Rose Cottage Ltd

I watch a fair amount of HGTV and I am all but addicted to the “House Hunters” programs.

I watched one show recently where constant comments about the “Lack of landscaping” and “We’d have to do all that work” stuck out like a sore, and in their cases, not green thumb.

My first, and less than generous thought was, “Get a condo.” If you don’t like yard work this seems obvious. If you are too busy to do yard work and you’re looking at $400,000+ homes, hire someone to do this work for you and stop complaining. Be thankful you aren’t looking at trailers for rent instead.

My second thought was to note that one couple seeking a new home had two small children, allegedly the reason they wanted the “big yard.”

I’m all for kids having yard space to play in. They need to run and yell, (once and awhile), and to have a chance to get some good Vitamin D sunshine. Maybe they can even have a pet which will hopefully teach them responsibility, and compassion for animals, while having some good clean fun.

But what these new prospective owners were not seeing was opportunity.

One of the houses they looked at had a crap yard – I can’t think of a better phrase to describe. It had about one-quarter acre in the front and nearly a half-acre, already fenced, in the back. Little grass and signs of no maintenance. Lacking “curb appeal” this house was $12,000 less than the house they ultimately chose – although this neglected house had MORE square footage.

Part of the decision-making on similar properties in like areas is price per square foot. Any buyer wants the maximum “bang for the buck.”

How much cheaper would it be to get more house and just improve it’s appearance versus buying a house with 200 or more LESS square feet? I can tell you it is a lot cheaper to plant some grass seed than to build a home addition. At the $125 per square foot price of that house, adding the 200 missing square feet would cost – even a rough estimate such as this – $25,000.

I can do a lot of landscaping for $25,000.

In fact, I could have that yard a showpiece for about $2500 with my own labor – more if I hire out. But the most important thing I would gain is equity. Free or nearly-free equity. I see this as a great opportunity – not a negative.

What is my point?

Too many people seem to talk about yard work like it is true drudgery. Punishment. Hard labor.

In reality, landscaping and caring for your property’s yard is one of the most important things a homeowner can do these days to improve real value and a little can go a long way.

If you have kids, get them involved. Let them select something for the yard and then give them ownership of their chosen plant. Make sure they understand that seeds, plants, grass, and trees need water and weeding – and that the location for their chosen plant is important. This is a great learning experience for kids and I’ve found that most of them actually enjoy it – once they get started.

Take “Before” and “After” pictures of your yard. There is no better way to see how quickly appearances, and equity, can be improved.

In the current real estate doldrums, many people feel there is nothing they can do to improve the situation. In many cases this is true. But don’t ignore opportunities you may have to increase your home’s value.

If nothing else, yard work is a great and productive way to burn off some of that stress…