Shingles in the area above the porch would be a large improvement. I am posting three images one to show how you can accent and use multiple finishes to make a home look better, one to show an attractive porch w/ plants in front and one to show you how you could use the slope as a showcase.... all three have parts you can use to make your home be a standout :-)
Home improvement stores carry railing, plants and "locking" blocks, doing the work yourself and/or recruiting family & friends would save you major$$ over hiring a company to do the work.... Tackle one job at a time and you should be able to get your home projects done in about 3 week ends.

I would definitely remove the lattice and add a more attractive railing, or even some nice columns to keep the area opened up. Add the shutters to those windows and a nice color on the door to really make it pop! Keep the brick original. On either side of the stairs add some nice flower beds and mulching and maybe add some lighting along the sidewalk.

You could also add ground cover to that slope and it would help a lot.

Congratulations on your first home! You have chose one with great potential!

It can be an exciting, though confusing time, so many decisions. See if your local library has any books about bungalows or craftsman homes, as this is what your home appears to be. It will give you an idea of what you can do, as well as this great site. There are so many poics here to get ideas.

The first thing I would do, as others have mentioned, is take down the lattice. It doesn't go with your style house. It originally had rails and a bannister. You can easily find parts to do that yourself at Lowe's or other home businesses. Please do not use deck rails that screw onto the wood across the top. For your house, it should have a top piece that the rails fit into underneath.

A new mailbox, housenumbers or number sign and a new craftsman styled light fixture would go far to bring some curb appeal too.

I think that the color of your front door needs to be changed if you are going to keep the other colors, or even if new colors will come down the road. It has no connection to the house, and draws attention to the door too much. I suppose the door is a replacement, but you might want to consider getting a door that is more in the craftsman style. You can find them in the ideabooks, or look closely at the yellow bungalow that stamps design posted.

Which direction does your house face and what zone you live in will help determine plants for your yard. I agree that you should plant something on the slope out front. If it is shady out there, pachysandra would fill in nicely. You could plant bulbs in there as well in the fall for spring color. Up near the house, some landscaping would soften the edges nicely. Again, what you plant would be determined by the amount to sun you receive there.

love the idea of shingles in arch, look at Hardi Board Shingles, of course the lattice work has to go and replace w/railing, , I would use a paint in a deeper neutral color, no white for door and trims, move the mailbox under a new and larger light to help balance the slightly off center door, love the large tree and the addition of stone on slope would be super, plant some small trees to break the sight line of the neighbors chain link fence. and give some privacy.....great house, have fun...

For a start, I'd lose the lattice, and add some columns to the left and right of the steps. The porch roof span looks too wide. Maybe something a little more pronounced above the columns. Look to Greek architectural design not just for classical design, but for basic proportion. Things look funny for a reason, and the ancient Greeks knew why.

Great book:

http://www.amazon.com/Get-Your-House-Right-Architectural/dp/1402791038

I disagree about the addition of columns as I think it will close in this small paorch too much. I do think that the porch has an unfinished quality about it by the edge. It seems like there is a piece missing that would go across the front up by the ceiling of the overhang, but I don't know what that is called.

Cute home! Congratulations!

I agree: return to the hand rails and banister in the original style of the house. I like the idea of shingles too.

Is that a silver maple? Check to be sure it's in good health. It will probably be hard to establish plants at it's base... You shouldn't change the soil level around it, that may very well suffocate it. It might be best to have it taken down and replaced with a lush garden and smaller scaled trees that are farther from the walkway....

Do I see brick behind and just above the trellis? Could you pull that down and provide another photo so we can better see what the porch really looks like.

There are 3 things I would change here to update this elevation. I would add shingle siding to the gable, remove the trellis and add a handrail with spindle, and I would change the front door, update with a craftsmanship style in a medium toned wood. I love the front porch element and would add seating and landscape the front of the home to soften the brick which is classic. Good luck with your project!

I would not add columns...but definitely look into low height rails. You can look into shutters or install a wider frame around the windows

(on this photo-look at the window trim...front door too stained/finished)

(window frames)

Then I like what others said, install a horizontal hardie board at the base of the A frame arch. Then install and paint shingles above that. Or a less expensive idea is to possibly look at installing a "faux" window and shutters in the A frame area?

For the front door, is that a new one or original? If it is original, I'm wondering if it is a solid, hardwood? Would be worth looking into stripping and refinishing that. Older homes used some of the best wood material back then.

It really is a cute little house! Once you remove the lattice and put in the banister rails, a couple of rocking chairs on the porch will look really homey. The door color should be dark, probably a burgundy that looks nice with the brick color, but a dark wood would look good, too. The shingles will look great. Once you've made those changes, you might want to change the color of your steps, too. I'd put a couple of small cypress trees on each side of the steps to give a welcoming finish to the entry.

I would add medium to low plantings around your big tree. You probably will need to use stone bricks or a plank retaining wall, to keep the soil around the plantings, since the ground is sloping.

Put flowers or green plants to line the sidewalk, and plant podocarpus (yew) or tall bushes of some kind, along the chain link fence, to create a sense of "my yard" and to hide the fence.

At the top of the porch, add around the rectangular air vent , a metal round medallion of some sort, or get an artist friend to paint a geometric design around it, to create symmetry and beauty to one of the first places people see.

Lastly, add a small Japanese maple or decorative flowering bush to the right side of the yard, to balance the huge tree. (The large tree needs trimming to some extent also.)

Most cities/towns have a "bungalow" section of town. Drive through it, and see if you get design ideas, landscape ideas. Take pictures, and create an "idea book" on your computer, to slowly add to your house, over time, as you own it. You will be surprised: not everything is super expensive, and plants in particular, if you buy small, will quickly grow to nice sizes that add charm and green, and color to a house! Good luck!

I would definitely remove the trellis. It needs to be softened up quite a bit.Perhaps some flower boxes on top of a new railing and some plantains in the front with some flowering tree on the right side . I also would suggest a different door. Shingles to the arch would be nice, but opening it up/removing it could also be nice. It would definitely open up the space which looks very closed in right now.

Please don't remove that grand tree! On a practical level the cost of hiring a crew, disposal, etc. etc. would be high. But the beauty and utility of a huge old tree is priceless. It is proven that trees keep the temp around them cooler in the summer - the leaves reflect 95% of the sun's light. Make sure tha the roots are not disturbed or covered - you don't want to suffocate them. We had a large tree die recently, and the house is lots hotter now.

Just say eww to yews! They get too large or need constant trimming. Please use dwarf plants to avoid this ongoing maintenance problem. A soft evergreen at the edges of the brick columns. placed out a bit to allow for growth would soften the edges nicely. Then some endless summer hydrangeas in front of the porch area would look lovely with this home.

The house is sweet and cute, with its classic "House" shape and all the nice brick. The symmetry and nostalgia make it very pleasing. As others have said, lattice becomes proper railing (put your $$$ here), gable gets shingles, plantings get tidied, door gets replaced. Save your gorgeous old tree for comfort, coolness, and the environment, and also because it is perfectly sited to frame and offset your darling house. This picture will say "HOME" to 90% of Americans....

I think this is probably what that place had at one time.

Paint out the green colour of the eaves trough to something neutral.

Cute…get rid of the lattice.

No lattice! Can you add a small window to the triangle area? Change the door to a black Dutch door. You need a cute, sizable lamp.

We have to say that we would love to see some shutters on that front porch! We are suckers for an authentic porch with properly fitted shutters.