When you put your house on the market, you’re hoping that it will be love at first sight for the buyers who come to see your property in person. But in order for someone to fall in love with your home the moment they lay eyes on it, you will need to have impeccable curb appeal. When you have an attractive landscape, your curb appeal receives an immediate boost, and this can make all the difference when it comes to making that all important first impression. In fact, good landscaping is proven to add value to your home and to help it sell faster. When improvements are made in the landscaping around the front of a home, it tends to sell for between 5% and 12% more than when nothing is done to improve this area. Here are some specific suggestions for how you can improve your home’s curb appeal before listing it on the market.
Add Splashes of Color to Your Beds
Even if you already have flowers in your front yard landscaping, it is important to make sure that they are in full bloom and colorful, with several different varieties represented. If you have a more uniform display in front of your home, this may mean adding a few additional flowering shrubs or flower types before you have professional pictures taken for your home’s listing. It may sound like a lot of trouble for a small return on your investment, but adding pops of color to the green space that is viewable from the street in front of your home is a cheap and easy way to improve the overall look of your property.
Even if you are not currently planning to sell your home this season, gardening experts suggest selecting colorful annuals when you plan any landscape changes. These pops of color can revive the curb appeal and help create interest in your home. Don’t go over the top with color mixing though. It’s best to choose from a color palette of three to four colors. Just try to avoid a monochromatic color scheme, though any color at all is better than none. If you have only a few plants in front of your home now, adding a few flowering annuals in the more sparse places will instantly make your home look more vibrant. Drawing the eye in with colorful plants excites a buyer and will help them see the potential of your home.
Keep Your Lawn Healthy Year Round
Having sparse places in your grass and areas where the dirt below is showing through is an instant turn off to buyers. And yet, you cannot solve problems like these in a day. This is why it is important for you to maintain the health of your lawn at all times. Even if you currently do not foresee yourself selling your home anytime soon, if that should change, you won’t be able to quickly remedy long term problems with your yard. A healthy lawn also tells potential buyers a lot about your property over all. If they can see that you are willing to spend time and money on the upkeep of your lawn, they are more likely to assume that you have similarly spent time and money on all aspects of your home.
Many homeowners take great pride in maintaining their lawn themselves, so if this is one of your hobbies we encourage you to keep it up! But if you find yourself with limited time for such endeavors, utilizing a professional lawn care company can help your lawn stay healthy all year long. A professional can help you fight against the persistent weeds that are always trying to creep into your grass in north Georgia. They will also keep you on an appropriate fertilization schedule, while addressing all of your day in and day out lawn care needs. Using a professional lawn care service may even save you time and money in the long run by eliminating the need for supplies and expensive equipment.
Keep Your Yard Clean
Many prospective buyers will do a drive by of homes they are interested in, before they even put those homes on a list of homes they would like to view with their agent. So once your home is on the market, it is very important that you maintain your home’s appearance at all times. The closer your home appears to the photos in the real estate listing the better. Whether you are doing the work yourself or paying a professional service to do it, you need to make sure that your hedges are trimmed, bushes are shaped, and that all leaves and other debris are removed from lawn. This should be done daily if possible. If you have any walkways leading up to your home, make sure those are cleaned daily as well. If you find that small weeds or grass are peeking up in between cracks in and around your driveway and walkways, make sure these are pulled daily to give your yard an even more polished look.
Include Flower Containers Near Your Front Door
When it comes to curb appeal, front landscaping doesn’t only refer to your lawn and any flowers and shrubs that are planted in front of your home. You can also add to your home’s overall appeal with simple things like placing flowers in containers and hanging baskets around the front entrance to your home. If you have a porch or walkway leading up to your front door, add a few containers filled with colorful flowers and plants framing the walkway or along the edges of the porch. Staging chairs or a bench along with these potted plants near your entryway makes the front of your home appear even more inviting to prospective buyers.
Freshen Up Your Mulch
Adding a new layer of mulch to your flower bed will help your curb appeal in multiple ways. First, your the area around your flowers and other plants will look much healthier if you had fresh mulch. This will help create an overall clean and tidy look. Fresh mulch will show contrast and your plants will look even better because of the definition you can now see even clearer between your flower bed and the lawn. Mulch will also aid in the overall health of your garden, keeping your flower beds healthy throughout the process of selling your home. Some of the benefits of fresh mulch include maintaining the temperature and moisture levels in your soil, aiding in weed control and boosting the health of all of the flowers and shrubs planted in the mulched area.
Keep Water Features Clean
A water feature is a great addition to your landscape, but only if you keep up with cleaning and maintenance. A water feature that has been allowed to deteriorate will significantly detract from the first impression prospective buyers get of your home. So whether you have a fountain, pond or pool, it is more important than ever to stay on top of upkeep when your house is on the market. Check daily for leaves and any other debris that needs to be removed. To prevent algae growth, try adding a little white vinegar to the water, which when diluted in this manner keeps the water both clean and safe for wildlife.
Power Wash Surfaces
The iron oxide in Georgia’s infamous red clay can leave unsightly stains on your driveway, sidewalks, walkways and patios. You are probably use to having these surfaces power washed at least once each year, but you will need to stay even more on top of things when your house is on the market. Now may be the time for you invest in your own power washer so that you can take care of spots as soon as they pop up. For many of the stains that appear on these surfaces you will be able to clean with water alone, but for the trickier red stains you will likely need to use a chemical cleaner along with the power washer. Be careful when use these solutions, as they can harm nearby plants, as can the water spray if it is too powerful.
Keep Your Trees Healthy
Trees are just as much a part of your home’s curb appeal as your lawn and shrubs. They can act as a privacy fence between properties, provide much needed shade throughout the warmer months, and can make the outdoors an all around more enjoyable place for you and your family to spend time. Aesthetically, trees can also transform the look and feel of the outside of your home. The downside of this is that if your trees are not properly cared for, they can detract from your home’s appearance rather than adding value. If your trees look unhealthy and/or unkempt, they are more of a liability than an asset when it comes time to sell your home. Prospective buyers may look at such trees and see only the future work and expense needed to remove them. To keep your trees is tip top shape, prune them regularly to get rid of any dead, diseased, deformed or dying limbs. This will allow more space between branches so that the remaining limbs have better access to air and light, which helps to prevent disease and maintain health. It is also important to make sure your trees have the appropriate amount of water, and that they are properly fertilized.