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Atlanta Homes & Lifestyles | February 2006
Luxe Lawns
Improve your lot with a spruced-up outdoor living space.
A koi pond, a grilling arena that would make your barbecue rival drool with envy
and a well-planned array of flowers and foliage—combined, they can vastly improve the value of any home. But there are other benefits as well, such as peace of mind, fancier fêtes champêtres, perhaps even enticing the neighbors to improve their yards, too.
"Homes that have good curb appeal will sell faster and for more money," says Melanie Van De Grift, an Atlanta-based Realtor. "A well-designed landscape can give the home owner as much as an 8 to 15 percent return."
Jacques Mayer, branch manager of The Brickman Group, a high-end commercial landscape management firm, recommends utilizing one of the local trade organizations in the area, such as Metro Atlanta Landscape and Turf Association (MALTA). The group's Web site allows users to search the membership database of professionals within the landscape industry that adhere to high standards. The site also proves helpful by offering searches for landscape design and companies "based on what type of project you're wanting to do and even what part of town you live in," says Mayer.
Professional landscape pricing varies depending on the scope of the project but generally starts at $35 per hour for basic gardening plus twice the cost of plants and materials, according to Julie Turner, garden designer with Cateman's Landscape. The magnitude of your project should dictate what level of profession you require. If your budget is under $5,000, stick with a landscape designer-no license necessary for this title, but he or she will have the skills needed to beautify your lawn. If you're planning to implement slopes, grading, draining or any other complex design within your lawn, hire a landscape architect. These professionals typically have graduated from a five-year program, says Mayer.
Landscape design firms are as assorted as a summer vegetable garden, ranging from design-only firms that draw up plans for the homeowner to design/build companies. Scapes, for instance, provides one-stop shopping services to the homeowner seeking to improve his or her lawn. Pete Wilkerson, a landscape architect and vice president of Design Build, a division of Scapes, says the trend in landscape design is homeowners seeking to "reinvest in their own properties."
The cost for designing a plan is approximately $75 per hour, after which a budget for implementing the design is laid out. The expertise, knowledge and creativity of design do not come cheap, but the well-planned and well-executed landscape will pay off in the end-in the form of personal enjoyment and profit.
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