How to Save Money on Your Landscape Installation in Greater Phoenix
A beautiful outdoor space can add value to your home and improve your quality of life.
However, as a budget-conscious homeowner in Phoenix, Arizona, it's natural to want to save money on your landscape installation. We get it — saving money is great!
However, there are some common misconceptions about saving money on landscape installation that can cost you 2.5 to 3x more to fix than doing it right the first time.
In this article, we'll explore some tips for saving money on your landscape design without sacrificing the quality of your landscape installation.
What Should You Keep in Mind When Saving Money on Your Landscape Design?
1. Steer Clear of Cheap Prices or “The Deal”
Choosing the cheapest bid is one of the biggest mistakes homeowners make when trying to save money on their landscape installation. Cheap prices are precisely what they sound like — cheap. They may seem like a good deal at the time, but low prices often result in poor quality workmanship and materials.
Instead of focusing on price alone, look for a contractor who offers a fair price for quality work. Usually, a local contractor with plenty of experience, referrals and a bid somewhere in the middle of the road is a reliable choice.
Pineapple Palm planted in the wrong place.
2. Choose the Right Contractor for Your Project
Another mistake homeowners make is choosing a contractor who doesn't specialize in their specific project needs. For example, if you need a complex hardscape installation, you'll want to work with a contractor who has experience with that type of work and the certifications the industry requires. Just because they deem themselves such does not make it true.
Choosing a contractor who is a "jack of all trades" may seem like an excellent way to save money, but it can result in poor-quality workmanship and delays. It’s much better to pay more for a contractor experienced in the specific type of work you need so you know they’ll get your project right the first time.
Improper drainage due to improper grading and damming back no release point.
3. Purchase Your Own Materials with Caution
There is a belief if I buy it I can control the purchase cost. Unless you know someone, you can purchase wholesale, in most cases that is a false statement. Contractors buy from manufacturers or wholesalers direct. If a retailer says they are “giving” you 50% off, my momma said if it sounds too good to be true, it most likely is. People are in business to make a living. If contractors aren’t buying their products from those retailers with the supposed big discounts, ask yourself why that is. In business there is the margin up to margin down, for example, if they mark it up three times and cut it in half, are they really giving you a deal? I know it may seem so, but go back to that question as to why contractors aren’t buying from them…….because they get a better buy from the wholesaler.
For example, purchasing plants from a retail nursery may seem like a good way to save money, but these plants are usually smaller and less healthy than those offered by an experienced landscaper.
Similarly, purchasing pavers from a home improvement store may seem like a good deal at the time, but you may end up with a lower-quality product that doesn't last as long. You’ll pay more to replace your pavers frequently in the long run.
Here is the other loss, there is no warranty. If the retailer supplier says the plants and even installs them, but the landscape company handles the irrigation, who guarantees the plants if they die? The retail plant seller will state they did not install the irrigation and that is what contributed to their death. The contractor will state we did not buy the plants from our source and are not responsible for the planting. You are caught in the middle and the Registrar of Contractors will tell you there is no recourse.
Why we do not plant Pygmy Palms in Arizona. Arizona is too hot and Pygmy Palms need humidity and less intense heat.
4. Get Multiple Bids
When choosing a contractor, getting multiple bids and carefully comparing them is crucial. However, don't simply choose the lowest bid.
Look for bids that are similar in price and scope of work, and make sure that the contractors you're considering are licensed, bonded, and insured.
Additionally, carefully review each bid's details, including the installation procedures, city permitting requirements, and HOA requirements, if you’re working on a big project, you want to see the contractor calling out the details, quantity, install procedures. If you are looking at a bid with just material, quantity and a price and no details or proper installation procedures, when you sign a contract with none of that you allow the contract to do whatever they want and nothing to hold them to. DO NOT assume that they are doing the same thing, another contractor who put it in writing states they will be held accountable to. Verbal agreements is he said he said.
5. Choose an Established Contractor
As we mentioned earlier, choosing a contractor established in your local area with a good reputation is crucial. In Arizona, all contractors must be licensed and bonded. Any work they are intending to install, they must show proficiency and knowledge for each trade. What does being licensed and bonded mean to me? It means the county in this case has checked what said contract is proficient in, work they are allowed to do and pay a bond two years in advance so worst case scenario, you the homeowner should they default the state has funds set aside to allow you to be made whole. Many people seek feedback from online posting sites, which is fine but take with a grain of salt. They are not managed by the hosts of said sites and so anyone can post without proper follow up to make sure complaints aren’t embellished. Unlike the Registrar of contractors which over sees every licensed and bond contractor and has power to shut down a bad contractors, the posting sites have no recourse or power to compel a contractor nor ability to make a home owner whole like the Register does through the bonding fund. To access and check on a contractor here in Maricopa County see attached link: Home | Arizona Registrar of Contractors (az.gov)
Look for contractors willing to provide references and those you know who are referring them. If someone has not had a good experience, they aren’t going to refer someone, because they would be embarrassed to have that reflect on them.
6. Do Not Cut Corners
Finally, it's important to remember that cutting corners on installation can cost you 2.5 to 3x more to fix than doing it right the first time.
For example, choosing the lowest bid for each trade involved in the project may seem like an excellent way to save money on your landscape installation, but it can result in delays and poor-quality work. Instead, look for a contractor who is licensed in all the project installs you are looking to have handled or they have a connection to someone who can.
Two days after install, sub base not ABC and and not compacted. No mortared edged border.
Trust Wildflower Desert Design for Your Landscape Design & Installation Needs
Saving money on your landscape installation requires careful planning, research, and attention to detail — not cheap bids and cutting corners.
Wildflower Desert Design offers beautiful landscape designs for homeowners and properties in Greater Phoenix. We can also refer you to trusted landscapers and contractors who can complete the job excellently — but also at a fair price.
Contact us to get started on your beautiful desert landscape design today with a no-obligation free consultation.