If you’re a home builder in the Edmonton area, I commend you! We’ve been seeing some truly beautiful new builds in both new and old communities around the city. It’s been amazing to see how the city has been changing, and my team has been humbled to work with so many great local builders and designers.
As we both know, landscaping your finished build tends to be the responsibility of the buyer, not the builder. But some of our favourite projects over the past few years have been referrals from builders who want to make sure their buyer has a landscape that perfectly complements their new home! I tend to think this is a smart call for everyone involved—buyer, builder, and landscaper. Here are the five ways great landscapers can help builders “wow” their buyers.
Take the Pressure Off
First-time home buyers are sometimes surprised when the city or municipality holds back a landscaping deposit. As a builder, it can work to your advantage to discuss your customer’s landscaping options early in the process. When a buyer finds out that they need to landscape the property, they may never have worked with a landscaping company before and may not know where to look. Recommending a landscaping company you know to be reputable, who works well with your team, can help take the pressure of your buyer and help them feel at ease about the process. It shows them you have their best interests at heart!
Help Them Get a Passing Grade
Especially for infill properties, it’s extremely important that the landscape of a new build passes a final grade inspection. Any landscape deposits held back by the city or municipality will be impossible for your buyer to get back if they aren’t able to get their final grade certificate.
Not all landscaping companies have experience with the correct grading procedures, and that carries a lot of risk. When you know the landscaping company you’ve recommended is experienced with proper grading, you can help streamline this process for your buyer—and their neighbours.
Build in Perfect Harmony
Great landscapers make builders’ lives easier, too. When your buyer has hired the landscaper to work with you, both teams can work together to create a design that works flawlessly from the inside out. For example, the landscape design might require gas lines, electrical outlets, or plumbing in specific areas of the house. When the landscaper can tell you this in advance, it’s easier to incorporate these features into the home build.
You can also harmonize the design you’re working hard to build with the design of the landscape. A great landscaping company will consider the design elements inside the home, the colours you or the buyer has chosen, and even work with the interior designer to make the landscape look cohesive with the house. We can bring any themes present inside the home, like clean lines or lots of circle shapes, into the landscape design. This way, all the design elements on the homes interior and exterior work perfectly together.
Keep Things Orderly
In both construction and landscape design, we can only plan so much. Inevitably, nature will have her say on what challenges we’ll face to deliver an amazing design. Builders and landscapers can help each other by looping in home buyers on the realities of our crafts.
You may have encountered some buyers who are eager to move into a picture-perfect lot as soon as possible. If you’ll be backfilling the property, it helps everyone when you can advise your buyer on what to expect. If your homeowner knows the risks of landscaping a lot too soon after backfilling, they may decide to hold off on major landscaping until the home has stood through winter and spring. This can help them save time and costs, which will reflect well on you and the landscaper.
When you’re working with a great landscaper, we can also work with you in stages to make sure parts of the project are completed in the correct order. For instance, it can be virtually impossible to properly landscape some backyards once some of the permanent structures have been built. Working with a landscaping company each step of the way will ensure the home and landscape designs can be executed to the best of their potential.
Build Your Portfolio
When your build is finally complete, there’s a good chance you’ll want to capture photos or videos of your work to market your company. It just doesn’t look the same when your magnificent design is surrounded by bare sod. A great landscape should enhance the look of the home, and even make it look more high-end than it really is! A professionally-designed landscape will look top-notch in your portfolio images, helping you attract more buyers later on.
When we’re working with a new build buyer, we’re always conscious of the fact that we’re the last trade to work on the site. We know it’s been a long road for your buyer, and they’re excited to enjoy their brand-new home. It’s so important that the customer has a great experience with our company because it has a real effect on their overall perception of the new-build process. Plus, there’s nothing more rewarding than shaking hands with an excited customer who can’t wait to show off their new property to their friends and family!
