How to Renovate a Brick Ranch House

Sketch the exterior with colored pencils to develop needed changes. Draw the house with a larger front porch and a different color of trim and shutters, for example. Sketch the house with a copper metal roof to complement the brick exterior. Plan to enclose the front porch with glass as another option. Consider removing the exterior living room wall, and opening the room to the edge of the glassed-in porch.

Select a paint color for the brick exterior. Test the paint color by sketching the house in the chosen scheme, such as cream with pale green shutters. Pressure wash all brick, and repair any mortar gaps. Allow the brick surfaces to dry for 48 hours before applying a high-quality primer made especially for bricks. Roll on paint recommended by an expert at a home improvement store.

Improve roofing and landscaping. Install a copper metal roof to complement many colors and textures of brick or painted brick surfaces. Or use cedar shakes on the roof to enhance brick texture. Buy high-quality roofing for a ranch roof, because the roof is typically long and low, making it highly visible from curbside. Expand the home's sidewalk to a 6-foot width with lantern-type post lighting at curbside. Invest in detailed landscaping, curving outward toward the curbside, to add depth to the boxy shape of a ranch house.

Remodel the entry and main living room. Install a new front door with two side panels of glass, for example. Open the upper half of a wall in the entry adjacent to the living room. Add a sky well capped by a skylight in the living room, along with energy-efficient windows. Vault the ceiling to expand the living room visually, because a typical ranch living space is often a basic rectangle.

Upgrade the kitchen and baths. Add new tile to the floor or back-splash areas of the kitchen. Purchase new appliances in stainless steel. Install new shower-tub combos in bathrooms along with new sink and vanity spaces. Paint the kitchen and bathrooms in contemporary colors, and add new cabinet hardware. Make sure interior upgrades complement exterior upgrades, so the market value of the house increases.