What Outdoor Projects Should Wait Until After Move-In?

Do drainage and grading during construction. Defer almost everything decorative. The yard around a new home is still moving for the first year, and building on top of soil that hasn't settled is how you pay for the same patio twice.

Do it during construction

• Final grading. Ground must fall away from the house on every side. This is not optional and it is not decorative.
• Downspout and drainage routing. Where roof water goes matters more to your basement than anything else in the yard.
• The driveway, at least to a usable base, since it's your access.
• Anything requiring heavy equipment near the house. Once the yard is established, getting machinery back in means tearing it up again.
• Sleeves and conduit under the driveway and walks, for future irrigation, lighting or a run to a shed. Pennies now, excavation later.
• Erosion control and stabilization, which is generally required anyway.

Worth deferring

• Full landscaping design. Live through a year first. You'll learn where the sun lands, where you actually walk, where water sits and where you want privacy. That knowledge is worth more than a plan drawn before you moved in.
• Patios and hardscape. Soil around a new foundation settles, particularly over backfill and utility trenches. Building a patio on it too early means an uneven patio.
• Decks, unless they were designed and permitted with the house. Deck footings have their own requirements and a deck usually needs its own permit.
• Fencing. Wait until you know where property pins are, what the drainage does, and, if you're in a community, what's permitted. See deed restrictions.
• Trees. Easy to plant too close to the house, the drive, the septic field or a utility easement. Measure the mature size, not the nursery size.
• Sheds and outbuildings, which often need zoning approval and sometimes a permit.

The settling year

Expect soil to settle over utility trenches and around the foundation through the first full freeze and thaw. Low spots will appear. Topping them off with soil and reseeding is normal first-year work rather than a defect. Keep an eye on it, because a settled trench that redirects water toward the house is worth fixing promptly. See year-one maintenance.

Budget for it

Landscaping, hardscape, fencing and outbuildings sit outside a typical build contract, and together they add up to a real number. Plan for them as a second phase rather than being surprised by them. See what's not included in a builder's quote.