10 Landscaping Tips
Just in case you’re wondering why a realtor is giving you advice about landscaping, here’s a little background on my experience. My husband and I have renovated four homes, and we’ve updated the landscaping at each of them. In fact, we did the landscaping ourselves at three of the four homes. We tend to buy homes that need some love, so often times, these homes either don’t have any landscaping or the landscaping is super-overgrown. So there’s my hands-on experience when it comes to upgrading my own landscaping, but as a realtor, I’ve seen countless examples of how upgrading landscaping can help a home sell quickly, and often times, for more money.
Now on to the main event! I’ve mulled over all the landscaping tips I know and have landed on the top 10 tips that I know can make a difference.
Enjoy and happy landscaping!
1. You don’t have to go big. You just have to add curb appeal.
I can’t stress this enough. You do not have to spend thousands of dollars on landscaping to improve your homes curb appeal. You can make a big difference by just adding a few potted plants and pulling weeds. The main goal is to make your home as appealing as possible to a potential buyer as they pull up to your home, and often times, you can accomplish this with pops of color that require minimal maintenance. As a full-time realtor, wife and mother of two, the last way I want to spend our nights and weekends is tending to the landscaping.
2. Plan for all seasons.
I should have made this tip No. 1, but that’s okay. PLAN AHEAD AND PLAN FOR ALL FOUR SEASONS! If you only plan flower beds that bloom in the summer, your landscaping will look dreary the rest of the year. That’s why it is so important to think about the seasonality of your home. What can you plant that will look good throughout the year but bloom at different times so there is always fresh color around your home? While I would love nothing more than a yard full of peonies, that is not realistic because they only bloom one time in late spring.
3. Hire a landscaper if possible.
I know I said my husband and I have done a lot of landscaping ourselves, but I have to be honest. We finally broke down and hired a landscaping company this year, and it was a big step for us this. Yes, it cost more, but by paying a landscaper, we were able to focus our time on a different project we’ve been putting off. By spending a little extra money on landscaping, we’ve been able to check two projects off our list. (P.S. we worked with Advanced Lawn Care who was referred to us by several friends, and as a former Art Director I was pleased with their process of meeting on-site to discuss the job and which plants I wanted. They even provided us with full color plans of the overall project which really brought the project to life.)
4. Find ways you can save
Landscaping can get pricy. Our latest landscaping project was a pretty big one. We had four bare areas completely transformed with more than 100 plants purchased and planted. On average most homes would not need the level of work that ours did. But if you’re looking at hiring a landscaper, be prepared to spend something close to $1,000. Once you find a landscaping company you like, work with them to see where you can save $$ if needed. We decided to save $1,000 in labor cost by adding the rock to the flowerbeds ourselves. As my husband says, "a shovel fits our hands just fine." He might regret saying this after shoveling 15 tons of rock.
5. If you’re selling your home, don’t invest in new landscaping.
When selling your home, I would not invest in all new landscaping. Instead, work with a landscaper to trim and clean up what you currently have. Hanging baskets (especially ferns) are very easy to maintain and add a great pop of color and texture to the front of your home. Like I always say, put yourself in the buyer’s shoes and go stand on the road in front of the house. Now walk up to the front door. What is missing? Do you need some Day Lillies lining the walkway or a few potted annuals alongside the porch? How about the front door? For $40 you could pick up a fresh doormat and seasonal wreath to add one more touch that says, this home is loved, and it could be yours.
6. Know the pros and cons of mulch vs. rock.
Your budget might determine this for you, but there are some big differences between using mulch and rocks in your landscaping. Mulch is cheaper, less permanent and can add nutrients to your soil. But it usually needs to be replaced each spring and can sometimes attract termites to your home. Rock on the other hand doesn’t need to be replaced, although it’s more expensive and harder to remove if you want to redo flower beds or walkways in the future.
7. Even if it’s the smallest amount of landscaping, do something.
Probably the biggest mistake I have seen when someone is selling their home is that there is no landscaping. The sellers have focused so much on the interior of the home and have completely neglected the front and back yard. You need to make sure you are offering the full package to buyers. This does not mean you need to spend thousands of dollars on landscaping, but you should budget some of your time and money to make sure the front and back of your home are in order.
8. Trim things back!
I’m always amazed at how much better a yard looks once overgrowth is trimmed back. This is an easy way sellers can quickly improve their landscaping for little to no money. Just grab some hedge trimmers and cut back bushes that are blocking windows or tree branches that are too low or are touching the roof.
9. Leave room for annuals.
As someone who doesn’t want to spend a ton of time gardening and working on our landscaping, I love perennials. They’re easy to plant and forget about until they return next year, and they always seem to get better looking as time goes by. But I also love adding in some extra bursts of color with a few annuals each season. These plants can fill in gaps between perennials or add extra color, height or texture. Plus they’re usually pretty cheap, and we have some great local garden centers that can help you pick out the perfect plants.
10. Blend hardscapes and softscapes
This is something we’ve learned from working on so many landscaping projects. Hardscapes are the walkways, pavers, raised beds and sitting area (anything not living) that you include in your landscaping. Softscapes are all the plants and grasses you include. Mixing these two elements together gives you more well-rounded and intentional looking landscaping.
