Here's a cool idea. Paint the porch wall a deep rich red-brick brown. I like the brick.

Add a modern black porch light fixture.

New black address numbers. Brass numbers would work nicely.

Black Front door with white trim.

Black shutters.

Here is a rough sketch of my concept:

(My software is not the best at color but you don't want it to look washed out.)

A little darker:

less red:

I don't see a path to the front door. The windows are fine.

I think the house looks pretty good as is, I'd focus on trimming the landscaping and adding a path to the door. Maybe a flowering tree in the front yard.

Remove the shutters, paint the whole thing including the brick the same color of your choice, update the door.

Remove the shutters and paint the brick white. An all white house would look fantastic, and with a bright red door.

Thank you for the great ideas! We just moved in last week and it's a bit of a fixer upper! There is a path coming from the left, but it needs to be fixed. Same with plantings. I like the idea of removing shutters, replacing screen door and painting door a cool color. Also need to get a good light fixture. Is there a visualizer app that might enable me to see how it would look? Our former house was mid century modern, so I'm drawn in that direction but not sure how a colonial can morph that way to look more modern!

PS: I should add this this house is in the countryside, and I'm trying to alter its suburban look.

@tracefloyd has it: Paint back wall brick red. Paint front door. Trim landscaping for now, but plan a redesign of landscaping/hardscaping down the road when you have time and a bigger budget--maybe red brick pathway.

Classic traditional house looks attractive. In the long run, the many suggestions above are excellent.

If you have an hour, trim just the tops of the front shrubs to either windowsill height or a foot below it, depending on how much energy you have on a day in July. It can certainly wait until fall.

In the short term, moving in last week means that you have a lot of unpacking and putting away to do. When you focus on exterior changes, keep in mind that the views of the exterior with the most impact on you yourself are where you drive up, how you and your family enter the house, and what you see when you look out the kitchen window. Those are the places where minor changes boost morale immediately. For example: hose the summer dust off the garage door and the driveway, put a new door mat in front of the family entrance, and hang a birdfeeder by the kitchen window.