An attractive, well-kept backyard garden can be a very appealing feature for home buyers, especially since the pandemic has shifted many to a more work-from-home environment. Homeowners have since utilized more of their outdoor spaces, transforming backyards into extensions of living rooms and kitchens.
These backyard improvements are fantastic negotiation points as you sell your home, and they can actually increase your home’s property value! A recent survey by Virginia Cooperative Extension has revealed that making such improvements to your landscaping can significantly increase the perceived value of your home.
With that knowledge in mind, let’s take a look at which improvements can add the most value with a high return on investment.
Outdoor Kitchen
These additions can serve as an extension of your indoor home, a hot trend in landscaping this year. Outdoor kitchens offer form and function, creating a comfortable space that can be enjoyed through all seasons. Consider the location and seasonality of your property when placing a kitchen extension outdoors. Ensure that the area is functional with a roof overhead for sheltering from the weather and fans to keep the space cool. While an upgrade of this caliber can be pricey in some respects, this trend is growing in popularity with buyers and could set your home apart from the rest on the market.
Privacy and Shade
Enjoying the tranquility of our own outdoor spaces has become a popular past-time recently, although the privacy aspect of that can be difficult to maintain in some ways. Sellers can enhance the privacy of their outdoor spaces with cleverly placed plants and trees. They can even consider a more significant addition such as a pergola that would provide shade and shelter for the outdoor living space, a desirable feature for home buyers.
Outdoor Living Space
An outdoor patio or deck has become essential for many homes. This space should provide the comfort of any indoor room alongside the ability to enjoy the gorgeous outdoors. Thus, styling this outdoor living space should be very similar to how one would style the indoors. Consider ample, luxuriously comfortable seating, colorful rugs, appealing lighting, and stunning gardens or container planting for smaller spaces. Buyers will instantly picture themselves in this space.
Backyard Improvements: Return on Investment
These improvements and upgrades to your outdoor living spaces will reap incredible benefits. Whether it is a minor upgrade to your garden lighting or an entire outdoor kitchen, the property value of your home could skyrocket! Even the Appraisal Institute, the largest association of real estate appraisers in the country, has encouraged homeowners to improve the landscaping on their property, stating that these backyard improvements could “result in a significant return on investment when selling the home.”
Curious about which improvements would reap the highest rewards for your property? Contact us at (512) 699-9714 or [email protected], and we will be more than happy to help!
