Good grief. Don't invite that visitor over again! What you have is a classic Cape, one of the most practical, well designed architectual designs ever. Classic, not old woman (unless you're over three-hundred years old during American colonial period.) To bring out your Cape's best features and modernize it without compromising the style, remove the shutters since those are the only ones you have. Think about painting the window and door trim black. Add some decent sized sconces.

Next, hire a garden designer to create great looking, somewhat geometric front garden beds instead of a lawn--something like this on the right--mix of perennials, grasses, mulch, some big rocks, small tree. Front gardens visually enlarge small houses and pull the eye forward. Don't just go to big box store but a small garden center to get just the right design and plants.

Modern Prairie Front Landscape - New Berlin, WI · More Info

On the left, create an island for an angular tree, preferably evergreen so you have year around view of it if that works in your planting zone. This is way too big, but note the left half--small evergreens, dark mulch, big rock. If budget is a concern then a pair of evergreens set in a decent sized bed in the middle of the left lawn would add sculptural interest.

Whole Home Garden Design and Installation; large trees, flowers, shrubs in beds · More Info

I like the angularity and fullness of these front garden beds in front of two smallish Capes.

As others have said- remove the shutters, put in a great color on the door (you may eventually want a cool new door, though I can't see what you have) You desperately need trees and landscaping.

Which driveway do you use? Agree with the above. Don't plant hedges like either one of your neighbors! Those are atrocious on both houses. Get a professional to plan landscaping for you that you can install yourself over the next couple of planting seasons.

Your visitor had a trifecta: ageist, passive-agressive and lacking in discernment. If you want to "modernize" your classic house, by all means do so, but your time might be better spent elsewhere.

Oh Lordy! I agree with Mark 100%.

Gorgeous lawn. You could also add a tree, like an Eastern Redbud on the right side in the middle of the yard.

Here are some great front door colors from Benjamin Moore.

You have a basically charming cottage with a few needs: remove the shutters since they are the only ones and provide nothing, add some landscaping that is a little larger than the puny things you have now. Plant a nice tree in the middle of the larger section of the front yard. Let your flag hang free instead of rolled up. Install a larger light and post to give actual light to the front step and the door. Paint the door a deeper color.

Your visitor told you the truth. Lose the shutters. Paint the trim around the windows and the storm door black. Add rock work along both sides of the walkway. Add a couple of trees. Border the front porch with brick walls to create more of a stoop and then sit on it drinking a can of beer.

@starnold, your very last piece of advice is just what I had in mind with mine.

ok. I think I hear a concensus on the shutters. When I remove them, how do I address the fact that the brick is cleaner where they were vs. the rest of the house? I will also have a landscaper come take a look.

I'll also note that I will be getting new windows in a couple of months so those grey storms and divided panes will be gone.

I had the lawn resodded this spring as the old one was full of ugly fescue.

When I bought the home there were ugly bushes like the neighbors. Those were the first to go.

Get reddish bronze windows to harmonize with what looks like yellow brick and your reddish roof. Can you take a closeup of that brick? Depending on the colors in the brick, you could also get ebony bronze windows. It's just that you have so much roof showing, you want some warmth in your window frames.

My driveway is on the right and is shared with the slumlord next door who refuses to split the cost of replacing the cracked up driveway.

You may have to power wash the outside when you remove the shutters. Glad you are aware of the landscaping needs. A riotous cottage garden would be great with your classic cape. And yes, the door needs to be replaced or painted but if you plan a power wash, wait till you see the house all clean.

And ditch the mean friend. Constructive criticism is a sign of respect for others, no matter their age.

Just follow Mark’s advice 😊

Don't ditch the friend.

Some people are just blunt.

I'd rather blunt and honest than a smarmy sycophant or liar.

And you see, it is helpful advice, you are here, aren't you?

Back to yard work--

Yes, you should spiff up your yard, but not so much that you need to spend a lot of time maintaining it.

Before you touch a thing, please make a cohesive plan with a landscaper who can be very realistic and brutally honest (yes, there is that phrase again) about how much time you will need to put in on an ongoing basis.

You can decide what is most important to you.

Plant a nice flower bed as close to your property and the slum LL's property line as possible. That way the public will see your property ending and his eyesore beginning, even though it will be a trick to fool the mind into believing that everything left of the flower bed is yours and all to the right of it (including the drive) is his. Hopefully your guests can park on the street and avoid the eyesore he won't help with. You could always repair your lane and leave his looking crappy, but that's not the neighborly thing to do. You have to rise above his poor example.

decoenthusiaste the issue is that our houses are a driveway apart and share the entire driveway, from front to back.

I get that. Not saying you shouldn't use the driveway, just separate it visually from your own yard so the bad maintenance doesn't reflect on you so much. Folks will see the flower bed as where your property ends and will ignore the neighboring drive's appearance, even though you actually use it. I'm sure if it is a shared drive, your guests aren't allowed to park there and block the neighbor's way to their garage. Just a way to put the eyesore out of sight in the minds of your guests, and yourself (out of sight, out of mind.)

Have you taken the shutters down and seen a marked difference in the color of the brick? It should not be from fading, but rather dirt. So, a not too intense power wash might do the job.

I could see that you planted hydrangeas and they are young plants that will easily grow to twice their size and fill the foundation. Hydrangeas are one of my favorite plants I have four different varieties in my back yard. The only problem with them being the only plant along your foundation is that in the winter time they look bare. You can leave the dried flowers on until spring, but they are not much to look at during the winter.

…

Good ideas here. I would also recommend updating the things hanging on the house..mailbox, house number plaque to something more modern. Move the flag all the way left or right. Move the light post or do away with completely. Your landscaping is def old ladyish. I would move the hydrangeas ( or maybe leave one at most. Get a pro to design the landscaping. Replace the pots with more updated planters and plant something pretty in them. Look online at how to fill planters.
I would take your honest friend any day over someone that just tells you what you want to hear.

Why do people use the term "old ladyish" when they want to be derogatory?

I think the shutters add interest to the front of the house. The colour doesn't complement the brick and I'd repaint them. What colour will your windows be? I'm assuming your storm door will remain white. A bronze colour or a dark olive green/brown might look good.

This also avoids the problem of the difference in brick colour where the shutters were. Brick can be damaged by some cleaning methods so beware of that if you go the route of removing the shutters.

Your friend's "old woman" remark made me smile. Reminded me of my 13-year-old nephew who, on seeing the art work in our home by Scott Griffith, blurted out "I didn't think people your age liked stuff like that." He's grown up and knows better now.

Painted brick is very popular now. It does create a need for ongoing maintenance, but you could paint the brick whitish and do black windows. It often looks better with a dark gray roof. It's an option, but I think landscaping will give you more bang for your buck.

Either limewash or use a product that is permanent if changing the color of the house is on the table. You referred to your neighbor as your landlord, so I got the impression you rent this house. Did you want to completely change the outside color?

Sandybean has great ideas, I would like to add a few others, depending on budget:
Covering over front step.
Is the chain link on the left yours? Does it have a purpose? If not, remove. If fencing is needed at least replace or disguise that portion with a fencing panel.
Paint the sidewalk.
Pull garden out anoter 10 feet in front of house and include space for 2 andirondack chairs under a tree.
Frame front windows and doors with 2” wide trim.
Statement light fixture and house numbers.
Start browsing and saving images of similar houses in Houzz to see what captures your ideal.

NO to painting that brick. I was immediately drawn to the use of that contrasting brick coursing on the left side of your home. FABULOUS mid mod design, incorporated into your bungalow’s cape. This is what I so love about the little homes like yours that were built in developments after WWII. A standard plan with individual character. I really would do a quick search on post war suburbia and you will see how these homes share a common heritage, evoking the colonial past while embracing the optimistic future. LOVE them. You have gotten wonderful advice here. But mostly….I suggest you go to RetroRenovation AND look at how these homes used to look when they were first built, for inspiration. Retro is cool. (In other words, your “old lady” home is hip! And your “friend” is hopelessly out of time with the times!). 😆

In addition to the other excellent advice, paint the storm door whatever color you end up painting the front door--to avoid that "white rectangle look."

some mulch along both sides of the walkway with some solar lights (or plants) would extended visual interest

Park a couple of cars up on blocks, litter the yard with beer cans and call it a day. Seriously, you have a well cared for home with a nice lawn. It’s cute cottage style house. I like it. But technically I am an old lady. I don’t think it needs a lot of changes.

I would:

• Remove the shutters
• Paint the front door a warm green
• Add a modern railing to the sides of the porch
• Add plantings, flanking the length of the front walk
• Add modern mailbox
• Add modern floating house numbers

I own the home. The hours to the right of mine (from the front view) is owned by a slumlord. I share that single driveway that goes between the homes. There are several homes in the area set up in a similar way. It's a terrible idea and the driveway is technically half way on each owner's property so we have to have an easement on file with the city.

I would paint the brick off white after removing the shutters; then paint window and door trim glossy black and the front door a dark red. Take up the grass about 3 feet on either side of the front walkway and plant alternating Sedum autumn joy and Japanese blood grass ( a very manly combo -lol).

great ideas Glo European Windows & Doors. I love those modern numbers and considered them, but installing them would mean drilling in to the brick which I want to avoid. We just purchased the address sign that we had. We replaced an ugly old wood street number sign. We also updated the old mailbox that was there with the one we have, but I'll consider a different style. The prior one on there was a heavy metal one from decades ago. I ilive the idea of painting the front door and storm door, but I am not sure about going with a muted color (it's currently a dark blue color that I love) or a bolder color to draw attention to that door.

Which mailbox do you think would go best?

A: https://www.amazon.com/Architectural-Mailboxes-2689RZ-Wayland-Mailbox/dp/B07DMLCDCJ/ref=sr_1_22?dchild=1&keywords=wall+mount+mailbox&qid=1629478414&refinements=p_85%3A2470955011&rnid=2470954011&rps=1&sr=8-22

B: https://www.amazon.com/Vintage-Mailbox-Wall-Mount-Mailboxes-Bronze/dp/B08KG2MKBM/ref=sr_1_13_sspa?dchild=1&keywords=wall%2Bmount%2Bmailbox&qid=1629478784&refinements=p_85%3A2470955011%2Cp_36%3A1253529011&rnid=1243644011&rps=1&s=hi&sr=1-13-spons&smid=ALXZA5C8PNSGC&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUExNldaUTI3WEhVOUxCJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwOTE0MjExMzJDOVFXOVQ3WkdDNCZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwODA4NjM5M0M3MUtLQVBXUjlSRyZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX210ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU&th=1

C: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08BC5G6BY/ref=twister_B097M3Q8WW?_encoding=UTF8&th=1

Definitely consider a brighter door-and -storm-door color. Your house is quaint and a brighter color will work well. Light green, turquoise, baby blue, all would be a nice “smile” to add to your house. I wouldn’t paint the brick. Or cover it, but if you wanted to, you need a permanent substance, not paint.

If you do decide to paint the brick, use a product such as Romabio which is meant for that purpose.

Whatever colour you decide for your front door, repeat it elsewhere. Same as with indoor decorating, it will look more intentional and take your exterior look to the next level. For example, here are some blue flowers for different seasons if you stay with the blue door that you like now.

https://www.countryliving.com/gardening/garden-ideas/g25414502/blue-flowers/ Some of these are very easy-care.

Or paint some other front design elements the same colour as your door. A small chair/table beside the door, flower pots etc.

Dont paint the brick. if it is noticeably cleaner under the shutters, the rest of the brick can be power washed to clean it.

What color new windows are you getting?

Can you paint the white trim around the frint door or is that vinyl?

Love dark blue door - I would paint the storm door the same color it will give it more presence. Leave sidelights trim color

I would never paint the brick. That would be a disaster. Nor would I cover it. I plan to update the door color to one that pops a bit more.

First coat of the new color! What do you all think?

Looks happier already!

Very cheery! What is the name of the color?

Did you attempt to wash around where the shutters where? From what I've just read using your hose and spray nozzle and a broom may do the trick. How to clean brick walls. Few other ideas on the internet, almost all say don't use high pressure or harsh chemicals.

I'm not a fan of that blue with the brick and your roof. On my screen anyway, it is too bright and the colour too clear. I would go darker and more grayed, since you say you really like blue..

I would put the shutters back.

Red flowers in your pots would tie in with your flag. Or white. The yellow is not a flattering colour with your house brick.

But if it were my house I would go with black accents.

Cute house! i agree with Partim. Keep the shutters. They add some interest to an otherwise plain front.I’d paint them white to match the trim on the door and other window.

I've received numerous compliments about the new front door color. It is a brighter color, and the majority of recommendations here were to use a brighter color. I previously had a beutiful dark blue on the door, but it blended in too much. The prior owner, who lived in the house since it was built in 1945, had used that color on the plastic shutters so I kept it as the trim color for the past 10 years. I would have to check on the name of the color. I like that it draws attention to the house and is the focal point. I will be redoing the landscaping in spring.

Here's a photo of the garage using that same color (mid-painting).

I did clean the brick with a deck/porch scrub brush and cleaner (a small amount of tsp and Simple Green brick cleaner) but it didn't make a difference. Years ago I did powerwash the house but that made little difference. There are over 70 years of dirt that's infiltrated the bricks. I did what my mason recommended and that was to rub dirt into the lighter brick area and that helped to even out the color substantially.