I’m glad that we purchased a home with a small yard. I mean this extremely earnestly. I can find some joy in mowing and upkeeping a small lawn, but it’s difficult for me not to see it as an inconvenience. This goes back to my adolescence, when one of the blessings (and curses) of having two homes meant that I had two lawns to mow where most young men only had one. You being motivated about that in the 95 degree NC heat. Before my parents comment, I’ll be the first to say that I skirted this responsibility often, but the frequency of the upkeep made me annoyed time and time again.
The Lawn, In History
So why do most detached homes these days come with a lawn of some sort? Trends and imitation. The aristocratic class developed an obsession with lawns in Europe around the 18th century. It was a sign of wealth, because back then you had to pay a small army of gardeners to scythe your lawn by hand in order to properly upkeep it. A properly cut lawn also had the appeal of making your estate feel sweeping and massive, since you could see your home from so far off.
While the aristocrats of Europe have always found new ways to call the rest of us poor, the trend really caught on in the U.S. because land here was so much more accessible during the colonial and post-colonial era than it might have been elsewhere. There was a time when the U.S. had an abundance of land, so when better lawn maintenance equipment was developed it became part of the American ethos to have your nicely manicured yard. You have to get those great lines!
The Lawn, In Modernity
I would argue the modern lawn is nothing but a chore and an excess. Mowing and properly caring for a lawn is a task the modern man, woman, or they/them has to do regularly to meet their HOA standards and keep their neighbors happy, not out of the joy of viewing their vast estate and separating themselves from the peasants. Worst still, if you have a large yard you have to care for you will find yourself spending hours of your precious time each week doing such tasks.
So what does this all have to do with financial planning? Trade-offs. Remember that whenever you purchase a home, you’re giving up the last living situation. If you move from an apartment to a sprawling home with an acre of lawn and trees, you may not realize just how much more of your time will be spent on that maintenance. Make sure that the choices you’re making suit you both from a lifestyle perspective and financially! If you don’t upkeep all of that space, you’ll be paying someone to do it for you.
I am elated with our home and our yard, but I can tell you that upkeeping it at the peak of the summer heat is low on my list of “wants.” So as you look to cast off the bonds of renting and rise to the level of landed gentry, please make sure to make the decision that’s right for you. Don’t just buy what’s cheap and available. Buy what suits your life and enjoy it! For me, that was 1/5 of an acre or something.