As a real estate professional, you know how important landscaping can be. The plants around a home serve as a frame for the property, accentuating or detracting from its best features. In many cases, landscaping improvements can increase a home’s curb appeal and attract the attention of potential buyers. The right landscaping improvements can even increase property value. Here are some examples:
1. Make maintenance easier
Anything that makes lawn and landscape maintenance easier is a tangible benefit to buyers. The addition of automatic irrigation systems can add value by making watering more convenient and less of a hassle for future owners. Drip lines installed on porches and patios for container gardening also help minimize watering time. In addition to being visually pleasing, raised flower beds can minimize weeding and may help retain moisture.
2. Create backyard living space
Increasingly, homeowners see their backyards as extensions of their homes. Using landscape features to craft an outdoor oasis can add to the appeal – and perhaps the value – of a home. Plantings around a fire pit, grill, patio, or seating area can help define the space and add visual appeal. Landscape elements, such as water features, can add a peaceful ambiance and upscale feel.
3. Maximize privacy
Landscaping that helps seclude backyards from neighbors and traffic can make a property more attractive and desirable. Plus, privacy planting evergreens, tall shrubbery, or trellises can double as a wind screen for an added bonus.
4. Update walkways
Walkways can have a big impact on how a home is perceived. In fact, the walkway leading to the front door can make or break a potential buyer’s first impression. If it’s cracked, chipped, or dirty, people can get a bad impression of the rest of the home before they’ve even entered. Resurfacing or even rerouting a walkway can improve a home’s exterior appearance. Lining a walkway with brick or stone pavers can upgrade its appearance and give an elegant feel. Keep in mind that plantings along a walkway should be appropriately sized so that they don’t obstruct the path or the street view of the home.
5. Trimming back
Overgrown shrubbery can block windows and walkways and overpower or even hide a house from the street. In some cases, unchecked bushes and trees can block the light into the home and make the property appear dark and foreboding. Overgrown shrubbery can also conceal attractive architectural features and decrease curb appeal by making a home seem neglected and not well maintained.
Whenever your clients are making landscape improvements, advise them to consider the maintenance needs and water requirements of the plants they choose. Unhealthy or unkempt plants can detract from a home’s appeal and value.