House selling help - lack of lawn

[PogoBob]

Putting our end terrace house on the market in the next couple of weeks - houses like ours in this area are selling and we can be realistic about the price.

Inside tidy, new modern kitchen and bathroom, recently decorated, neutral carpets/laminate, double glazing, central heating, major declutter etc. etc. Front garden is tidy with lawn and planted beds and there are 2 parking spaces.

Back garden is only partially done though. The garden is a L shape, wider then the house and continues down the side. There is a private seating area in the side area with a table and planted beds, there is also a shed (which is staying) tucked away in a corner.

Across the back of the house is a gravel area the width of the garden which has another seating area outside the kitchen doors.

The issue is beyond this gravel area - the last 20' of the garden (where most people would expect a lawn) is just bare soil as we had to totally dig it over as majorly overgrown, we are having a bit of nightmare finding someone to come and lay turf (not realistic for us to do).

Would you consider a house that didn't have a lawn but had an obvious space for one to be laid or would you think it too much work? We could spread bark and plant a few shrubs in the area but wonder if this would also put people off.

We want to get the house of the market asap to try and get it sold before Christmas but obviously are coming to the end of the time for turf laying

TIA for any help/advice

It would put me off if I were choosing between two houses.

That's what I thought soupdragon, thanks for the response though.

Anyone fancy turfing a garden in south wales??

if the amount of space in the house & garden was good for the money i dont think that would have put me off too much as the space is there to get it done. im more bothered about whether i like the layout of the house as knocking down walls or putting up walls etc is a lot more of a bigger deal than putting in some grass so i dont think it would necessarily be a deal breaker?
if i bought one like that i would use it as an excuse to put that artificial grass down, im sure some people here will consider that really tacky but it seems so practical to me

I also choose houses more on layout etc but I do factor in the hassle fo getting anything done. I'd probably try to use it as a bargaining point to or be lowering my offer.

Are you sure you cant do it yourself? As you aren't staying, it needn't be done to perfection :)

I would not be put off by lack of lawn / bare soil. I would however be put off by bark chippings. I would be more than able to turf / lawn seed the garden but would consider it a faff bagging up and disposing of the bark.

Why don't you put grass seed down, and a few shrubs around the edges and then tell buyers that the grass has been sown and should be there by spring. (realistically, winter is coming, how much use is a lawn this time of year?)

Thanks all.

I must confess the bark idea would be a total last resort as we've a lot of cats in the area and the thought of a giant cat loo turns my stomach.

It's the logisitcs of laying turf ourselves in terms of time and babysitter for DD who would cause chaos trying to help.

Hadn't thought about seeding, will have a chat with DH about that.

May not be online for the next couple of hours but keep any comments coming

Thanks

Spray paint the soil green and hope they don't look too closely

It wouldn't put me off. The gigantic cats' toilet would seep into my subconscious and affect me at a non-rational level, though.
I think seeding is the best idea.
You're just in time if you get on with it now. I don't see how that would be any quicker than laying turf, but it would be cheaper.

Lay turf.

It wouldn't put me off, but it would some people.

DON'T lay bark - it's truly horrid, makes any garden look like a crappy pub beer garden, difficult to get mess and blown paper out of, weeds creep through, sooo nasty and uncomfy and unwelcoming and crap looking. I'd be put off by having to go to the trouble of removing bark.

it wouldnt put me off at all. its relatively easy and cheap to do. i would, however, hate it if bark was there as that would mean i would have to remove it.
its easy to sprinkle some seeds and at least you can tell buyers the lawn is seeded

Fake grass!

i saw some fake grass in homebase today and i was very impressed with how good it looked. fab idea!

Chuck seeds down NOW and you might even get a bit of growth this autumn.

Wouldn't put me off either, one of the easier jobs to do I reckon in the scheme of things. Would rather have bare earth than anything else. I have been looking at houses that have weird stuff in the back garden, all paved over (and a decent size, not just a yard), gravel, paving and gravel, bizarre ornaments etc. etc. which would be way more hassle to deal with if you just want a bit of lawn! I'd say something to buyers that you've done a lot to clear this garden it was full of stuff when you moved in and you've cleared it ready for further development so it sounds like you've done some work and not just abandoned it. But I do also second the seeding idea!

put it in the sale package - your solicitor can deal with it, I've seen this happen a lot round here lately if theres a particular thing putting people off. Say that you will pay for a lawn if the sale goes through then on completion a set amount of the sale money is held back and the buyer is reimbursed that amt if they provide recipts/invoices within a set time

p.s. don't lay bark. and we had a cat that went out of its way to poo in our bark so...

would not put me of infact when i move first thing to go will be the lawn

Wouldn't put me off - it's a minor detail. If anyone mentions it as a negative, like a PP has said, include turfing it as a condition of sale. I know it's not universally admired, but I have found the checkatrade website to be a complete lifesaver when looking for tradespeople (would think they also list gardeners/ garden designers).

Thanks all (broadband problems mean I haven't been able to get online).

A lot of good points to consider there - definate no to the bark , have actually found someone to come and give a quote for turfing so will see how much that costs and go from there.

Put some seed down now. Go for the fast growing stuff from B and Q. It is still mild for the time of year so you should get some reasonable growth.

Seriously easy and quick to lay turf if ground all ready and flat ish!

where do you live...fill it with sand and make a boce ball court...tell them your family gets together and plays as a family and you do bbqs...they will only picture their family the same way.

Thanks all - have got someone coming to lay turf. Having looked at the ground again it is so unlevel that seeding without major work would just look a bit rediculous.

Guy is going to level off the slope with a mini digger and then lay turf. Now just need to get the house sorted!!