We’ve all heard it a million times; “you never get a second chance to make a first impression”. This statement has never been as relevant as it is with your home.
The first impression that is seen and felt about your property is first experienced at the curb; or directly in front of your home or property. This lasting impression can never be overlooked or underestimated. Nor can it be duplicated.
Curb appeal is so important that they made a show about it and it is never more important today; especially if you are looking to sell your property. We deal with hundreds of service companies and unfortunately, some should stay out of the service business, while there are others that are top notch and worthy of our praise.
Curb appeal refers that first impression that is left with the visitor to your home; whether it be a guest or prospective buyer. This lasting impression is left by the layout of your home; the landscaping, the paint, the roof, the fixtures and decor and oftentimes most lasting; the driveway, walkways, entrance ways, patio, pool deck and outdoor kitchen.
All of those areas need to be evaluated, planned, designed and completed by a professional landscape and brick and concrete paver professional who knows, understands and has experience in many different types of homes and how to best bring out that beautiful curb appeal. Fortunately for the homeowner, today’s online world is filled with companies and services to investigate their professionalism and aptitude; not to mention numerous fresh reviews served up at the click of your mouse. It is worth noting here, that we recommend looking for companies with numerous, recent reviews. Any company can get a few reviews from happy clients, but it is the service with the most reviews over the long haul, that are also recent, that carries the most weight. Don’t be afraid if a company has a couple bad reviews. Sometimes this happens and can also be the fault of the customer. In fact, we suggest you ask the potential company about the review and get their version of things. There are always two sides to every story so get their account of what happened.
In every city, you will find various companies that do “curb appeal” type of work, from basic lawn care and landscaping companies to higher end design firms that specialize in outdoor areas. The challenge for whoever you choose is to coordinate the entire scope of the project and the property so that the finished product flows together into an unforgettable, and gorgeous property.
The challenge of the homeowner or business owner is to know what they want and then find the best paver contractor to perform the work on time, on budget and in a manner that pleases the client. Many firms are a one stop shop in terms of design, installation, maintenance and service while others, like a lawn irrigation company, only perform one aspect of the job. We recommend finding a company that can do it all and get your project from”A-Z’ without the hassle of calling multiple companies to deal with. We have found companies that will do your driveway pavers and are also extremely skilled at completing that outdoor kitchen that you’ve dreamed about.
One such company is owned by a close friend of mine who specializes in driveway pavers in Fort Lauderdale. They are a one-stop shop for homeowners who want to address multiple needs on their property and are looking for one single, trustworthy company.
As we’ve mentioned, there are many facets of an entire paver design, installation and service project and finding the right partner to do the work is the challenging beginning. We suggest talking to neighbors and friends as well as looking at website/apps such as the following to find the right company:
- Home Advisor
- Thumbtack
- Nextdoor
- Angie’s List
- Best Pick Reports
- Put up a Facebook post asking for a recommendation
- Search Google in your local area
Once you decide on the right company to partner with, it’s important to ask many questions in terms of:
- How the process works?
- What is their warrant?
- What the exact costs will be?
- How long will the project take?
- Do they hire subcontractors or do all the work themselves?
- What are any potential concerns?
- Where can you cut or eliminate expenditures?
- How payment is handled?
These are just a few of the questions that need to be asked and many more will be revealed as the process moves along. Don’t be afraid to ask questions and if you see something that doesn’t look right, by all means, let the project supervisor or company owner know right way. Sometimes small mistakes or deviations from the plans can turn into huge issues or things that cannot be undone later on.
We hope this brief overview of paver installation and how it can have a big impact on your curb appeal was helpful and we wish you the best of luck on your project.
Post Script: We want to thank my friend at Fort Lauderdale Pavers who contacted me after this posting. We referenced his company in this article as we know they do fantastic work. There business has been booming and your feedback has helped them improve their services and customer service even more.
Great article. The list of Apps to do the research is worth its weight in gold Thanks for posting this!
I made all my employees read this to understand how important image is for us. Thanks!
Good stuff!
This was awesome.