Your garden can help sell your home

With South Africans enjoying the benefits of our temperate climate, patios and gardens have become important elements of our properties. Landscaping experts reckon that your garden can account for as much as twenty percent of the value of your home, so just as you would spend time cleaning and preparing the inside of your home for a show day, it’s definitely worth your while to pay as much attention to the exterior of your home when planning to sell. Completing a few simple tasks around your garden may well be the ultimate selling factor of your home. First impressions are most important, so take a close look at your perimeter wall. Washing off mud splashes and perhaps polishing your street number are a good idea, and a coat of paint will freshen up your gate and front door. If you have a garden shed, it also helps to clean that up inside and out, placing easily erected bamboo screening around it if it is a little unsightly. Pack away all your garden implements, children’s and pet’s toys (and clean up their mess!), and make sure that your municipal dustbins are not seen from inside the house. Some time spent cleaning and tidying the garden will have its rewards – rake up dead leaves and fallen twigs, and prune unruly bushes and shrubs. Visit your local nursery for a few trays of colourful seedlings that are in season, to add colour and a feeling that the garden is cared for all year round. Even better, if you are able to plan in advance, plant bulbs during winter, as many of these will flower abundantly through spring and into summer. Your patio and paved areas could do with a good wash-down, with a high-pressure washer helping to remove any persistent dirt and grime. If you have pathways or areas where grass will not grow, consider dropping some gravel – even builder’s gravel will do – in that area, and make an appealing feature out of it with a picturesque chair or bench. If you have patio furniture, make sure that it is clean or freshly varnished – or even treat yourself to a new set, as you will be able to take it to your new home. Strategically placed pots and planters can also go with you when you move, and these will add cheerful color wherever you put them. If you can afford it, rather opt for big pots, and remember that a matching set of pots with flowering standard trees on either side of your front door will make a very welcoming statement! As with any decoration project in your home, try to avoid stamping your own personality too emphatically onto your garden – so resist the temptation to paint your boundary walls in bright colors, opting for neutrals instead, and cute though they may be, perhaps don’t install a family of garden gnomes in every gap in the shrubbery. When you’ve finished working on your garden, take a moment to stand at each window and in each doorway that exits the house, and look at the view with a critical eye – this is when you’ll notice the last few things that might still need to be done. When your home goes on show, encourage the agent to leave the doors open so that potential buyers can experience the interaction between the inside and outdoor spaces of your home – this could well be the moment that makes them decide to buy your house! With thanks to www.amagicgarden.com and www.iafrica.com.