Your home is your sanctuary, and while you want to craft a space perfectly designed for your family, you always want to slowly build your property value for when the day comes to sell your home and move on to another chapter. Whether that is one year from now or twenty, homeowners in the Pacific Northwest looking to enhance their property value can add functional and attractive outdoor features like pergolas. Today, we will take you through the five reasons a pergola installation can add value to your outdoor living spaces, key factors to consider, and how you can get started making your dream space a reality!
5 Reasons How Pergolas Add Property Value:
#1: Improved Aesthetics
The first way a pergola installation can enhance property value is by beautifying the overall aesthetics of the home design. Pergolas create an attractive focal point in outdoor spaces, creating visual interest in an often boring, flat area. Given that pergolas come in a variety of design options, homeowners can complement their pergola installation with different architectural styles to create a cohesive image.
By enhancing the overall aesthetics of a property’s outdoor living spaces, homeowners craft greater curb appeal for their homes while also adding to the aesthetics of the neighborhood as a whole. Should a homeowner decide to sell their home, this improved curb appeal will not only attract potential buyers but could increase its overall value.
#2: Enhanced Functionality
The second way a pergola installation increases property value is due to the year-round functionality it provides homeowners. Here in the Tri-Cities, we experience pleasant springs and autumns but rather hot summers. Pergolas offer shade, making outdoor areas more usable year-round.
On top of that, pergola installations have the opportunity to include additional features like lighting, fans, or retractable canopies for greater convenience. Lights allow homeowners to utilize their pergolas long after the sun sets, fans create a light breeze to ease summer heat and minimize insects, and retractable canopies offer greater shade relief and protect users from rain. Overall, these additional features add even greater functionality that homeowners can use to heighten the sale value of their homes.
#3: Outdoor Entertainment Potential
In today’s society, people spend more time at home than they do going out. A new study published in the Journal of the American Planning Association revealed that there were “sharp declines in overall out-of-home activity, travel by all modes, and 10 of the 12 specific out-of-home activities in 2021 compared with 2019, whereas time spent on 13 of the 16 in-home activities rose during that period.” After a re-examination in 2023, this trend remained consistent, with societal factors indicating this new standard of spending more time at home isn’t going anywhere in the next few years.
Rather than going shopping at malls, hitting up bars, or attending local events, homeowners choose to remain at home. Often, this is accompanied by an invitation to friends and loved ones to join them. Pergolas create inviting spaces for gatherings, whether socializing on outdoor couches, eating al fresco meals, or barbequing for a big sports game. Altogether, having a pergola increases outdoor entertainment potential, thereby increasing a home’s appeal to potential buyers.
#4: Increased Usable Space
Since homeowners choose to spend more time at home, pergolas add usable square footage to extend living space without requiring major renovations. We often see homeowners use their pergolas as a base to set up an outdoor kitchen, living room, dining space, home gym, or play area for their children or pets. Given a pergola installation’s capability to provide partial weather protection, this serves as an easy way to get family members outside in a highly functional space.
When homeowners look at the price of the increased usable space provided by pergolas to going through with a home renovation or addition, the costs don’t even compare. Take, for instance, a kitchen remodel: on average, they range from 10,000 on the low end to 50,000 on the high end! With extensive labor and material prices for home renovation, pergolas provide a more affordable option with a greater return on investment dollar-per-dollar.
#5: Energy Efficiency Benefits
Speaking of home costs, energy prices are continually on the rise. Homeowners, to keep home utilities reasonable, must employ energy-efficient systems and practices. A fun and practical bonus of a pergola installation is the potential energy-saving benefits. If placed strategically, pergolas can shade windows, reducing indoor cooling costs. On top of that, that same shade will provide protection from harmful UV rays to whatever is inside that window. For example, expensive furniture or décor will deteriorate less quickly since they will no longer be directly exposed to the harsh sunshine.
Both of these, in turn, are a way to increase the property value of your home. Providing a lower cooling cost average that takes zero action from potential buyers to maintain means they will benefit from the same cost savings. Plus, their precious belongings will also be protected, providing them with greater design opportunities within the home.
Factors That Maximize Pergola Installation Value:
When it comes to investing in a pergola installation for your outdoor living spaces, a few factors will aid you in maximizing your value potential.
#1: The Quality of Materials and Craftsmanship
When it comes to any kind of construction, especially in terms of outdoor living spaces, you get what you pay for. If you choose to invest in cheap DIY kits, poor materials, or shoddy construction, your investment will deteriorate quickly.
At Patio Covers Unlimited NW, our pergolas are made with high-quality materials. Durable and luxurious in appearance, they are built with high-grade aluminum and embossed with a wood grain texture. Due to the high quality of the materials, our homeowners enjoy a maintenance-free pergola. Even under constant exposure to the harsh outdoor elements of the Tri-Cities, they will not crack, warp, split, chip, peel, chalk, or fade.
#2: Proper Placement
We will be honest: when it comes to outdoor living spaces, there is proper placement and poor placement. As a homeowner looking to increase the value of your property, you want to place your pergola in a spot that will enhance outdoor flow.
Depending on your existing outdoor design, this may result in placing your pergola as a freestanding element, as an attached feature to the existing house structure, or in a more creative placement, such as over a pool or protecting a garden. To determine where the optimal spot is to place your pergola, a consultation with our design specialist will reveal the best options.
#3: Cohesive with Existing Features
Another aspect to consider when investing in a pergola installation is how you will integrate it with existing landscaping and other outdoor features. Suppose you already have a stone patio, a pool, a garden system, a fire pit, or any other outdoor components that you do not want to or cannot move. In that case, you must find a way to include your new installation in a functional and aesthetically pleasing way.
To do this, it is vital to consider the size of the available area, any modifications to the land required to install the structure, accessibility for the necessary equipment, and any additional add-on elements that would require special installation, such as electricity.
#4: Professional Installation
A final component to consider when performing a pergola installation for outdoor living spaces is a professional installation. While some highly skilled DIYers with construction experience may be able to safely install pergolas, it is often above the skillset of most homeowners. It is essential to remember that homeowners are responsible for everything on their property. Unfortunately, a poorly built pergola can quickly become a safety hazard.
We always advise homeowners interested in a pergola installation, whether to enhance their property value or simply increase their home enjoyment, to invest in professional installation. Your installation team will guarantee that your pergola installation is done correctly, safely, and within building compliance codes for your region.
Why Choose Patio Covers Unlimited NW for Your Pergola?
At Patio Covers Unlimited NW, we have helped countless homeowners in the Pacific Northwest to tailor their pergola installation to fit their home’s unique style and needs. Given our local expertise, we have an in-depth understanding of regional styles and preferences for outdoor living spaces that we can pass on to you. We take these regional requirements, from code compliance to environmental conditions, to provide you with a seamless and cohesive design plan that will enhance your property value for years to come.
Using high-quality, durable, and long-lasting materials paired with professional installation, you are sure to see a return on investment. So, whether you are simply looking for relief from the hot summer sun to read a book outside or you want to craft an incredible outdoor entertainment experience that will leave the whole neighborhood envious, we can help you achieve your pergola goal.
Ready to elevate your outdoor living space? Contact Patio Covers Unlimited NW today to design and install a custom pergola that boosts your home’s value!
