Owning or renting a small house makes it a bit difficult to go all out when it comes to enhancing how it looks. You may feel like you’re limited in what you can do and how creative you can get, but there are many exterior ideas for small houses that you can use or get inspired by to improve your own small home.
In this article, we’ll take a look at some of the best exterior ideas for small houses that you can incorporate into your own plans. From taking care of your roof to adding features to make your home feel bigger and replacing parts of your home, we’ll cover the best ideas succinctly so you can get right to doing what you want with your house. Our list is in no particular order, so you can just use the ideas you like best and add your own to come up with unique ideas of your own.
1. Stick to Simple and Modern Ideas
One of the very best exterior ideas for small houses has to be this one—keep things simple and modern and you’ll have an attractive home, no matter its size. Use colors that are simple and complement each other, like black and white or lavender and teal. Make your exterior walls one color and then add outdoor furniture and decorations in a color that matches it. To keep things modern, why not consider solar install options that will also save you some money in the long run?
2. Add an Outdoor Living Area
Outdoor living areas are a nice way of giving yourself more space, so you can make the most of what you’ve got with your small home. Get outdoor furniture that you really like (and can withstand the elements) and place it in a cozy arrangement on your porch. If you don’t have a porch, create a space in your yard where you can put an outdoor living area. Make sure you have a surface for drinks and snacks too, as well as maybe an outdoor rug and throw pillows.
3. Maximize Space
One of the best exterior ideas for small houses we can give you is to use the space you do have as much as possible. Much like making your porch a living area, you can also make your yard an entertaining space. Make a big firepit area in your yard with comfortable seating and use this space for parties and gatherings. If you can, get rid of stumps and bushes that are stealing space that you could be using more productively.
4. Be Colorful and Bold
Your home’s exterior can always use a bit more color, don’t deny it! If you want to be colorful and bold with your small home, go for it! Plant flowers and colorful plants to naturally add color. Use stones and other hardscape features to bring even more color into your yard and make your small home feel as if there’s more space than it really has. Paint your porch railings and the exterior walls brightly to make your home pop. Use timeless colors like salmon pink or navy blue for accent color painting.
5. Choose a Light and Airy Theme
While bright colors are a good idea if you want your home to have a bold personality, you may feel more comfortable with a light and airy theme. You can, for example, paint your home creamy white on the outside and add window boxes that are painted light blue. Fill these boxes with white and pale pink flowers to add more to the theme. A smooth stone walkway and grassy, ornamental plants like Fountain Grass or Little Bluestem will help you naturally stick with the theme.
6. Add a Large Pergola
If you have some space in your yard, you can make your small house feel and look a bit bigger by adding a large pergola. What could be more timeless than a wooden pergola with light curtains and ivy snaking around its legs? A pergola can give you a great way of using your exterior space for parties and saving the interior for less festive activities. If you can transform your porch into a stamped concrete patio, even better! This is one of the most creative exterior ideas for small houses that have enough yard space to play with.
7. Limewash Can Be Timeless
Limewash in a beautiful white finish applied to bricks can be considered one of the most timeless exterior ideas for small houses. It can make your home look like an antique building that deserves to be protected and cherished. It can also distract a bit from the fact that the home is small if you hope to achieve that. Add a black, heavy wooden door to the mix and you’ve got a recipe for architectural beauty.
8. Be Inspired by the Classic Craftsman Style
Craftsman-style homes can be really attractive, and they can make a small house go from boring to interesting and unique. While this may be one of the more difficult exterior ideas for small houses to pull off, it’s worth all the effort. Having a low-pitched gable roof and overhanging eaves with exposed beams and rafters gives a lot of character to even small houses. Just make sure you add decorations around your yard that will suit this appearance or things will look odd and mismatched.
9. Update the Roof
When thinking about decorative exterior ideas for small homes, the roof doesn’t come to mind immediately, but it should. You can benefit a lot from contacting a roofing contractor to inspect yours and make sure it’s in tip-top condition. You can avoid structural damage by being vigilant like this. Updating your roof should be something you’re regularly looking into. After all, what’s a beautiful home’s worth if it has a shabby roof?
Adding a gutter guard can help keep your roof in good shape, and you can also consider new roof siding if it’s necessary. While you’re working on the structural integrity of your roof, make sure the rest of your home is up to standard as well. And consider giving the roof a fresh layer of paint since you’re already working on it.
Don’t be tempted to take on this task by yourself, even if you have a limited budget. Instead, reach out to your local roofing service and connect with experts who can sort it out for you.
10. Replace the Windows
You should never underestimate the impact new windows can have on a home. Not only can window replacements give you an opportunity to add more light to your interior and make it feel bigger, but you can get creative and add features like custom iron windows and make your home look more modern. This is one of the more complicated and expensive exterior ideas for small houses, because you’ll have to remove the current windows and make changes to the structure of your home in some cases. Still, it’s a great idea for aesthetics and can add value to your small home.
11. Install Fiber Cement Siding
Timeless doesn’t have to refer to your home’s appearance alone—it can be about the building’s structure as well. To keep your home in the best possible condition, make sure you don’t regret the siding. It’s a really good idea to replace the existing siding with fiber cement, which is more versatile, durable, and surprisingly low maintenance. You should contact professional siding services to take care of this for you, though, as you’ll need the right knowledge and tools to do it right.
12. Add Accent Sections
Speaking of adding siding to your home, you’re not limited to standard options alone. You can opt for decorative trim or board-and-batten siding instead, which creates a more aesthetically pleasing appearance. It’s even possible to choose one or more different siding styles and give your small home more character.
13. A Fresh Coat of Paint
We’ve mentioned painting quite a few times already, and it really is one of the best ways to give new life to any building, regardless of its size. Giving your home a fresh coat of paint in a timeless color is the best way to make sure it stays timeless. Of course, ‘timeless’ can depend on personal style and preferences, so think about what you consider to be timeless. After all, it’s you who have to stay in this house.
14. Add a Pop of Color
There are many exterior accent pieces you can use to add more color to your house and yard, like a living wall, fountains or birdbaths, and decorative statues. Color is something we’ve also mentioned several times while discussing exterior ideas for small houses, and they really do make a difference. Choose these accent pieces in eye-catching colors like royal blue, turquoise, or red, if they will match the rest of your exterior decor.
15. Add Some Texture
If you want to give your home more appeal on the outside, you should consider adding some texture. You can do this by adding a stone veneer skirt or cedar shingles. You don’t have to settle for just a brick or cement exterior, texture breaks the boring monotony. Stucco and architectural wall panels are also good ideas for adding texture.
16. Replace the Shutters
Does your home have shutters? If it does, chances are that they’re of the generic sort and not adding any aesthetic value to your house’s exterior. That doesn’t have to be the case, though. You can replace your shutters with more modern options that look really good and won’t make a small house look even smaller by being too big and clunky.
17. Replace the Shutters
Does your home have shutters? If it does, chances are that they’re of the generic sort and not adding any aesthetic value to your house’s exterior. That doesn’t have to be the case, though. You can replace your shutters with more modern options that look really good and won’t make a small house look even smaller by being too big and clunky.
18. Adjust Your Landscaping
Your home’s landscaping can really affect how big or small it looks, so by changing the landscaping and related features, you can make a small home look much bigger and more impressive. Add well-placed shrubs and plants, and create a rock-stone garden, for example.
19. Update Your Driveway
Your driveway is very important when it comes to curb appeal and the general attractiveness of your home. If you can’t enhance your house, put more focus on your driveway and make it stand out. Instead of boring old concrete, beautify your driveway with bricks or stamped concrete ground pavers and draw the eyes away from your house.
20. Add Exterior Lighting
One of the best ways to enhance the exterior of a small house is by adding beautiful and impressive exterior lighting. There are so many options to choose from, though, that it can be tough to decide on what lights to add. Accent lights, sconces, over-the-door lights, and string lights hung up in trees are some of the best options, in our humble opinion. The lights can be different colors as well. You don’t have to stick with just white or pale yellow. Why not brighten your small home with lighting in your favorite colors?
21. Enlarge the Entryway
Your small home may have a small entryway, and that just puts a lot of focus on the size of your home. That’s why it’s a good idea to use your entryway to redefine your exterior. If you have the space to play with, use it!
These timeless exterior ideas for small houses will require a little bit of planning and effort from you to get just right, but once you’ve implemented them in your home, you’ll be able to enjoy the fruits of your labor with pride. You have your list of ideas now, so the rest is up to you. Good luck and have fun!