Porches, railings, porch dividers and supplemental roof perches, like a TV antenna, make any house more appealing. You can also make houses from gourds by fashioning an entrance hole and small holes in the bottom for drainage. If you use gourds, it's not necessary to add railings and perches. Adult martins will perch on the wire used to hang the houses. Before you select a house, think about what kind of pole you're going to put it on.
Martins occupy a house ten to twenty feet off the ground.
Some poles are less cumbersome than others. Chickadees, Nuthatches and Titmice Chickadees, titmice and nuthatches share the same food, feeders, and habitat. If you put a properly designed nest box in a wooded yard, at least one of these species might check it out. Put chickadee houses at eye level. Hang them from limbs or secure them to tree trunks.