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In all these years you were the first person to realize that your soil was better than your next door neighbors soil. Imagine that. How big of lot do you live on? In my area our lots are not that large. Our home sits on a 6,000 square foot lot. I would think that the other neighbors have similar soil conditions that I would have.
What makes your soil so much different from the guy that lives next door to you?
The more I think about it the more interesting it becomes. So you live in a residential area that used to be a swamp and then a cow pasture and none of the other neighbors homes were blessed to have the same soil that you have on your lot. How big of swamp was it and how large of cow pasture was it? The swamp and cow pasture was only under your land? No one else benefited from the swamp or cow pasture? Up until 1961 our neighborhood was made up of farm land, not just my 6,000 square foot lot but the entire neighborhood. I saw a picture taken from 8 blocks south of us when it had been a farm. Most of the city back then was just fields. I would not imagine that our little lot was any different then those around us.
It intrigues me as to why you would think your lot would be different than your neighbors lots. How much land is under your home?
First of all, I have lived in my home less than a year, secondly my neighbors have the same great super soil as well. None of them however had previously taken advantage of that soil (my street is all new neighbors 10 years or less) as the majority of previous owners have died. Virtually no one did anything to their homes before I moved in and I saw potential in the yard and street as me and my fiance both have worked in it every single day since September when we bought it... and I mean every day...including Xmas. The house was not kept up as the previous owner worked so much and just had a lawn guy come by every 3 weeks to cut the front only. The back...my God.. had incredible amounts of saplings and wild bushes of weeds which took over 5 weeks to rip them all up with using my truck to yank em out. Since March, 5 of the 12 houses on my street have undergone major landscaping and cleanup. I guess having the neighbors see us in the yard literally every single day put some peer pressure on them and hey...I am more than thrilled about neighbors cleaning up their yards. Heck, my next door college neighbor every Sunday morning now cuts our city ROW and edges it...before he did that..my God it was so freaking grown up and littered beyond words. So I'm guessing realtors driving around one day saw the difference and probably went "HOLY S**T LOOK AT THIS STREET NOW!" So they probably figure my street is a "hot bed" to invest in by trying to get some houses listed. But regardless, if I can get an agent to get some form of premium on my house and get it sold should I decide to list it, then hey.. I am all for it!
Unless this is a farm property, which it does not sound like, the rich soil is not going to add to the cash value of the real estate.
The area was developed in the 1940s and 1950s with average 900 to 1,200 sq ft brick homes. The lots average 1/4 to 1/3 acre with mine being 3/4 of an acre.
As an avid gardener, I would not pay a premium for your "magic soil". Not even 10%.
If I have to, I can grow in clay. I've done it before and I can do it again. Raised beds and worm-encouraging practices will change soil pretty fast.
Nice soil is ... nice. But if things are growing ginormously there, I'd suggest its more likely due to the climate than to magic soil that is just on your plot.
As was mentioned way back on page 1 of this thread, the residential appraiser is likely NOT going to make a line item adjustment on your soil, plants, garden, etc. Any increased curb appeal will likely be part of the appraiser's consideration under overall condition and quality.
Buyers are as funny about outdoor appeal as they are interior appeal -- some like thick grass and lots of wonderful plants and others see an overgrown yard with too many plants and many hours of mowing the grass every month.
An adjustment for soil quality? Not on a residential appraisal. If you're marketing the quality of the soil, that falls under a commercial (non-residential) appraisal and requires a Certified General Appraiser to perform that work. There's likely a ton of soil testing necessary to determine whether the soil is actually as good as you might think.
First of all, I have lived in my home less than a year, secondly my neighbors have the same great super soil as well. None of them however had previously taken advantage of that soil (my street is all new neighbors 10 years or less) as the majority of previous owners have died. Virtually no one did anything to their homes before I moved in and I saw potential in the yard and street as me and my fiance both have worked in it every single day since September when we bought it... and I mean every day...including Xmas. The house was not kept up as the previous owner worked so much and just had a lawn guy come by every 3 weeks to cut the front only. The back...my God.. had incredible amounts of saplings and wild bushes of weeds which took over 5 weeks to rip them all up with using my truck to yank em out. Since March, 5 of the 12 houses on my street have undergone major landscaping and cleanup. I guess having the neighbors see us in the yard literally every single day put some peer pressure on them and hey...I am more than thrilled about neighbors cleaning up their yards. Heck, my next door college neighbor every Sunday morning now cuts our city ROW and edges it...before he did that..my God it was so freaking grown up and littered beyond words. So I'm guessing realtors driving around one day saw the difference and probably went "HOLY S**T LOOK AT THIS STREET NOW!" So they probably figure my street is a "hot bed" to invest in by trying to get some houses listed. But regardless, if I can get an agent to get some form of premium on my house and get it sold should I decide to list it, then hey.. I am all for it!
First of all you mentioned am 80% increase in value over other homes in your area based on this unique soil. Now you mention that all of your neighbors have the same soil. What benefit does that have now?
So you cleaned up the yard. Beautiful. Does that give you an advantage? Sure. I don't see an 80% advantage over other neighbors. Comps are comps.
Good for you for putting in all that hard work on your yard and inspiring your neighbors to do the same and beautify the neighborhood. However, now that the neighborhood itself is looking a lot better, rather than just YOUR house, their is no "premium" to be attached to the value of only your house or yard. You have sucessfully improved your neighborhood comps to eliminate that. Cheers!
When I asked some local real estate agents, they said if I find the right type of home buyer which is seeking such a premium yard, I could ask potentially up to 80% more than comparable houses in my area of town. Your thoughts?
Sure, if you find the right type of buyer(read: slightly insane). It only takes one. Oh and it would have to be a mostly cash buyer because it won't appraise. The odds of that are probably similar to winning the lottery so I wouldn't hold your breath.
The thing is, even if you find someone who is an avid gardener and values a lush landscape over everything else, is it really worth it to them to pay almost double for your place? Or buy something else and just dump a bunch of $$ into the landscaping and still end up spending far less.
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