Building a custom home can be exciting, but it also comes with months of making decision after decision. From the construction to the interior design, we can understand how it would be easy to put the landscape design phase in the back of your mind. We caution you not to underestimate the power that a finished landscape can have on the look of your gorgeous new home. We recommend doing 3 things when planning and building your custom home. One, consider a realistic budget. Two, start the conversation early. And three, let a landscape designer help you plan ahead.
Budget
Managing a construction budget can feel overwhelming, but it’s very important to keep money set aside for some of the projects that comes towards the end of the process — landscaping being one of the big ones. Keep in mind irrigation, lawn, landscaping, fencing and hardscapes for all your outdoor spaces. These services will both simplify your life once the home is complete and expand your livable space to the outdoors. It’s important to set a realistic budget that can encompass all the necessary landscape works such as grading and grass as well as any additional features you may want. This brings us to tip number two.
Start Early
Involving a landscape designer early can help you establish a budget that will suit your needs. But a landscaper can also help you navigate small details that may be overlooked but have a huge impact. Too often, we see a brand-new house that could have been even more functional and aesthetically pleasing with just a few small tweaks to something as simple as a driveway or sidewalk layout. If nothing else, starting the conversation early in the building process allows for a cohesive design between your home and outdoor space.
Plan Ahead
As we outlined above, there are benefits to bringing a landscape designer into the project early for finishing touches and design choices, but there are a lot of elements of the landscape that need to be addressed early in the construction process. Grade changes, walls, patios, and outdoor spaces should not be an after-thought. There is a lot a landscape crew can do that is purposeful and preventative which makes it much more cost effective, rather than trying to correct a problem later. It is important to know how you intend to utilize your yard and what features you would like to include. Designers then take those elements into consideration while balancing what will work best with your particular piece of property such as lot size and location, foundation, and elevation.
A custom home should look and feel just that — custom. For what is comparatively, just a little more of an investment, your home can be made completely functional and beautiful, inside and out. Consider these guidelines and talk specifics with your designer, and we can promise you will feel the difference when your dream home is complete.
