By Neat & Tidy Landscaping
Landscaping advice for Seattle home buyers and property owners, including overgrown yards, invasive plants, slopes, greenbelts, maintenance costs, and outdoor conditions to evaluate before buying a home.
Hey guys, we’ve been getting a series of cleanup projects involving rock beds and natural stone retaining walls. When these areas are weeded and cleaned up, they look beautiful. A home that sits a little higher than the sidewalk can have more privacy, a better view, and a landscape with some character. But that beauty … Read more
Every day in landscaping feels like a new episode of a TV show. I’ll meet a homeowner in Seattle, then someone in Bellevue, then someone in Issaquah. They all have their own lives and their own stories, and for a brief moment—sometimes just during an estimate—I’m part of one. I’m not saying I’m the hero … Read more
On just about every bamboo job we look at, there are two areas: the main stand of bamboo and the runners spreading away from it. Sometimes our customer owns the main stand, and the bamboo is moving into the neighbor’s yard. Other times, the neighbor owns it, and our customer is dealing with shoots coming … Read more
Don’t Forget the Yard When You’re Calculating What a Fixer-Upper Will Really Cost You’ve found a house you like. The neighborhood works. The schools work. The commute works. The house needs some updating, but that’s part of the opportunity. Maybe the kitchen needs $20,000. The bathroom needs work. The roof has a few years left. … Read more
The Landscaping Problem You May Not Notice Until After Closing You’re getting ready to make one of the biggest purchases of your life. You found the house. The parking isn’t bad. The location works. The kitchen is dated, but you can remodel it. The bathrooms need work. The roof is getting older. And the backyard? … Read more
We live in Washington—the Evergreen State. Trees, shrubs, vines, ground cover, weeds, native plants, invasive plants, fallen branches, leaves, and decomposing organic material are everywhere. That’s part of what makes living here beautiful. It’s also why homeowners need to understand something about properties that border greenbelts and wooded areas: A greenbelt is not a garden … Read more
A beautiful house on a hillside can look incredible. You might have more privacy, a larger property, mature vegetation, or a great view. The backyard might extend another 50 or 100 feet down a hill, and on paper that sounds like a lot of extra land. But there’s something home buyers often don’t think about: … Read more
You and your wife are finally ready to buy a home. You’ve been renting for years. You’ve saved up a down payment. Financing is coming together, and you’re ready to stop paying somebody else’s mortgage and start building some equity of your own. Fantastic. Maybe it’s your first starter home. Maybe you’re moving from a … Read more
Working in landscaping around Seattle, we come across English ivy almost every day. It’s in front yards. Backyards. Parking strips. Parks. Slopes. Fence lines. Greenbelts. And climbing up trees. Once you learn to recognize it, you can’t really unsee it. Before I worked in landscaping, I probably would have looked at many of these properties … Read more
You found the house. It’s close to work. Parking is good. The kitchen needs some updating, but you can already picture what you’re going to do with it. The bathroom needs work. The house is a little tight, but there’s enough space. And the price? A little below what similar homes in the area are … Read more