By Marjie O'Connor
The trend toward outdoor living spaces seems to touch something deep within homeowners' souls. Even though most people live in heated and air-conditioned homes, they still crave contact with Mother Nature — even if only on a patio or deck. And they want it to be on their own turf, almost literally.
Builders and remodelers are aware of this trend, but because few of them have any training in even the basics of landscaping (other than their experience in their own yards), HGTVPro.com decided to help with some education. The articles in this special Outdoors package provide information about topics you may never have considered (how to save the existing topsoil on a lot) to those that are the latest trends in outdoor rooms (fireplaces and full-scale kitchens).
In addition, there are a couple of other articles on the site addressing this topic: What Landscapers Wish That Builders Knew and Outdoor Spaces Bring in Buyers and Bucks.
The first encourages taking a big-picture view of the building lot as it is before breaking ground; the second relates the increasing importance of "curb appeal" and outdoor living spaces to today's homebuyers.
As with any other aspect of the home building or remodeling business, the secret is doing it better than the competition. Give your customers reasons to become "raving fans" — and increase your number of customers in the process.
After all, if the house is the jewel, its yard is the setting. Make it platinum.
Marjie O'Connor is editor for HGTVPro.com.
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