I would also replace your front light with a larger good looking light. Paint the Shutters, paint front door, replace or get rid of storm door, get new front light and LANDSCAPE!!! Lack of foundation plantings is what really makes any home look plain.

I would suggest that you paint gray with a black door. then add a tree in the front and some other plants/shrub around the front window.

I think long term you are going to get the best look if you go kind of modern, which is to say, paint this in your favorite serene green but separate green tones in three shades for three areas. take off the shutters and fix the trim to just be square / rectangle around each window.

The upper floor should be the middle tone, with the lower area just below it around the garage and entry door having the darkest tone and the lightest tone on the lower left. Use this up between the roofs in the clerestory area. Pick a green on a card where the middle tone is three up from the darkest in the card. one down for the dark tone and one up for the light. If you've got a nice celadon or sage tone, then use a blue-green for your trim - test http://www.sherwin-williams.com/homeowners/color/find-and-explore-colors/paint-colors-by-family/SW6485-raindrop/ - it will look light next to the dark and mid-tone but right at the lightest - eaves, trim around windows.

The white garage door will look modern then, and if you are ready for the fun of it, sw cloudburst (from the same raindrop card will do nicely on the front storm door), while you leave the entry door white to match the garage.

Get a new light fixture that is kind of bronze and modern font bronze letters just a little taller. Look at this http://www.lightingdirect.com/kichler-49059-contemporary-modern-single-light-small-outdoor-wall-sconce-from-the-ripley-collection/p1035469 - use oil rubbed bronze spray paint on these items, your mailbox and post if you want to tie it together.

In future - you can build a trellis painted the trim color over the garage all the way to the entry door like this one - modern, and grow vines up to it on the end and over - [houzz=]

Hi! Nice house! what area of the country are you in? I see plenty of potential of ideas for the front, including door and garage door, also plants!..

The garage door is overpowering the entrance. I would paint the body of the house a gray including the garage doors. I would keep the trim and shutters white and paint the front door and storm any color you like. I would go to Costco ASAP as they have beautiful shrubs at very reasonable prices. It's important to have a sense of "you enter
Here" also Lowes has cabot full bodied paint . Sea coast gray is a beautiful warm tone.

If you are trying to make green work then - seafoarm light green with white trim and garage door, a different favorite color for front door, arbor over the garage extending over the front dorr with flowering jasmine and perhaps a few climbing clematis' for color, update modern front door light and new numbers, I would plant purple laurapetalum or knock out roses as foundation plants and a dwarf red maple in the front yard. You could also remove most of the small rocks by the mailbox and add a few large ones to create a low maintenance rock garden with dwarf evergreens and full sun flowers common to your climate for imoact and deminsion. Stay away from green shrubs by the house or you lose the effect.

I would remove the exterior door and paint your front door a nice accent color such as a deep green or red. I would also add window boxes, upgrade your exterior light and add new numbers. Lastly, I would landscape - simple shrubs, a tree, etc. All in, I expect you could do this for less than $1,000.

Thanks for the ideas.
@arlene- I live in the mountains of Northern Arizona. Usually we get a good amount of snow from December through March. October and November also have possibility of snow. The first frost date is September 18 and the last frost date is June 6. The front yard gets no sun during the winter, but a decent amount in the summer.

Check out Sherwin Williams or bhg.com for color selection tools that will let you choose a similar style to yours and you can try out all kinds of colors with only mouse clicks.

I like green, white trimed.

Another green coloured house.

Your house has very straight lines, perhaps you can profit from a color scheme fit to the Georgian Style.

I would like you to consider replacing the storm door with a full glass one. And if your "real"door is in poor repair/design, replace that too. Front doors make a statement. And obvious is some plantings/shrubbery to "soften" the curb appeal. The color is not so bad but the area between the lawn and curb should remove the rocks and put grass there

You might get inspired by these:

https://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/for-your-home/exterior-color-schemes-with-affinity-paint-colors;jsessionid=pRZ9QyXGVdcnbGQ1nfKy1yb5dc6WPDsXkdNtSmLqRpjNspcJ832M!47447114!NONE

http://www.rpmginc.com/DocLib/AllDocs/scarlett/Color%20Schemes/Color%20Schemes.pdf

From the attached picture I have the impression that yelow goes well with grey.

Your home could go contemporary very nicely as in the photo judyg sent of "Whole House Green". I like her idea of taking the shutters off and paintng the the trim darker than the siding. A contemporary front door perhaps in a warm wood would look would look great. I would pick a contemporary light fixture( larger than what you have) and new stylish mailbox. A light fixture to match on the other side of the garage would add interest as well. I agree painting should come first then the yard but some planting around the mailbox would be a start. I would take out what looks like some kind of curbing running paralel to the drive way. A small (maybe 6'x8') wood structure in front of the front door( like decking in a warm wood stain to match the front door) perhaps with a railing and corner posts might add some interest to the front. Even if you can't do major landscaping now I would create the bed for it with a border of white rock and filled with peatmoss. Just putting two tall plants on either side of the front windows would help. The driveway is a huge eyesore in my opinion. I would start saving for that and do it as soon as you cn afford it.

A Soft grey green (We used Green Tea Leaves by Valspar) would work well with white or creamy trim. You could repaint in the same soft yellow and trim with the green
Nan Mendez suggested the shrubs in my front yard but they might not survive in Arizona. Purple leaf plants look great against the green, like the succulent known best by the unPC name of wandering Jew. I think its scientific name is something like Tradescantia. You could add 2 or 3 yucca plants in the rocks for a xeriscape design. Junipers or dwarf yaupon holly would be hardy evergreen to add next to the house or a Silver sage bush( they have lilac blooms in spring).
The earlier you get the shrubs in the better and you can throw a drop cloth or plastic over them as you paint. Remember to plant a alittle away from the house because you need a space for future painting or work.Then add colorful annuals like Zinnas which are cheap and easy from seeds.

Your home has so much potential. I'm not sure of the style but would say its a bilevel ranch. I'd paint first and plant after. You don't want your new plantings getting tromped during the painting. I agree with a few ideas some others have suggested. Here's what I would do: RIP OFF THE SHUTTERS. As earlier noted, unless they look functional and are wide enough to cover the window when closed, don't use them. BEEF UP THE WINDOW TRIM. Use at least 6" wide trim board, keep it simple and paint it white or some creamy shade of white. Maybe the window trim could include a wider apron below window to help fill the blank space below. CHOOSE A PAINT COLOR THAT WORKS WITH YOUR ROOF. I would keep it neutral: a warm gray, greenish kahki or gray green. Any of these colors will add a little sophistication to the whole facade and be a great backdrop for plants. PAINT THE FIRST FLOOR OF THE EXTERIOR A DARKER SHADE AND THE SECOND FLOOR A LIGHTER TONE OF THE SAME HUE. This will help the overhang above the garage look less bulky and more in scale. Do BUILD AN ARBOR ABOVE/AROUND THE GARAGE DOORS AND FRONT ENTRY. Paint it white or light creamy color ,same as trim. As earlier suggested it will add some architechtural interest and help scale down the size of the second story overhang. PAINT FRONT DOOR A DIFFERENT COLOR. I'd go with something that helps the front entry standout. Either a dark color like black or a light and bright color like mustard yellow, a red, green, aqua...choose a favorite color. When you get to the landscaping, I would install a pathway from the street to the front door. It will help emphasis the entry. Your front yard is a clean slate and you've got some great ideas from other comments. Good luck!!

I think a gray/green would look amazing but how about some wood siding on the second level!!! Or if you just want to do paint only, I would do a bayberry green with a whitish trim, and a red door!!!

check out swiss mocha for the trim and shutters :) I've used this combo and I loved it and on my next house I def plan on using it.

also consider painting your garage door

I think a warm taupe would be a nice color for your house with a darker accent color for the shutters. It would also look great with planter boxes underneath all of the front windows. I would go with a full-view storm door on the entrance door in the front. Next, add your landscaping plants in a variety of heights. I'm sorry I got carried away with so much info. but it is a nice house that needs to say "this is our home".

don't forget about plants! bushes and shrubs can add A LOT to curb appeal!

Congrats on your new home. Inch by Inch anything's a cinch.
Lots of great ideas here. I would like to mention lighting. In your plans replace the lightby the front door. People tend to get lighting that is to small for a home. Lowes has a great outdoor lighting selection. Love the window box idea. Paint and landscaping will be a Huge improvement. Good luck------ post your results

Sherwin William's "Yuma Green", a dark gray green, would be good for the house and garage door...keep white windows and shutters. Make your entrance the focal point and do a bright red front door flanked with white shutters - replace existing front door with a good insulated door with well sealed frame and remove the storm door. Window boxes with seasonal color would add interest. You have a small yard - so convert most of it into a garden...pea gravel path next to house...wind garden between pea gravel path and sidewalk. You have no shade but much sun...use sun loving perennials in your garden with ornamental grasses. Your cement drive and porch need replacement...if that is out of your budget, use a sponge to stamp a brick pattern on both - creating an "antique brick" look on both...pick an earthy brown/red color for the bricks...do not pick a red-orange for the bricks...that will not work with a red door and the Yuma Green house color.

Yuma Green House with red front door...

If the trim is the only place that the paint is in bad shape, you could save money and stay with the same color on the siding, paint the trim, buy new door, light fixture, shutters, landscape, etc.

I agree with all the green suggestions for the main house. There is a soft green house in our neighborhood with white/cream trim and an AMAZING grape purple door! Consider something truly "wow" for the front door and plant more purple flowers when you landscape. ABSOLUTELY paint your house first if it looks horrible close up and is peeling. Lots of suggestions here would make it the prettiest and most outstanding in your immediate area (i.e. stay away from all the gray, pale beige, boring ideas). I had a really ugly yellow house that had been a rental and I custom mixed two BM colors to get an amazing deep teal. We also painted our barn the same color with a soft cream trim. Now everyone knows us as the "Blue Barn" house. All my flowers are complimentary to the amazing color. Take the risk. It's only paint.

My home is green. It's very similar to Porter Paint's color called Dried Basil. The trim is a creamy tan. Our front door is navy.

If you're on a budget I think you could keep the paint but change the garage door./door & trim to medium warm gray; and invest extra money in some landscaping & shrubs around that front window! A few hundred dollars in plants could make a big difference.

My suggestion is when you paint the house, paint the garage door AND ITS' TRIM the exact same color. Your garage door should NOT be the dominant feature of your house and right now it still is. You want to draw people's attention to your (NEW) front door, not your garage door. Also, gutters & corner trim should match the body of the house color, NOT be contrasting. That will make the house look larger, too.

I like the color of your house but you need an interesting color for the shutters,garage door and the front door or storm door could use updating. I think to some extent the paint color choices depend on your climate and regional location. For instance, pale pastels for trim and shutters and garage doors are generally used in hot tropical climates. Also an interesting wide iron wall decoration could be used on the wide expanse under the 2 windows.
Creative landscaping will give natural beauty and make a world of difference. The driveway should be a project for another time.

I also recommend the Sherwin Williams color visualizer tool. I think a grayed sage green would look good on the house and would go nicely with the surrounding houses. I also like the idea of using a bit of a dark color on some of the house.

I think it would look really nice with a wide pitched pergola style carport out the front which also expanses all the way over to cover the top of the door as well - pave your driveway and widen it by making a curve towards the front door then you can line it with flowers and borders which continue along the front of the house.

Hi Sarah, your feeling about your new home reminds me of my own when I first saw our blocky, white rectangular house, and I totally agree with the person who said it's like a blank canvas. Do take a deep breath and take your time to find your "inspiration": it's your home, and it's like a new family member you're living with that you have to get to know! It's going to take a while to "feel it out" and understand its personality. Plus, it's not for resale (right?), so you have to love what you do to it. Having said that, it is a modern home, probably built at the end of the "MidCentury Period". Keep things simple and don't confuse yourself with houses from other periods and styles. For you, the best ones to refer to are going to be the ones that are most like yours, for example the "Mid Century Atlanta" and the "whole house green" photos that were sent earlier (HOUZZ is great for seeing homes by classification, so start browsing through the "Modern" and "Contemporary" exteriors files). And I agree; get rid of the shutters, and you're right: PAINT FIRST. Besides the splatter you mentioned, it's best to plant after painting because the coloration of plants' foliage and flowers should be chosen to enhance the paint (I have a friend that gave lots of money to a landscaper to design her garden - which then clashed with her paint colors. Not good!). Another suggestion to go with the others: homes from the period yours was built often used wood paneling on the outside as a feature. It could be cool to do a modern version of that and stain it instead of painting it like they did in the '60's and '70's (see attached), and paint the rest. Hope that helps!

@klas1, looking and sounding good! Great suggestions, keep the big vision and develop a "story"! That mission statement will be the road map to follow. Might take awhile, but if this is a long term project it will be worth the wait!

I wouldn't focus on paint. Needs landscaping and something to offset the garage.

We have a house in our tropical jungle neighborhood which was just painted something like SW country squire, maybe a little greener. So what do I think everytime I drive past it?
eeehhh - it clashes with all the plants! Seriously, I shudder...
While you obviously (!) don't want to plant yet, stick to your idea to paint first - but you might want to get some idea of the plants you might choose so not to have the painted walls clash. Green is one of those colors that you have to be aware of the tone outside where so much is green - well, for part of the year anyway.
Just love the great white pergola in the first pic!
you might see if you can find the show: "Curb Appeal - the Block" on HGTV on demand. They have done some amazing transformations and I think a couple like your house.

New Bright Front door. Paint garage door so it looks like two wooden carriage style doors. Use the garage door color (Rust, Dull copper,Brown) In the area above left side lower roof. Possibly paint or install small canopy windows there. I think a trellis or pergola across the garage would give the house additional depth and contrast. I would definitely add some low shrubs/plats/flowers across the front left side also.Yes the driveway needs replacing. I would check out getting a new one with stained concrete and a pattern effect added.

I think I read you are planning on a new front door, not just painting it. (Lots to read here!). Have a look at these doors you can order at Lowes. They are pretty reasonably priced too. They are brand new to Lowes and not on-line yet. Should be soon.
http://www.thermatru.com/products/entry/fiberglass-entry-doors/plf/index.aspx#/dso:door-ari_3-lite-fc2cl/go:dl/cfg:sd/

The color of your home is nice!! Use funds wisely to improve your curb appeal. The driveway and lack of shrubbery are first on the to-do list!! Also paint your shutters and door a dark color; charcoal or deep green might be nice. Leave the trim a crisp white for contrast with body of home. I love, love, love the arbor idea for your door and garage. You have a beautiful home. It just needs some finishing details plus a new driveway. A driveway is covers lots of pace and can steal the show for better or worse. Use funds to get the most bang for your buck. Have fun!!!

What you need for curb appeal is foundation plantings. There's no greenery around the house; it's too bare. Start planting now in the springtime. It will look great and increase the value of your home.

light gray house with black shutters and a red door.....white trim would look great with this !! and i love the idea of an arbor above the garage ...

paint the garage door the same color as the house...

Beyond painting the house, hire a qualified landscape designer in your area to design a new landscape which will vastly improve the curb appeal. It looks like the front yard is fairly shallow so once the designer has the dimensions of the space they'll be able to create a plant layout with appropriate proportion to the house and yard. A new front walk would also make your home more welcoming. Good luck with your project and enjoy your new home!

I'm not a professional, but I still think if you stick with your original color scheme of green (not a harsh tropical shade), and possibly added some type of architecture to your front door area, it would be the best place to start. Landscaping first would be like adding jewelry to a washed out face with no makeup. Get some life added with paint - you obviously hate it, so stick to what will make you happy first. The front of my home is in this green shake siding from Certainteed. I'm not recommending the siding, just giving you a visual to reference. http://www.certainteed.com/products/vinyl-siding/shake---shingle-siding/310282 (It used to be painted the Dry Basil color I mentioned before.) It is not easy to paint around landscaping, so I definitely recommend adding that after you paint. When you get to landscaping, I would consider some pyramid shaped conifers to break up the flat roof. I would stick away from a straight hedge look b/c you already have so many straight lines. I have found all green plantings look great with that shade of green.

We think the addition of a porch or pergola would be great for curb appeal! We also think green paint would be best, nothing too harsh though. Offset the green with white trim and dark shutters for a completed look! Good luck :)

In as much as I'm a landscaper and would be first to say it was important if it were me I'd first get the house fixed. I think a green on the lower body and a taupe/brown shingle on the upper section , as in this photo would look great. To balance the split-level area above the garage I would add a decorative trellis like this example : As to the landscaping can you make a photo from the front curb with your house in the center ? What garden zone are you in and how much sun/shade do you get ?

If it must be painted, zenia seeds are cheap! Buy the tall and short! You can have a fabulous display, of color bu June 15-October. Remember to Dead head all blooms for continuous blooms!

You can enhance the curb appeal of the house effortlessly. You just need to use this guide. Here is the link to my blog on 8 effortless ways to enhance your home's value. http://bit.ly/1z41DvA Hope you find it useful. Do share your feedback as well.

I believe this is called a split-level house because just the portion over the garage is the second story. I believe the house looks nice in yellow, and I would suggest a shade like lemon, which would have lighter and clearer tones. However, I would suggest you paint the shutters black to match the roof. The front door will be accented better with a matching wall-mounted light on the left side. I do like the idea of an arbor suggested by another poster. White-painted window boxes filled with red-blooming flowers will add charm and character.