Editor’s Note: The following is a guest contribution from Houzz, a leading platform for home remodeling and design.
For all the time we spend enjoying our homes from the inside, there’s something so pleasing about coming home to a beautiful outside. Whether it’s a gorgeous paint color, careful landscaping or the invitation of a front porch seat, these six photos captivated users, making them the most popular exteriors uploaded to Houzz in 2016, as measured by saves to ideabooks.
6. Open living
Black-trimmed glass doors open to an indoor-outdoor living space, with sofas and conversation spots in or out.
5. Strong and modern
Warm wood and slate-toned horizontal panels complement and contrast in this modernist home. The horizontal patterns repeat in the double roof line and in the concrete slabs that form the walkway and the pony wall.
Related story: See More Popular Home Exteriors on Houzz
4. Pool deck
There are plenty of places to sit on a hot day in this outdoor-centric layout, from balcony to swinging chair to dangling your feet in the pool. One of only three backyard scenes to crack the top 15, this setting appears made for lazy-day lounging.
3. Travertine path
Special features of this Spanish-style home include a walkway of travertine set in mortar, an outdoor seating area that extends from the interior living room and a spiraling staircase visible from the entry door.
Related story: Connect With Exterior and Siding Contractors
2. Fire pit
This private backyard with a fire pit surrounded by Adirondack chairs looks like a comfortable place to take in the evening air after a hard day at work. When the temperature dips, the warmly lit interior appears just as inviting.
1. Lakeside modern
This shot was the most popular exterior photo uploaded to Houzz in 2016. Readers appreciated the organic, modern forms, in particular the stonework and dramatic windows.