built in stainless steel charcoal grill Making landscaping pay

Luxury outdoor facilities will be more expensive than New York (Money Magazine) unless you are careful --Do you desire a quiet pond surrounded by Cascade plants and Moss?covered rocks?With built-in slate terrace-in stainless-Gas Grill and custom bar?Or both?Welcome to the club.Over the past five years, spending on landscape design and installation has more than doubled to $14.2002 3 billion.While most of them are spent on the classic "10% of the value of houses and land" which should be a bare landscape, quite a few people are committed to upgrading.With the help of low interest rates, homeowners are spending between $30,000 and $50,000, sometimes even more, building paradise in the backyard, installing waterfalls and swimming pools, and planting trees and shrubs worth the entire park."People really want to distinguish their property," said Bob West, editor of trade magazine lawn and landscape ."."This is no longer a matter of consistency with neighbors;People want to be neighbors."But if your goal is to increase your resale value, becoming a neighbor will burn you out;The cost of many of the sexiest landscape trends is far more than their return.Here's our guide to what is hip and what is too hip.We're in three key areas.-Backyard, water view and front yard--And show you the smartest way to spend money.Note: The price range we listed reflects a wide range of regional differences in the cost of landscaping.But things worth doing and things not worth doing remain the same everywhere.Across the country, the backyard has replaced the foreign coast and become a place to escape and relax.As Jim mccut cheon of high grove Partners at Smyrna said: "People want to create a safe environment at home rather than traveling to Tahiti."They added hot tubs to the pool area, planted rare trees next to marble benches, and installed landscape lighting to create a peaceful atmosphere.This is not a problem either/-The owner wants it all."The lot is getting smaller," said Kim bertoty.Owner of Bertotti Landscaping at CA Novato, "they still want a play area, a vegetable garden, a water feature and an outdoor dining area."Bertotti is not saying to put a hiachi on the picnic table."More and more of our outdoor kitchens are equipped with stoves and barbecues, and perhaps a small shed," she explains .".The real estate agents say these escapes could attract buyers ---at first.But they don't necessarily convince buyers to pay the extra.In fact, sometimes they brake because not everyone has the same fantasy.What happens when you spend $50,000 on a formal Italian garden?Buyers are looking to provide a British cottage garden or an open yard for their children.The outdoor kitchen is out of date faster than the indoor kitchen, and unlike the plants, the barbecue grill has not grown cute for many years.Something worth doingKeep it simple.If the house is on a slope, build a deck ($10 to $25 per square foot );A stone terrace if the land is level ($8 to $25.Or expand what you have.According to real estate agents, increasing outdoor living space can pay back 100% or more.This includes "taking back" areas in your yard that are not available because they are too close to busy roads or neighbors.Just screen them out with a live fence (25-Depending on the size and type of planting, foot hedge will cost $400 to $1,500."The water features are huge, from a $3,000 reflection pool to a $200,000 waterfall," Pattie Group's Steve Pattie reported in OH magazine ."."We have two crew members who haven't done anything else all year round."Watching features is not the only thing hot: except in the far north, hot tubs and spas are everywhere, dotted with landscapes like mushrooms after the rain, the pool has changed from a rectangular pool to a highly designed pool.In Florida, for example, customers want a "great lagoon --Type of swimming pool, "said Chris Phillips of FL landscaping firm Phillips environmental company Clearwater.He has also received many calls for elaborate and customized fountains with water jets and other striking effects.Unfortunately, the function of the water is high maintenance, which is not an advantage.Due to the risk of drowning, the swimming pool is a responsibility in many ways.Even in Florida, FL realtor Chip Boring says the rate of return on the pool does not exceed 50% of its cost.Something worth doingThe most popular water supply function is measured by how much input, and the most meaningful function: the partition irrigation system on the automatic timer, can let you for different areas (lawn, trees, flower beds) according to their specific needs.This may not sound sexy, but it will pay you back soon and reduce water use, which helps to reduce water costs when drought is limited.This also makes it easier to protect your investment in the factory.Buyers attracted by the landscape will also be attracted by the fact that it is easy to maintain.(Multi-regional system for one quarter-The acre yard will cost between $2,000 and $8,000.) Forget the longevity border next to the concrete sidewalk.Front-Nowadays, the courtyard is popular with flowering trees, carved evergreen trees, and winding slate paths under lovely rose trees.The six most important words in landscaping are to curb appeals and curb appeals, which is a good thing."The front yard pays the biggest bonus," said Scott Griffith of ERA Griffith Realty, Brighton, Michigan.Why?Because, as Bill Lincombe of the Sea Grove said, "there is nothing better than letting someone desperately want to enter your house, which begins in the former courtyard."Something worth doing.Do not forget to tidy up 101 before starting to enhance: Trim the overgrown shrubs, especially those that block the windows or doors, and clear areas of overgrown weeds.Then enter the lawn: patch any rough grass with seeds or new turf and fertilize ($200 to $600 per 1,000 square foot ).Next, make new planting and upgrade hard landscapes such as front steps or driveway.If the funds are limited, spend them on flowering shrubs, small trees, and rooting plants to help build the house and distinguish it from the neighbors ($2,000 to $6,000)Plus a quarteracre lot).If necessary--When your neighbor did it-Widen the sidewalk in front and replace concrete or cracked bricks with handsome, low bricksMaintain natural stone ($8 to $25 per square foot ).Leslie Rand wrote The Garden Q & A column for The New York Times.Her latest project is the New York Times 1,000 gardening Q & A (Workman Publishing ).--