Don't buy it

Ditto, it’s not the house for you if you hate it

Love the house, view, everything but the brink. Looking for stone advice.

I think there are products to change the color of the grout. I would go lighter to match the stone more. Stone looks horrible painted, so I would not go that route.

Where is this house ? I love stone houses so not much help here . IMO if the rest is perfect I would just embrace the stone on the houise but eliminate the stone walkway and entry patio . that would help I think. I have this stone FP in my house that I was sure I was going to cover in concrete and now it is my favorite thing in the house.It adds something to the place . I think trying to change the grout would be abad idea not to mention taking forever to be done .

From the limited photo, I really like the stone. I agree it’s the stone walkway that takes it over the top. Luckily that’s much easier to change.

Do you have a photo of this house from further away so that we can see it in its entirety, from roof to ground and its width?

That would be very helpful

I don’t think that stone will look good painted. Perhaps a limewash type thing (I am no pro, so I’m not using correct terminology)? It’s just too large of an area for painting. I agree with others- either live with it or don’t buy the house. That said, I bought a brand new home and hated the fireplace and the outside of the home. But after a few months living there I loved the fireplace (stone and brick) and grew to really like the exterior. It’s a possibility that the home’s good qualities will override those that you dislike.

I agree with others on here don’t buy it

So I’m remembering… there’s not one home I’ve owned that I completely loved the exterior. Like I said above, I grew to like them. What made me stay was the home’s other benefits such as location and inside layout. I’m wondering if you kept that stone and added some shutters similar to old stone homes in France. (Google “maisons en pierre”). Perhaps redo the walkway and new landscaping. Just a thought.

Get rid of the stone walkway and try adding some wood or darker accents to the front. I think it would make a huge difference. I’m not great at choosing colours but I wonder if painting out the trim slightly darker might give the eye something else to look at. It appears to be a big house and changing the grout or stone colour might be a massive job. Could you try a few smaller things first? I think you will be surprised by how much it changes the look.

With houses, there’s always something to hate as well as love. Only you know if this particular house has more of what you love.

Also, for some pe, and I’m one, there are some house things that are just harder for me to change than others. I’m not good at undertaking those interior gut/ renovation journeys. Or totally re- envisioning views, putting in major new windows.

When looking for a smaller home not long ago, I was basically very disappointed at the available floorplans. And that was in a range of prices including more chi- chi neighborhoods— such poor layout & re- muddles.

So if you hate- hate the stone, but still considering, be sure the interior and property have a lot of appeal and aren’t somehow more of the same “ aesthetic “. Or understand whether there are other better houses coming on the market with exteriors more to your taste.

The best advice so far to

me is change the walkway. I hadn’t even thought about that but it’s brilliant-the Fred Flintstone walkway is more obnoxious than the house, and much easier to change. Plus landscaping.

Decide how much you hate, your budget to change and interested enough to sway you. Does the interior and location, etc. outweigh the exterior.

The walkway could be changed and/or softened with landscaping. Regarding what can be done to the stone itself, your best bet is reach out to a pro, for options and costs.

Would be great to see from further back, as landscaping might just be your answer.

Please don’t ruin that stone — just don’t buy it if you would have to change it dramatically in order to live there.

Sorry, it would be a deal breaker for me. Waaaay too busy for me ! I can’t think of a way to make it better.

Also, not sure if you’re a veteran house- hunter but if new, you might read some HOUZZ threads on people trying to arrange things in their“ new houses”, and some of the “ The best houses have” lists.

Meaning, be sure this house has more to offer than the problems in many McMansions or newer ( and older!) houses- nowhere to put TV except high above fireplace, noise- making 2 story entries and open lofts, interior kitchens with poor light or serving as a traffic zone, or poor flow to outdoor areas—of course could be other things that bug you.

That a lot of stone. If you hate it, don’t buy this house.

If you can live with it, I would change the walkway. It will help you “see” the positives. Adding darker trim around the windows might help. Overall, putting a German Smear on this, or anything else that completely covers the stone, might make it look worse. The examples shown above by @Maureen have much flatter looking stones than this house.

Can you show us a further back photo? It clearly has landscaping needs, as most of the front looks like dirt with a couple of lame bushes.

You can apply limewash over the stone to soften the appearance.

Or you can apply masonry paint to mute the appearance of the stone altogether.

Small changes can make a huge difference.

Yes about changing the walkway.

Perhaps you could cover some of the stone inside the portico with wood in a nice complementary color or stain.

I agree that trim in a darker color, maybe even black, might also help - you would need a good photoshop to test that out. What apps have you tried? Any of the paint manufacturers?

Most of all, a lot more landscaping to soften the house overall - is is a massive looking house, and the plantings need to be more in tune with that - vines on trellis, grasses, perennials, etc. I like the small tree on the right, but the little shrubs on the left don't seem to have the proper potential.