From plants to a pool: Sprucing up your backyard while keeping costs in check

A project completed by Avanti Landscaping in the Greater Toronto Area are shown in this handout photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Handout - Avanti Landscaping (Mandatory Credit)

It’s peak landscaping season and budgeting for a backyard improvement project may seem difficult.

Options can range from doing up your garden to larger renos like adding a pool. Experts say there are cost-effective ways to spruce up your yard. However, homeowners should exercise caution when taking on debt, especially at higher interest rates, to do it.

“Unfortunately, this is not an investment. Think of these upgrades that we’re doing in our yards, no matter how big or small, they’re lifestyle choices,” Zena Amundsen, owner of Astra Financial Services, said in an interview.

“We have to make sure we don’t put ourselves at risk financially for them.”

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There are often smaller projects those looking to spruce up their backyard can take on to help stretch their budget.

Eduard Negodenko, the owner of Avanti Landscaping, said one simple improvement people can make is often with their gardens, as planting “really spruces things up.”

“If you have existing beds … all it takes sometimes is just putting in a little garden bed, edge it nicely, mulch it, add a couple of nice plants, maybe put one or two landscape lights and boom the whole appearance of the front yard changes,” he said.

Other simple improvements can include basic upgrades to sitting spaces like a deck or patio, as well as privacy enhancements like fixing or replacing a fence, Negodenko said.

He added that he encourages people to allocate about 70 per cent of their outdoor improvement budget toward the backyard, as that is where they will spend most of their time.

Smaller projects can also be finished quicker, Negodenko said.

A “bare minimum” project consisting of cleaning up the front yard, adding garden beds, and planting could take about a day or two, he said. Meanwhile, a backyard transformation may take about a week or two and include things like putting in a fence or patio.

Additionally, the scale of the changes will determine the price.

“Let’s say you want to change your walkway, put in a couple of flower beds, some plants, maybe change the grass, completely revamp the front,” Negodenko said.

“That could be anywhere from, $8,000 to $15,000 for something basic. It can go up to $40,000 to $50,000, depending on the size of the lot.”

One area that some homeowners like to splurge, he said, is putting in a pool.

“Once you get the pool in, you’re pretty much changing the whole narrative of the space,” he said, adding that pools can often come with other amenities like entertainment space, change rooms, showers, gazebos and more.

Projects of that nature can range from about $120,000 to $500,000, depending on the size of the property, according to Negodenko.

How to finance a project

Amundsen said she recommends people looking to improve their backyard take a “project management” approach, by carefully planning and mapping out each stage instead of borrowing everything up front.

Saving up cash for two or three years can also help finance the project, she said.

“Cash is queen and guilt-free, so I think it’s about approaching it as a plan. In a stage project, map out what you want, decide what you can pay for in cash (and) consider breaking the work into phases you can do over a few years, and your future self is going to high-five you,” Amundsen said.

The second-best financing option would be through a home equity line of credit, which can allow people to use their home as collateral and get a better interest rate, she said.

“Rates (for HELOCs) can be variable, so we have to have a conversation about if interest rates go up … but that’s generally one of the cheapest interest rates out there,” Amundsen said.

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A third option would be a personal loan, she said, which offers fixed interest rates that are typically higher.

“Credit cards — that is just a hard no,” she said.

People should also build in a 15 to 20 per cent buffer for surprise costs, Amundsen said.

Home values

One of the primary reasons behind a home improvement project should be to enhance your quality of life, but it can also increase the price of your home depending on the circumstances, Mike Heddle, broker and team leader at Royal LePage State Realty, said.

Heddle pointed to survey results taken from Royal LePage brokers, released in 2022, that showed exterior projects like outdoor entertaining spaces or landscaping could add as much as 10 per cent to the value of a property.

“When selling a home in the spring or in the summer, you’re able to showcase and show off those outside amenities (like) patios and landscaping. It might distinguish your home from perhaps the competition, which would be beneficial to resale,” Heddle said.

Adding a pool to your backyard may be a different story, Heddle said. While it may increase your quality of life, they “aren’t for everybody” and may influence potential buyers.

“My experience has shown me that roughly a third of buyers don’t care and are indifferent, a third of buyers are interested in a pool, and a third will not consider a pool,” Heddle said.

Based on the survey results, a pool may increase a home’s value by an average of only six per cent.

“So a pool is one of the worst things you can do in terms of improving the home for adding value or increasing the value of the property.”

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Daniel Johnson, The Canadian Press

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 10, 2025.