Selling Your Home? Don’t Overlook Landscape Lighting

Selling your home is hard work. With all the painting, cleaning, landscaping, staging and other tasks to make your property presentable, you might think the last thing you need is another item on your to-do list. But when you consider that there are just as many prospective buyers driving by your home in the evenings, suddenly landscape lighting isn’t another chore – it’s a must-have.

Here’s how outdoor lighting can make your property more attractive to homebuyers.

Landscape Lighting Makes Your Home Available for Viewing Longer

Saturday and Sunday afternoons are for open houses. This is when realtors open the doors to prospective buyers, inviting them to imagine making your home theirs. However, not all buyers can take advantage of this narrow timeframe. Whether they’re busy with kids’ sports schedules or working weekends, some buyers are limited to weekday evenings. Thankfully, many realtors have flexible schedules and work around their clients’ hours. Don’t be surprised if agents ask to stop by for an 8 p.m. viewing. It’s during these times you’ll wish your home’s exterior looked as attractive and inviting as the interior.

Landscape Lighting Makes Your Home More Secure

A home in a secure neighborhood is a high priority for buyers. While your neighborhood may be perfectly safe, your dark exterior says otherwise. Outdoor lighting protects your property by:

• Eliminating dark areas and potential hiding spots
• Giving the impression the home is occupied
• Illuminating doors and windows, making it difficult for intruders to break in unnoticed

All of this gives potential buyers a feeling of safety. Also, path lighting will keep visitors safe by preventing accidental falls as they examine the property outside.

Landscape Lighting Improves Outdoor Living Spaces

Increasingly, homebuyers are looking for properties with well-appointed outdoor living spaces. According to the Home Design Trends Survey by the American Institute of Architects, demand for such spaces increased sharply last year as homeowners looked for ways to entertain guests amid lockdowns and COVID concerns.

Your home might boast the most attractive outdoor living space in the neighborhood, complete with a firepit, water feature and a fully functional kitchen, among other envious amenities, but if these features aren’t visible when the sun goes down, your potential buyers are missing out. Landscape lighting helps people envision entertaining guests well into those sultry Northern Virginia nights. Add a patio heater and they can extend their outdoor leisure well into fall.

Landscape Lighting Enhances Curb Appeal

There’s no underestimating the impact curb appeal has on buyers. If they don’t like what they see on the outside, they won’t want to step foot inside. Sellers know this. It’s why they spend most of their efforts on the exterior, painting and landscaping to impress passersby. If you want to get the most return on your investment, however, you should be as concerned about how your home looks during the day as it does at night.

A well-designed landscape lighting system will accentuate your property’s best features. In Northern Virginia, homeowners are opting for high-end front porch light fixtures to make entrances more welcoming. Similarly, underlit hardscape lights, like you’d find on steps leading to the entryway, enhance safety while giving your property a contemporary, attractive look. Lights that simulate moonlight are another popular trend. Installers place low-profile fixtures high up in trees, casting them downward. The effect bathes the landscape in a soft glow.

The landscape lighting professionals at The Grounds Guys of Falls Church can discuss these and many other options to make your property shine. Our installation professionals will work closely with you to develop a design that complements your home’s architecture and landscape, making it a true nighttime showcase.

We can even shine a light on that “for sale” sign!

Contact us today to learn more about our outdoor lighting services.