Home Improvement Tips

A beautifully-landscaped property can work wonders when it comes to selling your home. 

• Make a plan that includes a schedule of tasks and rough sketches of your design to help you determine what items you need. For assistance, consult with an expert at a local gardening store or home improvement retailer.
• Plan the project in phases and purchase products as money is available. The phased-in plan also helps you avoid the interest and fees associated with home-improvement loans or credit card purchases.
• Don’t sacrifice quality. Ask the staff at local specialty shops for recommendations about the best products available. If you are inexperienced with landscaping, consider spending a little extra for professional assistance.
• Carefully inspect plants for diseases and insect problems, especially if you didn’t purchase them from a nursery. Diseases and pests can spread to other plants. Also ask the gardening retailer if they offer warranties on their plants.
• If you plan ahead, you can take advantage of off-season prices. For example, buy lumber in the winter when it is cheaper and store it until you are ready to use it. Shop for trees, shrubs, perennials, mulch and soil late in the season when prices go down.
• Purchase products online or from catalogs, or join a gardening club, which may offer discount prices as well as helpful advice.
• Your municipality may have mulch and compost available. Also, try asking people in charge of construction or demolition sites if they have used stones or bricks they might give away.
• Ask neighbors if they’ll share some of the costs. By pooling all your resources, you may get some good deals on items bought in bulk, and you can split the cost of renting machinery for landscaping work.