The yard and exterior are the first things people observe when coming to your home. If your home’s beauty is important to you, it is essential to take care of your outdoor space. Yet, not only can improving your outdoor space benefit your home in terms of looks, it can also benefit in practicality. Read on for some extremely useful tips about building an exterior space that you can be proud of.
Install a Deck
Decks come with a lot of benefits. They add visual appeal to the house, creating more curb appeal. Installing a deck also increases the value of your home, and grows the house’s square footage. If all this sounds appealing, definitely look at deck options for your home. Even if you are worried about the cost, decks are very affordable and installation will almost never break the bank. Furthermore, decks can be built without the need for ugly screws all over it; hidden deck fasteners ensure that screws are nowhere to be seen. Your deck will both be practical and beautiful.
Plant a Tree
Many homeowners overlook trees while looking to improve their home’s look, but the plants are a great option for beautifying your home. A tree makes any yard look amazing, and mature trees are very attractive. Not only that, but trees often lead to an increase a home’s value. However, only mature trees offer that boost, so if you plant a tree you may have to wait a few years before seeing an increase in valuations. Besides home value, trees can help lower the cost of energy bills. For instance, having a mature tree in the yard can help shade the house, lowering air conditioning needs. Trees have a myriad of other benefits, so definitely consider planting one or two.
Clean Everything
A simple, yet very effective way to improve the look of your outdoor space: clean it. Wash off existing surfaces like concrete, and seek to reduce any salt damage to concrete you may have. Trim any shrubs or bushes, get rid of any old stuff that is just lying around unused, and seek to make your home’s exterior look as good as new. There are a ton of different things to clean, but this free way to make your home look better is one you should definitely follow through on.
Take Care of the Grass
Coming hand-in-hand with cleaning, taking care of you grass ensures that your yard will look far better than without maintenance. Good yard drainage prevents annoying wet spots from building up in your yard, which kill grass over time, and make the yard muddy. Positively, this is an easily-solvable issue. Common solutions include extending the downspout, designing a drainage plan, creating a rain garden, building a small creek bed, or installing a patio drain. Whichever you choose, ensure that your whole yard will look better because of it. No homeowner wants to have to spend a ton of money on a simple issue like this.
Add a Water Feature
Installing a water feature is a great way to add a unique, cool feature to your home. Whether a fountain or small pond, little creek or birdbath, water features look amazing and provide great benefits. For one, it will make your home more attractive. Almost everyone enjoys the look water brings to an exterior. Another benefit is wildlife attraction. Running water, such as a bubbling birdbath or fountain, will often attract birds, rabbits, squirrels, and other critters to your yard. Finally, running water features mask nearby noise pollution and bring a sense of calm to your yard. Definitely make sure to consider adding a water feature to your outdoor space- they are well worth the cost.
Matt Lee is the owner of the Innovative Building Materials blog and a content writer for the building materials industry. He is focused on helping fellow homeowners, contractors, and architects discover materials and methods of construction that save money, improve energy efficiency, and increase property value.
