Top 10 Tips to Landscaping to Sell

1) Include a Landscape Plan in your Investment

When you are selling a mid- to high-end development or home, you don't want the landscape plan to be the "cut corner" that saves money but costs you the sale. In other words, sometimes boxwood shrubs don't cut it with more exacting buyers. A typical budget for landscape can be up to 5% of total project with a typical return of 100% in first six months - in short, "curb appeal" is essential to movement from prospect to purchase.

2) Irrigation

Irrigation is another deal-closing investment that insures the ongoing value of an appropriate planting plan.

3) Outdoor Spaces

Outdoor spaces extend living areas to the outdoors and vice versa - a key selling point for today's families looking to extend their use of the home and property.

4) Landscape Lighting

Landscape Lighting especially low voltage lighting will further enhance home and garden designs through the evening.

5) Development Entry Lighting 

Development Entry Lighting creates a safe and inviting entrance that always sets the mood for the property.

6) Freshen Mulch by turning it rather than piling more on top each year. The additional mulch can produce more odor as heat decays the lower layer.

7) Plant Rye in winter months or another appropriate winter cover crop for a lively lawn during the more dormant landscape winter months.

8) Touches of Annual Flowers at drive and door entrances can help attract the viewer and help them envision how they might "decorate" their potential home.

9) Planting to Sell: Often the landscape plan is inadequate to sell the larger home. Real example from a Websitesfordevelopers.com client: The home is already at $1.42 million with not enough landscape for curb appeal. The builder adds $40k to the front yard with large strategic planting and the home sells. The buyer is not concerned that the final price is $1.46 million."

10) Keep it Clean: the street your lot or home is on is an asset or a liability depending on one thing - trash on the road or in yards immediately along the road (such as in drainage ditches). Within reason, have a service walk the street and create a generally clutter free experience of your particular property. In some commercial areas, this step can correct a municipal or other local shortcoming that can make the difference and close the sale. In a neighborhood, most trash collection along the road.