Yes or no on sprinklers on a rental?

[Cole Harter]

Hello all, I own a single family home in the Denver area that I'm about to put on the rental market. I currently don't have sprinklers in the front or backyard. Looking for some guidance on if it would be worth the investment to install and maintain in hopes of a long term good looking yard.....or am I better off letting the renter water and hope they don't let it die? Both yards are fairly small. Any input is appreciated! Thanks, Cole

[Bill S.]

@Cole Harter so you will never recover the cost of a sprinkler system. What it does allow is tenants that want a nice lawn to water and have a yard which looks good for the neighbors as well. In my experience, only about 1 in 10 tenants in the A/B areas will care for a yard with sprinklers. Of those, most won't if they have to drag the hoses. In B/C 1/100 will care for a yard. It's a huge waste of money for a sprinkler in those area. BTW it takes many years for a lawn to completely die here. In most cases if someone doesn't care for it and the next tenant does, then it will grow back pretty well. After 2 years of good care then you'll have a nice yard again. If I were to install a sprinkler I would only do it in the front.