Your Backyard Renovation Gameplan: Premium Design Wins

You’re thinking about a major backyard renovation project, and there seems to be a fork in the road. Do you design with yourself in mind, creating a gorgeous, functional outdoor living space? Or do you look to the future and try to maximize your return on investment?

At Allied Outdoor Solutions, we think you should have both. Investing in a well-designed, high-quality backyard renovation significantly enhances your home's value and provides a luxurious outdoor living experience.

This guide creates a simple gameplan for your backyard renovation and outdoor design project. We’ll give you the tools you need to select the best features for your lifestyle, and pair them with intelligent design ideas to improve your property value.

• The best backyard renovations start with superior design. Hire a renovation company with outdoor living designers on staff to ensure thoughtful, cohesive design.
• Discover the design elements that offer the strongest ROI. Expert realtors agree that covered patios, outdoor kitchens and custom fire features offer high cost recovery and improvements to property value.
• What features define a premium backyard renovation? Covered pergola and patio structures, outdoor bars, swimming pools and hand-crafted hardscaping are coveted outdoor design elements.

Why Trust Our Backyard Renovation Expertise?

Since 2009, Allied Outdoor Solutions has transformed over 20,000 backyards into dream outdoor living spaces. Our custom, hand-crafted renovations center on practical-yet-premium solutions for each homeowner.

Our expertise is founded on 3 core principles: developing a proprietary “design-to-build” process, exemplifying a “trusted contractor” with a quality guarantee, and leveraging the best service providers in Texas to build the highest quality outdoor spaces.

Crafting Your Dream Outdoor Living Space: Designs that Deliver

The perfect backyard renovation starts long before a single hammer, shovel or concrete mixer appears on your property. Phase one of every outdoor living gameplan begins with a thoughtful design process.

Approach your backyard design with the help of an expert outdoor living designer. These professionals are trained to create cohesive designs that optimize flow and functionality, using premium materials and matching your renovated space to your everyday lifestyle.

Here are the 3 design stages you’ll conquer with your outdoor living expert. 

Customize Your Outdoor Space To Your Personal Lifestyle

You don’t just want a beautiful backyard — you want to love spending time outside. Tailor your outdoor renovation concepts to match your personal lifestyle. 

Work with your outdoor living consultant to find design elements that bring you happiness on three levels:

1. Personality and daily habits: If you spent time outside every day, what would you do? Do you want a place to swim, to grill, or to relax with your favorite podcast? Choose features that reflect and reward your daily activities.
2. Entertainment needs: Do you want to host a few friends for an outdoor game night by the fire? Enjoy having the neighbors over for drinks and steaks? Are the kids bugging you about a swimming pool? Set your backyard space up for peak entertainment value.
3. Aesthetic taste: What does your dream outdoor living area look like? Do you like rustic charm, mid-century design or sleek modern lines? Your outdoor living designer will match your renovated space to your personal taste and your existing home style.

The Importance of Quality Material Selection

Quality materials aren’t defined by their price tag — their value lies in a blend of durability and aesthetic value.

Select high-quality materials for every component of your renovation. Look for products that offer superior weather, temperature and pest resistance for your specific region. For example — Travertine performs ideally in high heat, but its porous structure can create trouble in freezing temperatures.

Experienced outdoor renovation companies partner with brands and manufacturers that deliver premium value. We work closely with brands like Carvestone, a premier concrete overlay and resurfacing product that provides unparalleled strength and hand-crafted customization.

Work with a designer that offers in-depth knowledge of a material’s durability, customizable features, and maintenance requirements.

Tying It All Together: The Value of a Cohesive Design Plan

The true value of outdoor living design experts is their ability to tie your unique combination of materials and features into one seamless backyard space.

The right design integrates every aspect of your backyard renovation into one logical, simple flow. Patios, pool decks, pergolas and water features are pulled together with smart hardscaping decisions and optimal spacing.

Ask your outdoor living designer to create a 3D rendering of your proposed design. Walk through this digital rendering before making final renovation decisions.

Maximizing ROI: The Best Bang for Your Renovation Buck

We hope you enjoy your premium outdoor space for decades. But if you ever move on from your current home, make sure your backyard renovation drives as much return on investment as possible.

Maximize the ROI of your outdoor renovation work to ensure you recover a large portion of your budget. You’ll enjoy your yard with the peace of mind that you made a smart investment.

Which Backyard Renovations Offer the Best Return on Investment?

These 3 outdoor renovation projects offer the best average ROI for American homeowners:

Patio Renovations

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reports that patio construction and renovation has an average cost recovery of 95%. 

Outdoor Kitchens

NAR’s Outdoor Features Report states that at least $15,000 of most outdoor kitchen projects are recouped at resale.

Custom Fire Features

Fire features are incredibly popular in the American outdoor renovation scene. They provide ample light and warmth for your backyard space, as well as a stylish focal point for your overall design.

In particular, custom fire pits are in high demand among homeowners — the market will more than double by 2030. 

Focus Your Outdoor Living Design on Value, Not Cost

When it comes to backyard renovation ROI, lasting value is more important than the upfront price tag. Don’t think of it as an expense, but an investment.

Durable materials and custom design features may cost slightly more today. But how much money will you burn on constant maintenance of interior products?

Invest in desirable, high-quality outdoor design elements that require less upkeep. You’ll save money over time in decreased maintenance costs — and you’ll maximize your cost recovery with stronger ROI and increased property value.

5 Key Design Elements of a Premium Backyard Renovation

Every state, region — even neighborhood — has its own definition of what makes a premium outdoor living design. In Texas, it’s a quality outdoor grill and covered patio with integrated ceiling fans. Homeowners in the Pacific Northwest adore rain gardens and koi ponds.

But no matter where you live, there are 5 key design elements that are central to the current concept of a high-end backyard renovation:

1. Covered patios and pergolas
2. Outdoor kitchens and bars
3. Swimming pools and water features
4. Custom fire features
5. Hand-crafted hardscaping

Covered Patios and Pergolas

Covered outdoor living areas offer shade and protection from inclement weather. No matter where you live, a sturdy roof on your patio or pergola brings indoor living to your backyard.

Use your covered outdoor structure to defend against local climate concerns — and select the right roofing materials for your region. Here are 2 examples:

Clear polycarbonate roofing lets in a lot of sun, but does poorly in high humidity, cold temperatures and hail storms. It works in temperate parts of America, but is less efficient in the deep South, Southwest and Great Lakes regions.

Aluminum patio and pergola roofing offers excellent rust and corrosion resistance and weather protection, but is noisy during heavy rainfall. It performs extremely well in Texas and the Southwest, but may be unsuitable for the Pacific Northwest.

Outdoor Kitchens and Bars

Outdoor kitchens offer incredible return on investment, plus the ability to bring the “hub of your home” (the kitchen) into your backyard space.

Elevate your outdoor kitchen design with an outdoor bar island. A wet bar on the patio is an immediate entertainment center, plus a relaxing place to unwind after a long weekend.

Use premium materials like natural stone and concrete to create your outdoor kitchen. Invest in reputable appliance brands like Viking, Wolf and Coyote. Then, go the extra mile and install smart design features like cabinet space, refrigerators and ice makers.

Swimming Pools and Water Features

Turn your backyard renovation project into a private oasis with an inground swimming pool, hot tub or custom water feature.

These water features create a visual focal point for your overall design gameplan. They provide the entertainment of a day in the pool, as well as the serene sight and sound of flowing water.

Your new inground pool or water feature has a positive environmental impact as well! They naturally cool the surrounding air, creating a more comfortable backyard climate.

Custom Fire Features

Custom fire features add warmth, comfort and dramatic flair to your outdoor living space. An outdoor fireplace transforms your patio into an outdoor living room and gathering area. 

“Out of the box” prefab fire pits are yesterday’s news. Custom, hand-crafted fire pit features add stunning style to pergolas, outdoor kitchens and pool deck areas. Whether you’re cooking s’mores or dazzling guests with tabletop fires, a personalized fire pit truly elevates your space.

Hand-Crafted Hardscaping

Elevate your driveways and walkways with hand-crafted hardscaping. Whether it’s a concrete overlay, driveway refinishing, or natural paver stone pathways, the right hardscape elements create a seamless backyard space.

Carvestone and other top hardscaping materials offer tremendous durability and design flexibility. Carvestone easily mimics flagstone, brick and other less sturdy hardscaping materials — and it’s rated to withstand up to 5,000 PSI of pressure.

Premium Backyard Renovation: Enjoy Now, Earn Later

A quality backyard renovation gameplan means decades of enjoyment in a space that’s highly durable, stylish, and personal to your lifestyle. It also means tremendous return on investment in the event you place your home on the market.

Allied Outdoor Solutions has transformed the outdoor living spaces of over 20,000 homeowners. Our attention to detail, expert craftsmanship and outdoor living design expertise add value to your property and joy to your every day life.

Talk to our backyard renovation experts — let’s get your gameplan started!