An attractive landscape speaks volumes about your home. As a homeowner, however, you may lack the time and experience needed to achieve a cohesive landscape. Thankfully, there are professional landscaping companies that will gladly take control of your yard, maximizing its aesthetic value.An attractive landscape speaks volumes about your home. As a homeowner, however, you may lack the time and experience needed to achieve a cohesive landscape. Thankfully, there are professional landscaping companies that will gladly take control of your yard, maximizing its aesthetic value.
1) Improves Curb Appeal
What’s the first thing a person sees when approaching your home? It’s the landscape. As the adage goes, “You only get one chance to make a first impression.” A poorly designed landscape with overgrown brush, weeds and dead grass sends the wrong message about your home. People will assume the unkempt landscape is indicative of your home’s interior.
You can improve your home’s curb appeal, however, by hiring a professional landscaping company. They’ll choose the best plant varieties for your area, designing them in a manner that’s both functional and aesthetically pleasing.
2) Reduces Your Home’s Energy Usage
Professional landscaping can even make your home energy-efficient, lowering cooling costs during spring and summer. Strategically planted trees provide natural shade by blocking sunlight against the roof, siding and windows. This reduces heat gain, allowing your home’s central air conditioning system to achieve its target temperature while drawing less power.
So, how much energy can you expect to save with professional landscaping? According to a study of 460 homes conducted by the Sacramento Municipal Utility District, trees planted in the west and south sides of Californian homes saved homeowners roughly $25 per year. A separate study conducted by researchers from Auburn University found that 17.5 percent of “heavy shade coverage” reduced homes’ energy usage by approximately 11.4 percent.
3) Improves Air Quality
Air pollution is a serious problem that’s responsible for roughly 2 million deaths throughout the world each year. Residents living in areas of high particulate matter (PM) have an increased risk of developing asthma, lung cancer, and other respiratory diseases.
However, research cited by the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) suggests that landscaping can help curb these numbers. When trees providing 100 percent coverage were planted in urban areas, researchers saw “significant short-term improvements” in air quality. The ASLA also says that trees planted in the U.S. remove 784,000 tones of air pollution each year, offering $3.8 billion in value.
4) Promotes Outdoor Living
Investing in professional landscaping services also promotes outdoor living. With a well-designed landscape, you and your family will spend more time lounging on the patio and enjoying the outdoors.
A survey conducted by the American Home Furnishings Alliance (AHFA) found that 71 percent of consumers with outdoor living spaces want to improve those spaces. While there dozens of ways to improve an outdoor living space, landscaping is arguably one of the most effective. A professional landscaper will turn your vision of a dream outdoor living space into a reality.
5) Increases Property Value
Hiring a professional landscaper isn’t cheap. Depending on the scope of the project, it may cost anywhere from $2,000 to $100,000, leaving some homeowners to assume it’s not worth the money. While professional landscaping requires a monetary investment, it will likely be returned in the form of increased property value.
Experts say that a gorgeous landscape can increase the value of your home by 5 percent to 15 percent. If your home is currently valued at $200,000, professional landscaping services may increase its value to approximately $220,000. Assuming you spend less than $20,000 on the service, you’ll ultimately make money in this regard.
Some of the top value-adding landscaping services include the following:
- Construction of a deck or patio
- Outdoor kitchen
- Irrigation system
- Installation of permeable pavers
- Well-manicured lawn
- Retaining wall
- Flowerbed
6) Ensures Proper Runoff and Drainage
When rainwater settles against the base of a home’s foundation instead of draining away, it can cause serious problems. The water may seep into the home’s siding, promoting mold in the basement or crawlspace. Furthermore, it’s difficult to maintain an attractive flower bed or garden if rainwater collects. The excess water will saturate the soil, causing plants to become “waterlogged.”
Professional landscaping companies can fix drainage problems such as these, ensuring rainwater flows away from your home. First, they’ll draw a drainage plan by identifying high and low spots. Next, they’ll grade your lawn by altering the soil to achieve proper drainage.
7) Offers Hands-Free Maintenance
Lawns usually need mowing once a week to maintain an attractive, healthy height. Rather than setting aside several hours each week, you can hire a landscaper to perform this and other landscaping maintenance tasks. They’ll work with your schedule to ensure your lawn is properly maintained.
Of course, hiring a professional landscaper to maintain your lawn saves you from tedious, oftentimes laborious work. If your landscape is sloped, mowing it with a push-mower can be painfully difficult. Landscaping companies have professional-grade mowers to knock out difficult lawns such as this in a breeze. You don’t have to worry about trying to crank a stubborn lawnmower, nor do you have to worry about pushing it up a steep hill.
8) Provides Experience and Knowledge
The greatest benefit of hiring a professional landscaper is the experience and knowledge they offer. Do you know which plant species are suitable for your USDA Hardiness Zone, or how much sunlight and water those plants need to thrive? For most homeowners, the answer is no — and that’s okay. Landscaping companies do this for a living, so they can answer all of your questions about which plants are best suited for your lawn.
9) Creates a Clean Image for the Neighborhood
Landscaping doesn’t just affect your home; it affects all homes in the neighborhood or surrounding area. Neglecting your lawn will make your home stick out — and not in a good way. Some neighborhoods even have rules that require homeowners to maintain an attractive landscape. Failure to comply with these rules could leave you with a hefty fine or other penalties from the homeowner’s association (HOA).
From improving your home’s curb appeal to increasing its selling value and more, there are countless reasons to hire a professional landscaper.