When building a Longboat Key custom home, or renovating your Sarasota home, landscaping may take a back seat to many other important considerations.
From choice of fixtures, to the right flooring and the latest in windows, there are seemingly endless ways for your available budget to be consumed. Still, curb appeal still reigns as one of the more important factors when determining home value. Whether you are planning on selling the home or not, you may be surprised at just how beneficial beautiful and smart landscaping can be when valuing your property. Here’s how.
Home Value Made Beautiful
Yes, a home’s value relies heavily on location and neighborhood, especially in the Sarasota area – the closer to the beach or the private golf course, the better! But there are millions of homes which provide sun-drenched living away from some of the more obvious value-boosters. Landscaping gives homeowners an outlet for creative expression, and a way to differentiate their homes from those around them. As with any major component of a home – especially one so visible – quality landscaping can greatly improve the desirability, and thus the value of a home.
- Heathy, Green Grass: Whether the assumption is fair or not, people look at a property which has dead or brown patches all over the yard and assume “lack of maintenance”. While we concede that lawn care in South Florida is challenging, keeping a lush, green and healthy lawn is the fastest way to create a pleasing overall aesthetic. Dead areas can be caused by over- or under-watering, disease, fungus or insects. IF you see a brown patch forming, don’t hesitate to call in the professionals before it spreads.
- Local Color, Local Vibe: One of the biggest draws for a Northerner looking to retire or a family looking to relocate to the sunshine is a home that “looks like Florida”. Tropical paradise is appealing, and local flowers such as hibiscus and birds of paradise make the home look and feel “authentically tropical”. Local plants and flowers are also heat and drought tolerant, and are likely to withstand our hot, wet summers and dry winters far better than non-native plants. So go colorful, and love your landscape.
- You Can’t Go Wrong with Palm Trees: Is there anything more “beachy” than palm trees? Aside from most being very low maintenance, you can also incorporate the many varieties of palm trees to help in many beneficial ways – pygmy palms can line your driveway and welcome your guests, while towering palms can provide shade without scraping along your home. People looking for a home in Sarasota love that palm tree look – and properly maintained, the trees can grow to be quite valuable in and of themselves.
- Natural Walls and Privacy: Everyone loves added privacy, but stone walls or even wooden fences can seem harsh and cold. Cultivating hedges of flowering shrubs or bushes not only give you the privacy you desire, but add shade and beauty to your landscaping. Climbing vines and tropical blooms can climb trellises and tall fences to add natural protection from prying eyes, and rosebushes can even offer added security when these thorny shrubs are placed around lower level windows.
- Added Adornments: You can add a beautiful unique flair to your home by adding unexpected elements to your landscaping, such as dry riverbeds, fishponds, statuaries and architectural elements to your yard.
Pavers, stone walls, flagstone, and other natural materials all present gorgeous aesthetic statements in home design. After all, although we have made a reputation for innovative interior design, we also know that concentrating on your quality landscaping will never be a bad investment.
For all home renovations and custom builds in the Sarasota area, call Lindahl Construction. We can help to make your home the most beautiful one in the neighborhood.