These days, elaborate patios,
outdated or high-maintenance landscaping and invasive plants and trees
can kill buyer interest in a home almost as quickly as an outdated
kitchen or that awful shag pile carpeting in my opinion.
Landscaping often makes the
difference between a prospective buyer getting out of the car for a
closer look at the house or very simply driving on by...
Indeed,
agents I have met have said to me that, good landscaping can provide more bang for your buck than
almost any other home improvement but it must be done right.
So with thisin mind I have listed a few does and donts which may help you...
Buyers
today expect landscaping that's easy to take care of and offers benefits like shade or privacy.
A pot of bright annuals by the front door isn't going to do it for most discriminating buyers.
Below I think is the major turn offs for buyers and what a home owner can do to make sure their yard and gardens give value rather than remove value from their home...
Your father's landscaping
People now want their landscaping to look natural, with more native
plants and interesting, varied foliage. "Flat-top haircuts were big in
the '50s," Butterfield jokes. Shrubs with poodle like puffs are also out,
landscapers say.
Big trees and
evergreens planted decades ago also can be a turnoff to buyers. These
trees can get too big and must be continually hacked off at the top or taken out entirely to avoid roofs and power lines.
All to often its easy to see power lines being caught up in trees only to be ripped down at the next storm, buyers see this too...
Gnomes gone wild
It
should go without saying, but put the lawn ornaments away. Other buyers
may not share your love of lawn globes, gnomes and plastic deer. The
same rules for depersonalizing and de-cluttering inside your home apply
to the outside, as well. Dont leave those holiday ornaments out all year even when selling.
High-maintenance yards
While
many buyers fancy themselves green-thumb gardeners living close to nature, few want to invest
a serious amount of time or money in pruning, spraying, mowing and fertilizing.
Beds of
non-disease-resistant plants such as hybrid tea roses can eat up a
buyer's weekends with pruning and applying fungicide.
One
property I have showed years gone by in England had an elaborate English country garden that
dominated the backyard. A key posted inside the house mapped out the names of
all of the manicured shrubs, roses and gardenias, as well as the
contents of the adjoining vegetable garden. I would show people they all started ok but then it dawned on them that they would get great smells walks and vegetables fresh but they would have to look after it all..this was a no! no!
More flowers and pots with stone or grass pebbles, think easy maintenance and low cost, a garden to enjoy not to kill you.
Over-the-top outdoor living spaces
The
line between the indoors and outdoors has been blurring in recent
years, with more homeowners building elaborate outdoor living spaces
complete with fireplaces, kitchens, outdoor showers and custom stone
work. In many parts of the country, these areas are a big selling point,
making the house seem larger.
Homeowners who put in
these improvements should not expect to recoup their total investment
at resale.Just watch the amount of heavy brick and over construction light an airy is best.
Bad seeds
Some
plants send up a red flag with many knowledgeable buyers because they
are so invasive. High on the list are ficus trees, especially those
planted too close to a driveway, house or patio. The fast-growing,
shallow roots of the ficus crack pavement and can wreak havoc on
foundations. Similarly, ivy and other vines can proliferate too quickly,
posing a danger to other plants, as well as to windows and roofs. They
also can attract bugs to the house.
Invasive trees
such as the Callery pear can be beautiful when flowering, but dump a lot
of litter on the lawn. The trees also are very brittle, making them
susceptible to storm damage. And like some other fast-growing varieties,
Callery pear trees have a relatively short life span of 25 years. This
life span is something buyers should consider when buying a house with mature trees. that figures prominently.
Too much green
Many
people I believe are looking for a smaller expanse of grass so they spend less time
and money cutting with a lawnmower or running the sprinklers. People don't want a
yard that makes huge demands on their time or wallet unless they have children or dogs etc...
Conclusion
All in all a garden is a lovely thing, to enjoy time with friends family children to make memories and enjoy the seasons, to make it yours, enjoy the garden, grow those peppers or prize tomatoes or apples. What ever takes your fancy and use your garden for, I hope you enjoy it.
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