There are a lot of additional costs in this space that folks don't tend to think about initially - landscaping, snow removal, salting, common area cleaning/maintenance, and the cost of commercial grade supplies. 

Account ClosedIf this were mine, I'd talk to 2 or 3 local Architects and have him/her come visit it and describe a vision for it at different price points.I don't know what it's neighborhood is like but properly upgrading the terraced landscaping seems like it would really make an impression.If it's in a tough neighborhood I wouldn't do that though.Good Luck! 

We are going to replace flooring, repaint, and do some landscaping.

I'd call a couple landscape/snow removal companies and ask them for quotes then use the average of the quotes as a baseline number knowing that it can fluctuate from year to year, but over a period of time, will even out to the average. 4.

They've improved the look of the landscaping, but they approached my tenant about the leaves that drop from one of my trees.It's a deciduous tree that sheds large leaves (size of a large hand), but they fall off en mass in the fall (it's dirty in the fall).

On 500K (excluding lot and utilities), what would you builders expect for lighting allowance, interior carpentry(built-ins,crown molding, closet system), sound system, appliances, landscaping, tile, cabinet grade, granite, hardware,etc?

You can also charge for utilities, landscaping, or anything else he was supposed to be responsible for.The easier solution is to tell them they forfeit the deposit, close their account, and move on.

My partner and I bought a ranch style duplex last fall and are looking forward to adding value through DIY landscaping.

Other issues include, unmoved lawn, weeds everywhere, damaged landscaping, gutters that need to be cleaned etc. 

Replaced the flooring, kitchen, cabinets, washrooms, trim, popcorn ceiling to knockdown, furnished the basement and landscaped.