Landscaping and Adding Equity

[Lucas A Davidson]

Hello there!

I'm eyeing a potential new brrrr. I have my full estimate from my contractor forthcoming, but am asking about landscaping and just how much equity can I really expect out of "minimalisation" of it.

The home is quaint and on a double corner lot. There is a full garden and the whole friggin house is wrapped in plants...then the double lot is grown over with random shrubs and little trees.

It's literally surrounded by a ragtag bunch of different plants haphazardly planted.

If in the spring I were to cut most of them out, freeing up the .3 acres into a nice big yard and to tidy up around the outside, would I expect to see some equity added when appraised?

Thanks!

[Will Fraser]

Hey @Lucas A Davidson!  This illuminates an oddity in the world of appraisals that is useful often.  Technically speaking the landscaping shouldn't affect the appraised value of the home.  Unless the landscaping is having an adverse affect on the foundation, roof, or other systems of the house the appraiser probably shouldn't use that in determining the value of the home.

However, if that appraiser is a human, then they will almost certainly use it.  When you look at an overgrown "obviously-the-last-dude-had-a-green-thumb" types of homes you tend to be anchored by that appeal FROM THE CURB, which is a hard anchor to shake.  This would likely lead to it being compared to sales that happened with homes that "need some love" from the curb. 

If you tidied up the exterior you would likely see that jump the appraisal value, if for no other reason that the appraiser is anchored differently from the curb and will compare it to a somewhat different set of sales.

It's hard to ballpark an actual ROI on this, but if most of the work is removal (un-skilled labor) then surely it would play out in the positives.