How to prepare your villa garden for sale in Marbella

Why the garden moves the price

Research on this is surprisingly consistent. A Virginia Tech review of multi-state consumer surveys and earlier studies finds that a well-landscaped home is perceived as worth roughly 5.5–12.7% more than the same home with no landscaping, and upgrading a garden from average to excellent adds around 10–12%. The same research found that a very minimal garden — small plants, no design — can actually pull the perceived value down.

Time matters too. In a University of Florida study, realtors estimated that re-landscaped homes would sell faster — in one case by 15 days. These are US studies, not Marbella data, but Marbella agencies such as Panorama and Dolan Property say the same thing in their own words: first impressions count, and they start outside.

6 weeks before photos: fix what needs time

• —Bring the lawn back. Feeding, aeration and overseeding need 3–6 weeks to show. Lawn laid the week before photos looks laid the week before photos.
• —Replace dead and struggling plants now, so the new ones have time to settle in. Fresh plants put in two days before a shoot often droop in the first heat.
• —Check the irrigation zone by zone. Dry patches and brown hedge bottoms are almost always a watering problem, not a plant problem.
• —Prune trees, palms and hedges to shape. Heavy pruning needs a few weeks to green up again.

2 weeks before: clean lines

• —Edge the lawn, weed the beds and top up gravel or bark. Clean edges are what makes a garden look cared for in a photo.
• —Pressure-wash paths, steps and the pool terrace.
• —Remove what distracts: broken pots, old furniture, hoses, children’s toys, garden ornaments. Buyers want to imagine their own garden, not yours.
• —Test the garden lighting. Evening viewings are common, and a lit garden photographs beautifully at dusk.

2 days before: final touch

• —Mow, blow the terraces and pool area, fill planters at the entrance.
• —Water the day before, not the morning of the shoot — wet paving and puddles show in photos.
• —Walk from the gate to the front door the way a buyer would. Whatever catches your eye first will catch theirs.

What not to do

• —Don’t plant large trees or exotic species days before listing. Transplant shock shows within a week.
• —Don’t over-design. A buyer wants a garden that looks easy to live with, not a project.
• —Don’t forget the season. In August a Costa del Sol lawn without proper irrigation turns brown fast, and overseeding in peak heat rarely takes. If you can choose, list in spring or autumn — or get the watering right before summer.
• —Don’t forget the pool. Clear, blue water next to the garden is part of the same photo.

While the villa is on the market

A garden prepared once looks tired within a month in summer. Scheduled maintenance visits keep it ready for every viewing — and if you are not in Marbella, a photo report after each visit shows you exactly how it looks.

How we do it

At PRANA Garden, preparing a garden for sale starts from €3,000, depending on size and condition. We visit within 5 working days, agree the work in a written quote, and offer scheduled maintenance with a photo report after each visit. Real estate agents and property managers can work with us through our partner programme.