When you consider the amount you may wish to invest in landscaping your home, your Return on Investment (ROI) might be at the top of your mind. You might express your concern about getting a good ROI by saying, “I don’t want to over capitalise by spending too much on my garden.”
There are actually two aspects to look at with regards to what you get back from your investment in a new garden.
The first is, most obviously, the financial investment itself.
The second is the amount of thought or effort you will have to apply to the creation of your ideal garden, as well as the return you will receive from your garden in terms of functionality and its contribution to your lifestyle.First, let’s look at two possible scenarios for your investment :
- Break Even: If you invest say $100,000 into landscaping your garden, here you hope at least to increase the value of your home by the same amount that you invested into the garden.
- Profitable Investment: In this scenario you are wanting your investment of funds to yield a greater amount in return than you actually spent.
Now interestingly the second scenario above, is not always the most important. (We will talk about why in a moment.)
At bare minimum, most people will feel it is important to at least achieve #1. Your home is usually your greatest asset and so increasing its value is important. Knowing your investment is sound is determined by many factors. You could ask for a valuation of your property to be carried out and ask them questions about the landscaping and what might be your expected ROI.
If your home is one that potential buyers would consider a knock down and re-build, then the landscaping becomes more window dressing than the creation of a garden with exquisite taste.
If your property is not a re-build, but is perhaps an established garden that has become old, tired and lacks any appeal, then improving it is going to increase your ROI, but how far do you actually go with investing?
How much should I invest in my new garden?
Considerations that can influence the amount you invest in your garden will include the suburb you live in and the value of your home. i.e., spending $150,000 on a home that’s only valued at $600,000 may be over-capitalising. But investing the same amount on a home that's valued at $2.5 million, may actually be under-investing.
The style of home that you have and your neighbours can influence both the type of landscaping your invest in and again influence the ROI. The guiding principle here is to follow a conservative path of using materials and styling that people around you are familiar with.
On occasions, while designing a garden for a client, they will mention some inclusion they wish to see in their design. Often I will ask how long they intend to live in the house and if they say, “we plan to seel it in the next two years” then I suggest we need to consider any future buyer as being just important as the client in terms of who we are actually designing for.
In this case I would avoid inclusions which are unique to your tastes. Designing for hundreds of clients has given my design team and I insights into what is more commonly desired and what is usually not liked.
How to get a better ROI on your new garden.
If you are aiming for the 2nd Scenario above, then an increase in your ROI will require more thought being placed onto being creative with your new garden. Also rember that the more functional appeal your garden has, the more value it has.
Likewise, the more aesthetic your garden is, the more it is desired. If we take art for example, it's easy to see how people will pay enormous amounts of money for something that impacts them emotionally. A garden is the same. Creating a garden with huge aesthetic appeal that attracts and elevates the mood of others is highly valuable when one of those 'others’ is a potential buyer of your property.
These aspects alone can see a greater ROI from your new garden than logic alone would suggest.
Aesthetics is one of the key factors in increasing the value of your home. This can include the styling approach used, e.g. coastal or Hamptons, etc. Or it may be the quality of the materials being used, the type and arrangement of the plants, and the unique finishes or features employed.
Ultimately ROI on your garden is ultimately determined by many factors. An experienced and observant designer will know these.
Is the ROI on your garden really about money?
Now, let’s return to the comment that #2 above is not always the most important goal to try and achieve when considereing what you will get back from what you have invested in your new garden.
We can talk about ROI as it pertains to money, however, of far greater importance is the gift a garden can bestow upon you. If you intend to sell your house in 4 years time and think, “perhaps I should be cautious in my investment to prevent me over-capitalising” – what also needs to be considered is the ROI your garden gives to your lifestyle.
Really, what is the true value that your ideal garden injects into your life? Talking with clients after the completion of their landscaping works, we often ask how their new garden has affected their life. Some of what they say can be summed up in one word: contentment.
What they talk about is how wonderful it is for them to be able to come home now to their new garden and unwind after a hectic day or week. The frantic lifestyles we all now live is having such an impact on our lives, we even have a new buzzword for that feeling of having a holiday at home - staycation. It's a wonderful world that elegantly captures the feeling that you can go on holiday every single day in your own backyard and allow stresses of life to melt away - when you have the right garden.
Then, of course, there's your family. How can you put a value on spending time with your kids outside and hearing them laugh as they splash about in the pool or run around on the lawn? Or watching them study an insect in some pocket of your garden? Or even helping them plant a tomato seedling? The sheer joy of watching your kids having fun, in the sanctuary that is your garden, is something any parent will tell you is absolutely priceless.
As social beings, we really can't put a value on those times we invite our friends around for a BBQ. Spending relaxing moments with close friends, create some of our most favourite memories; memories we look forward to recalling over and over again.
So when considering the return you get from your investment in your new garden, you can measure it in terms of money - that is important. But how you live your life with family and friends can be of even greater importance and should always be measured against any considerations about money as well.
Time, as always, is ticking away, so please consider what is most important to you when weighing up your possible investment in a new garden.
