Landscape rebates are becoming popular across the county as water conservation becomes a bigger issue and more people look for ways to save water.
Population growth is straining 
water supplies and delivery systems, causing many water providers to provide great incentives to reduce water use. Homeowner’s, businesses, and HOA’s are also looking for ways to trim their budgets and increase their long-term sustainability.
But landscape renovations can get expensive. Thankfully, there are some great rebates out there that you can take advantage of to help offset the costs. When you factor in the rebates, as well as significant water and maintenance savings, a landscape renovation can make a lot of sense for your property.
Irrigation Upgrades vs. Turf Removal
Most of the rebates out there focus on 2 main areas: Irrigation Upgrades and Turf Removal.
Irrigation upgrade rebates are offered to water customers to increase the efficiency of their irrigation systems. Rebates are often offered to install more efficient spray nozzles, rain sensors, and controllers.
The rebates for these items are usually calculated per item installed, for example, $5 per efficient rotary nozzle, and $50 for a rain sensor. For larger commercial properties there are often limit to the maximum rebate that can be obtained.
Turf removal rebates are geared toward removing areas of high water-use landscaping (usually lawns and turfgrass) and replacing those areas with low water-use landscaping. The replacement landscaping can consist of Xeriscape, native plants, and a variety of colorful shrubs, perennials, trees, and ornamental grasses.
This approach has the ability to lower water use dramatically, as the landscape itself is being changed to REQUIRE less water to be healthy. As such, the rebates offered for a turf removal landscape renovation are generally much higher.
Turf removal rebates are usually calculated based on the square feet of the area being changed, for example $1.50 or $2.50 per square foot of area that is changed from high water-use to low water-use. The total amount available varies by water provider or City, and can be a couple thousand dollars to as much as $25,000 and more for larger properties.
When pursuing a turf removal type rebate, a good landscape design can be very beneficial and is often required in order to get the rebate. Most rebates require that the replacement landscaping consist of a variety of low water-use plantings that will help to create an interesting and beautiful replacement landscape.
Consider hiring a professional landscape architect- In most cases the rebate you receive will more than pay for the services of a professional, and your experience will be a lot more enjoyable. In some cases, additional rebates are offered to customers who use a professional to do the design.
It takes a little bit of research to figure out which rebate is right for you, but in the end a rebate can be a great way to offset the cost of renovating your landscaping.
This is the official blog of Outdoor Design Group, Colorado Landscape Architects. For more information about our business and our services, click here.
Trackbacks/Pingbacks