Whether you are remodeling a home or looking to build a new one, you want to make sure the upgrade decisions you are making will give you the best Return on Investment. Everyone knows a good kitchen or bathroom remodel is great for your ROI, but what about the outside?
Most Real Estate agents will tell you that a well designed and maintained landscape can increase the overall value of your home by 20%. But what are those areas that will gain you the best “bang for your buck?”
According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), and the National Association of Landscape Professionals in their 2018 Remodeling Impact Report: Outdoor Features
Percentages of Value Recovered
- General landscaping incl. mulch, lawn, pruning, and planting perennials and or annuals – 100%
- Concrete Paver Patio – 69%
- Landscape Lighting – 50%
- Irrigation System Install – 86%
- Outdoor Kitchen – 71%
- Fire Feature – 67%
All of these outdoor features bring an increased sense of enjoyment to a homeowner, in addition to resulting in better functionality and improved livability of the space. Not to mention an outdoor living space in general will provide overall beauty and aesthetics to a property.
A pretty good benchmark in the industry to think about is having a minimum 10% of your home’s value invested in landscape design. For example if your home is valued at $750,000, then $75,000 is not considered an unreasonable amount to spend on landscaping and outdoor features.
We see clients from time to time who are building a new home that don’t consider the outdoor features and the landscaping into their initial construction budget. It’s often considered too far down the line to think about in the beginning or it becomes an afterthought. By the time the move in date arrives many finish and detail decisions have already been made with a builder and designer that there is potentially no room in the budget to spend on the landscaping if it hadn’t been budgeted for prior. In these instances homeowners are shocked at the cost since realistic numbers weren’t discussed beforehand. They couldn’t possibly spend that amount after the fact, and landscaping becomes undervalued in their eyes. When there is no realistic budget for a landscaping or hardscaping project, you run the risk of undervaluing the project, and the ROI is not as high as it could be. We all know the quote, “Prior Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance”? You may be perfectly content dragging around hoses to water your grass, but if in the chance you were to ever sell your home, the next homeowner may not be. Install the sprinkler system.