# Realty & Real Estate > Listing-ready curb appeal, model homes and new builds: plantings that help a property show well, photograph beautifully and sell. **Summary:** Listing-ready curb appeal, model homes and new builds: plantings that help a property show well, photograph beautifully and sell. ![A front door framed by fall containers of coleus, mums, ferns and pumpkins](https://healingearthdesignbysarah.com/rails/active_storage/blobs/redirect/eyJfcmFpbHMiOnsiZGF0YSI6NDIxLCJwdXIiOiJibG9iX2lkIn19--33a11e92c67f8f97b9aacabb837ebebf8dc5d9ea/IMG_0763.webp) ## Curb appeal is the first showing. **Intro:** Buyers form an opinion before they reach the front door, and most of them see the house first in listing photos. Nearly every Realtor says curb appeal matters in attracting a buyer, and most have told sellers to improve it before listing. Fresh beds, clean mulch and full containers at the door are among the simplest ways to make a property look cared for. - Listing photos that stop the scroll — A planted, mulched entrance and seasonal containers make the front of the house the photo buyers click on. - Showings that start well — The walk to the door sets the tone for the whole showing; cared-for plantings say the house has been cared for too. - Model homes and new builds — Bare lots look unfinished. Foundation plantings and a planted entrance help a new home look ready to live in. - Low care buyers won't worry about — Sturdy, plant-forward beds that look good without much work reassure buyers who don't want a project. - 97% — of Realtors say curb appeal is important in attracting a buyer. — - 92% — of Realtors have suggested sellers improve curb appeal before listing. — - 100% — of the cost of a landscape upgrade that Realtors estimate is recovered when a home sells. — - 1.7 days — sooner sale, on average, for houses with street trees in front, which also sold for $8,870 more (Portland, Oregon; trees, not plantings). — **What we'd plant:** - A pre-listing refresh: beds weeded, edged and mulched - Seasonal containers at the front door for photos and open houses - Foundation and entrance plantings for new builds and model homes - Low-care plantings buyers won't see as a chore - Care visits while a property is on the market **Calculator: label for that figure:** Sale price **Calculator: uplift, low (%):** 1 **Calculator: uplift, high (%):** 3 **Calculator: where the uplift comes from:** A one-time gain of 1% to 3% of the sale price, the same range the home garden calculator uses. Buyers say a well-landscaped home is worth 5–11% more (Behe et al., 2005), and Realtors estimate a landscape upgrade recovers about what it costs (NAR & NALP, 2023); buyers' estimates run ahead of sale prices, so the calculator stays well below them. It starts from a pre-listing refresh with no yearly care, since the gain comes when the property sells. **Planner choice:** Real estate: listings, model homes or new builds - Can you refresh a property before it's listed? — Yes. Tell us the listing date, and we'll plan a refresh of beds, mulch and containers around it so the property is ready for photos. - Do you work with agents and builders on more than one property? — Yes. We can set up a refresh or planting plan you can repeat across listings, model homes or a development. - Do you build patios, walls or walkways? — No. Everything we do is plants: design, soil, planting, mulch and care. If your project needs hardscape, we can plan the planting around it and work alongside your contractor. --- Source: https://healingearthdesignbysarah.com/industries/realty-real-estate Updated: 2026-10-13