Although landscaping is one of those tasks that not many landlords enjoy performing or paying to have done, it’s essential to keep the yard areas of their rental properties neat and tidy. Regardless of whether you’re a landlord that enjoys doing yard work or you would rather enlist professional landscapers instead, the tips below will help keep the outside of your rentals looking great.
Consider Laying Synthetic Grass
The main advantage of installing synthetic grass at rental properties is that it requires little to no long-term maintenance to keep it looking attractive – in most cases, occasional hosing is all that’s needed to keep it clean. There’s no watering, trimming or fertilizing to worry about either.
While the initial cost of synthetic grass is high, its long-term benefits ensure that it pays for itself relatively quickly. Although many older types of synthetic lawn used to resemble cheap shaggy carpets, the artificial lawns of today look and feel extremely similar to real grass.
Install Hardscape
Hardscape involves using rocks, stone, pathways and other hard surfaces in place of some or all of the grass at a rental property. This can also include fixtures such as patios, deck areas, fire pits and rock gardens. Installing fixtures like these will result in there being less lawn to mow and fewer flowerbeds to deal with, which will save a lot of time, money and effort over the long term.
Plant Perennials
One of the main challenges that a number of landlords face is that of adding the right amount of color to their rental property’s landscaping. In most cases, it’s unrealistic to expect tenants to plant and maintain flowers and the last thing many landlords want is to spend their free time maintaining the yards of their rentals. As such, an effective solution would be to plant perennials.
Two distinct advantages of planting perennials in rental property garden beds are that they will add a good amount of color to it and they will not require much attention to keep them looking good once they’re fully established. Although they’ll require steady watering just after being planted, most perennials will pretty much survive on their own after that. Some examples of perennials that require little maintenance include hibiscus and black-eyed Susan.
Avoid Water Features
While water features can be extremely attractive and create a soothing atmosphere in a garden, they will also result in higher water and electricity bills. Even the features that recycle water will experience a degree of evaporations, meaning that they will need topping up to continue functioning properly. In addition, these features can create a lot of extra maintenance in the form of regular cleaning and inspection of their plumbing.
An alternative option for landlords who want to keep the yards and gardens as natural as possible at their rental properties can hire a garden service or landscaping company to perform regular maintenance of their behalf and adjust the rent price accordingly to cover this. This will help keep their properties looking attractive without any responsibility falling on either of the parties involved.
