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I'm in the process of buying the attached home. It's an older house, 70's, and it looks it. My intention is to do some slight renovation to improve its curb appeal, starting with the general look of the house, particularly that wall/gate. The lot size is way too small to have something like that going on, not to mention it doesn't even match anything in or around the house! It also is just asking for some tagger to come along and mark it up, which I don't care to clean up.
So, I want to get rid of it and replace the mailbox, if I can, then re-sod the lawn all the way around the house (it's not too bad now, but I want a fresh looking lawn). Here's the problem though: The lawn is flush with the top of the wall, beneath the gated portion. If I remove the wall, I'll have quite a bit of excess dirt and it won't be level with the driveway.
Looking for opinions here: What's the best way to go about this? This house is the only one with a wall/gate like this and it's really irritating. What are some ideas to make this look better? I'm a DIY'er to some extent, but would gladly hire someone to do the work if I know I'll be pleased with the outcome.
Maybe if you could tear down the wall, you could terrace it and have a more gentle slope up into the lawn, instead of a sharp drop off. You could use railroad ties, or landscape timber. Or get really fancy with paver or stones. Maybe 3 0r 4 terraces? I can't see the side to tell what the angle would be. Then you could plant it with slow growing plants or native ornamental grasses. Or maybe someting like daylilies, or even a groundcover.
A cheaper fix might be to paint the wall and railing. It seems to stick out the color it is now against what looks to be beiges and brown of the house. The wall looks like it has some details that could be played up. Maybe painting the railing a darker color, the wall lighter, with accents on the details with the dark color, or vica versa.
And maybe extent those colors over to the house... the garage door is a little stark looking against the color of the ...is it stucco?
Well just my thoughts! Have fun with it, unless it is a HOA hee hee
It's not an HOA. However, I intend to bring up to the standard that HOA would normally call for. That wall's got to come down, painting it isn't an option at this point.
I wish I had better pictures but I don't at the moment, and it's about 20 miles away. The driveway slopes down towards the street, the house is elevated quite a bit above the street; as a result the lawn is straight and flat in front of the house, it doesn't slant down with the driveway, which I suppose is to be expected since the house is on a slight hill. I'm just trying to figure out how to remedy it now.
Location: When things get hot they expand. Im not fat. Im hot.
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Its hard to see from the pic. I would tear the wall down part way so its level with the lawn to see how that would look. This should open things up quite a it. You can always finish tearing it down if you dont like it. If it looks okay then paint the stucco to match the house and add a flat topper to the shorter wall.. This would probably be your cheapest option
I like the terracing idea too. But Im a garden person. Theres pros and cons to think about there. Less yard to mow but more flowers/landscape to tend.
Or if you really hate the wall and youre going to resod anyway why dont you just rent a bobcat and regrade the yard to match the driveway slope.. Whoever bullt that wall probably smooshed the existing dirt so the lawn behind the wall would be flat. Just make sure they didnt do it for a reason. Like the yard sloped too much to mow.
I agree about the white on the wall and garage door. it does kinda jump at ya. I dont want to insult you but I dont care for the colors on that house at all.
No insult; like I said it's an older home and it shows. The previous owners were trying to do some renovations but just didn't finish; I intend to finish as I plan to be in this house for some years. I'm just focusing on that wall as it sticks out like a sore thumb; the garage door isn't THAT bad; in fact it was installed within the last year. The picture doesn't quite do that justice, but the wall is just as gaudy in the picture as it is in person.
I'll probably talk to some landscaping companies and see what they recommend. I really want to level that lawn, but the fact the house is somewhat on a hill seems to throw that off. I don't want flowers and what not - just straight grass at least to begin with.
If you want to keep the level lawn behind the wall would a laid up stone wall in natural colors be more pleasing to you?
It's hard to make suggestions without knowing your tastes or ultimate goal
Thought I was clear about the end goal but...
Here's another house. This is what I want to end up with as far as the lawn having no wall around it and being flush with the driveway.
Maybe the photos are deceiving me but it looks like you want a lot thats flush with the sidewalk and that's just not what you have.
For all grass, looks like your only choice is to remove the wall, grade the lawn into a slope that will go from foundation to sidewalk and haul away the excess dirt.
The second photo is up on a hill just like the first. In fact it's on a higher grade. The lawn angles down towards the sidewalk and is neatly flush with the sidewalk. That's what I want - it gives a feeling of openness that is sorely missing in the existing lot.
I still have to talk to a landscaper. I really would want that done.
Location: When things get hot they expand. Im not fat. Im hot.
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I cant tell from the pic but as long as its a gentle slope you should be fine with grading to match the drive. Steep slopes are a pita cause theyre dangerous to mow..
And dont worry about any extra dirt. Trust me. Somebody is always looking for fill dirt. Just make sure if you give any away its not your good top soil. Always keep the good stuff
Oh. And you might want to advertize that wall on Craigs list as a freebie. Somebody might want it. Ya never know.
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hee hee