Stucco Vs Vinyl Siding is a Major Home Improvement Decision

As far as eternal soul searching is concerned, this may not be something high on your list of perplexing riddles in need of solving. On the other hand, if you are a recent home buyer looking to spruce up your new purchase, it might very well be the source of many of your conversations as of late. The questioned posed is a very good one. What material should I use to envelope my home? After throwing out the more ridiculous or to put more subtly - unorthodox - of options, you are usually left with either stucco or vinyl siding to work with. There are very good reasons for choosing either of these options, it all depends on your specific situation. It could be useful to think about the following considerations before deciding. What kind of neighborhood am I in?

You may find that every single home within a mile of yours employs either stucco or siding, always to the exclusion of the other. This presents an interesting choice, to conform to the rest of the neighborhood or to stand out a bit. If you decide on stucco, it may give your home an air of sophistication that the other houses lack. The opposite can also be true. If your neighborhood is mostly stucco, you may find that adding vinyl siding may make your house look like the runt of the subdivision. This might be the only question that ultimately matters in many cases. How much will it cost?

In this area it is usually the vinyl siding that wins. The installation costs are less, the material costs are less, and the repairs are easier. The ability to replace a single piece of vinyl with another piece of identical vinyl can help put you at ease when a stray baseball hits your home. Stucco jobs can be difficult to repair if they are done poorly. Cracks and discoloration may appear, ruining the appearance of your otherwise wonderful home. What kind of maintenance does it require?

Once again it is the vinyl that wins in this category. Though it is not too substantial of a victory in any sense of the word, it is nonetheless important to point out. Stucco fades and may have to be painted on a regular basis. Vinyl need only be washed somewhat regularly - a hose will do - to keep it looking like new. Which one looks better?

As was perhaps hinted at earlier, stucco usually looks nicer, more refined some might even say. It is ultimately in the eye of the beholder, but the general trend is for bigger and better situated homes to have stucco while more modest homes have to make do with the vinyl. This is not to say that quality vinyl is not a perfectly legitimate option, only that the perception is that stucco is the nicer, more expensive, option. What will ultimately be the best choice for you may hinge on a single or perhaps several of the aforementioned factors.