Time to Give Your Garden a Spruce Up?

Is Your Garden Under Scrutiny?

Grass – Coming out of winter in NZ your lawns should be lush and green. A regular mow with a catcher should keep it looking great. Keep the grass all one height and try to pull the weeds which might be making an appearance across your lawn. Don’t cut too short as patches may appear, medium height on your mower, regularly is preferrable.

Tidy Gardens – Grass is not the only thing that people look at in your yard. Flower beds, weeds and any structures, such as wall gardens, hanging in your garden get a good once over from would be buyers. Make sure plant beds are kept nice and tidy. Cut back unruly trees and shrubs – you’ll be amazed how much bigger your yard looks when bug shrubs are cut back.

Fences – Your fences don’t need to be new, but they must be tidy. Check your perimeter for any broken pieces or broken sections of walls. Fix what you can, waterblast, and/or give it a paint, this can make your fences look good as new.

Good Gutters – It might not be an easy tell in spring whether your gutters work or not – but at least do a perimeter check to see that none of them are falling down. A good gutter system (or at least having gutters) is something high on buyers lists.

Paving – If your patio or yard area has paving, buyers look for a well maintained patio with no moss or overgrown grass or weeds. For weeds and moss try to pull them. If you see some discolouration on your paving a quick home remedy is to use liquid dish soap or laundry detergent with some water. Let the soap sit for about 30 min then scrub with a nylon brush and rinse with hot water or attack it with a waterblaster. If you have the time spray with a product like Wet & Forget or Spray & Walk Away may be an option.

An Undercover Barbeque Area – If you have a built in bbq, make sure you give it at least a good once-over anti-rust paint job or scrub down any heavy rust areas to make it look great! If you have a bbq made from bricks – clean out any ash, food & oil stains with warm soapy water prior to buyers coming to view your home.

No Garden Clutter – Pack away any of the kids toys, garden tools, tree cuttings or that furniture and left-over building rubble you’ve been meaning to throw away. Now is as great a time as any.

Doggy/cat-doo Free – Dog & cat mess is natural, but make sure you clean just before potential buyers arrive. This way they can feel free to roam the garden without stepping in any landmines which may sour the experience for them. A lawn free from doo will also smell better, so buyers will feel like looking at your garden.

Utilising these tips will not only have more buyers interested in your property, but have you enjoying your garden area as well in your last few months at the property.