If you’re thinking of selling your home soon, one of the things you’ll be thinking about often is property value. How can you increase your property value to have better selling prices? It’s important to up the value of your home even if you’re not planning on selling anytime soon because it will give you better deals on your mortgage.
As much as indoor fixtures are important, exterior installations shoulder your home’s curb appeal. One of the most important of these outdoor features is landscaping. Here are a few landscaping hacks that will improve your home’s real estate value.
Think green
Because homeowners are more eco-conscious than ever, sustainable installations can add value to any home. These include smart thermostats and other smart appliances that are energy-efficient. These also include installations that help to lessen the consumption of other resources such as water. A rainwater collection system won’t just provide water for your flushing needs indoors, but it can also serve as a lawn irrigation mechanism.
Make it low maintenance
Having a topiary and a freshly mown lawn are both great things, but both can be tedious to maintain. Not all buyers have a green thumb or are willing to spend a lot of time and money maintaining the lawn and garden. One way to make your lawn more low-maintenance is to lessen the square footage occupied by grass. Pave part of the lawn with a pathway.
In the garden, plant perennials and plants that are native to your area. These types of plants are more likely to thrive even with minimal care.
Carve out an outdoor living space
Pandemic-era homebuyers have been looking for more outdoor and green spaces in their new homes. Spruce up yours by building a deck or patio or dressing them. Start by changing out the flooring; this will instantly update a lifeless deck or patio. Then, fill the space with furniture or decor, depending on what you want the space to be. For an outdoor lounge, you’ll want a daybed, some chairs, and a coffee table. If you want an outdoor kitchen, make sure to have a sink and save a spot for your barbecue grill.
Lighting
What’s the point in working so hard to have a beautiful garden if it won’t be visible to you or your neighbors at night? This will also be for the outdoor living spaces you’ve designed. You can use them during the night as well as the day.
Use bollard lights or in-ground lights to illuminate a path along your yard or the entryway to your front door. To light up bushes and shrubbery, use spike lights or spotlights. You can also experiment with using string lights, especially over your outdoor dining area. These will add elements of whimsy and festivity to your outdoor meals.
Install a water feature
In feng shui, flowing water symbolizes prosperity and good fortune. The sound of flowing water is soothing and can help to lower levels of stress. A fountain can help bring these elements into your home. Its flowing water combined with the structure of the fountain can help beautify the space.
A water feature you should avoid installing, however, is a swimming pool. While it’s great to have a place to swim in your backyard, swimming pools are also notoriously tedious to maintain and consume many resources. Installation alone can cost thousands of dollars, and maintenance can also make a significant dent in your wallet.
In some cases, pools might still be able to boost your home’s value. In such cases, the pool doesn’t take up too much space, and the climate in the area is warm enough for you to use the pool any time of the year. You’ll also have a better chance of selling a home with a pool if it is located in a more upscale neighborhood where having a pool is common. These factors mean that you’ll have a good chance of finding a buyer who wants and can afford a pool and all the maintenance fees attached to it.
Features that can boost your property’s value are in no way limited to the interiors of your home. Curb appeal also plays a big part in your property’s value as it is the first thing that neighbors, passersby, and potential buyers see. So consider what you can do to address that part of the property. You can increase your home’s real estate value by building outdoor living spaces, making your garden more sustainable and low-maintenance, and installing good yard lighting.
