansard!"

And, btw, I can't wait to check out Bad Mansard! Sounds awesome!

Yep. Remove that roof!

That roof rules! With some ornamentation on either sides of all the highest points, this roof can be made to strongly resemble Chinese pagoda or Tibetan temple. You've got a gem in the making!

I'd go for a terra cotta tiled roof and then stucco the rest.

Drove around the city today, noticing mansard roofs everywhere. My life will never be the same. I wonder what could be done to the lower half of the roof (i.e. from right below the the 2nd story windows to just above them) so that it feels contiguous with the house rather than the roof. Now it looks like the roof ate the top of the house. The visual weight should be on the bottom 2 thirds of the house, with the roof as the top 3rd. I wish a had photoshop.

Well, I was stumped, but gave it some thought and realized that the right side of the house actually looked pretty good, so I took a cue from there and brought the roof and walls up.

Then I eased a bit of the blockiness and verticality with an arch over the entrance and to either side via railing. A french cupola could optionally reinforce the curves.

I added the flower boxes I mentioned, along with Italian cypress or ilex between the tall sections. Better?

Second thought, skip the cupola and clip the roof:

Don't let all the good, but drastic, changes suggested, scare you off from this home. If the inside is what you want and all the other considerations meet your needs, you can work the landscaping first and then do one element of the home's exterior at a time, on budget. I still think the best way is to play up its extreme French nature and not worry about authenticity, but fun and good looks!

Massive mansard roofs are a booger to rennovate. Also, the usually flat roof on top are maintenance issues.

Buy the house. It fits your needs on the inside, and has good schools nearby and good taxes. The outside has excellent potential for landscaping.
Look at Houzz PHOTOS for "mansard roof" and look at the LANDSCAPING in the photos for ideas. Make an Ideabook of your favorite ones. When you are ready, hire a landscape architect. It will be money well spent. You don't even have to do it this season. Everything does not have to be done "lickety split."

Decoenthusiaste posted some excellent examples of houses for your inspiration. Some paint or stucco might be all that is needed. Again, you do not have to do this right away. Moving is expensive. Give yourself four to six months to settle in.

Best wishes.

love moenna s idea the house is very tall and could be cut in half as shown I d pland tall cypress culumnar species at the entrance roadside and just landscape to ur hearts content cos tiz a big space

As a brick manufacturer, we love the look of natural brick and its durability. However, if you do decide to paint the brick, please be prepared for increased maintenance. According to The Brick Industry Association, “Most paint authorities agree that, once painted, exterior masonry will require repainting every three to five years.”

All the ideas are awesome, I definitely think we could do something pretty neat with the house. The flat roof being a maintenance issue is something we definitely have to consider though, so thanks for pointing that out as well.

Just a question, do you like traditional or modern architecture? This house could be a beautiful classic, but could also me remodeled to a more modern building. If it's renovated, how much was done on the roof and how is the condition of the construction right underneath? Is it already insulated? Before moving onto painting and/or stucco, these are some questions to be answered (by an constructor/engineer).

My second thought is, when going for a traditional look: Find a company that can 'wrap the roof around the dormers', or at least disconnect the upper part from the bottom somehow, gable dormers(?). The columns aren't doing it for me.
When going modern: a whole new square roof, maybe slightly sloped towards the back, wooden siding on the front.

I think it is a really cool house. I wouldn't let the outside deter you if the rest is just perfect it just needs a little love in the yard. I think a simple fix would be to paint/stain what is now brown to the same color as the brick or the roof making it more monochromatic . Change the lights out to something larger and add window boxes to the lower windows. Mow the lawn, trim the bushes, clean out flower beds it looks like you have some existent plants, new mulch and perhaps some added flowers as needed. This all will have an huge impact without costing you huge money.

Didnt realise this is brick so deffo dont paint .Let the garden do the talking by adding some big trees