Atlanta Backyard Design Report: A 16-Project Study
A closer look at 16 Outdoor Makeover projects recorded complete between October 2025 and September 2026.
A backyard should make it easier to spend time together: dinner outside, a comfortable place to unwind, or room to play. Our first Atlanta Backyard Design Report looks at how those spaces were planned across a selected group of our own projects.
We reviewed approved proposals and change orders, then counted three clearly documented features. These findings describe this selected project group. They are not a survey of Atlanta homeowners or evidence of year-over-year growth.
What the reviewed projects included
Each project is counted once per feature. A project can appear in more than one category.
Documented features in 16 selected projects
Source: Outdoor Makeover & Living Spaces approved project documents. Counts reflect documented contracted scope, including approved additions and credits, rather than an independent inspection of finished construction.
1. Plan the spaces between the features
Fifteen reviewed projects included patio, walkway or pool-deck paving work, including extensions, overlays or repairs. Materials and applications varied: pavers, porcelain, concrete, stone stepping paths and decorative gravel appeared in the records.
For homeowners, the useful takeaway is to plan how people move through the yard. A patio, kitchen, lawn and pool need comfortable connections. Consider the route from the house, where people will sit, and how circulation changes when friends or family visit.
2. Include evening use in the conversation
Ten projects documented landscape lighting installation or repair. This count excludes pool-only lights, general electrical outlets and an approved repair document marked as excluded from its project budget.
Lighting deserves attention while the wider space is being designed. Discuss paths, gathering areas and landscape accents with your design team so that evening use fits the overall plan.
3. Choose lawn and recreation surfaces by their purpose
Four projects included synthetic turf. The documented uses ranged from lawn areas and pool surroundings to recreation, including a bocce court conversion. These were different applications with different base and installation details.
Begin with how the space will be used, then compare surfaces. An athletic court, play area, garden and everyday lawn need different conversations about layout, drainage, care and investment. The report does not establish that one surface is best for every property.
What this means for your investment
The project name alone does not tell you what is included. A record called a backyard renovation may cover a focused improvement, while a pool project may also include paving, retaining walls, planting or other outdoor work.
We have not used this selected sample to publish an average backyard price. Our Outdoor Living Investment Guide explains two separately verified historical examples of approximately $77,000 and $166,000, together with their scope and limitations. They are examples, not current quotes or package prices.
How we prepared this report
- Starting records: 110 JobTread records with a Work Completed On Date from October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026 and an assigned project manager.
- Selection: 18 records had a Closed or Work Complete status and either a name identifying a backyard renovation, makeover or construction project, or a Pools job classification. We limited this edition to 16 records in six recorded communities: Atlanta, Alpharetta, Decatur, Duluth, Dunwoody and Smyrna. Two records in Griffin and Greensboro were outside this edition’s geographic selection.
- Scope review: 63 approved customer proposals and change orders were reviewed. One document marked Exclude from Budget was omitted, leaving 62 documents for feature coding. Credits and explicit exclusions were considered; a future kitchen slab, for example, was not counted as a completed kitchen.
- Counting: Features were recorded once per project. Paving includes new work, extensions, overlays and repairs. Landscape lighting includes installation or repair, but excludes pool-only lighting and ordinary electrical work. Synthetic turf requires an explicit turf installation scope.
- Limits: This is a selected, non-random sample from one company’s records, not every Outdoor Makeover project or the Atlanta market. Selection by job name and type favors backyard and pool work. Completion dates and statuses are recorded administrative fields; approved scopes are not independent as-built verification. The study measures feature presence, not customer demand, satisfaction or change over time.
- Privacy: Findings are aggregated. Customer names, addresses, individual contract documents, internal costs and margins are not published.
Plan an outdoor space around your life
Outdoor Makeover & Living Spaces brings design and construction together to create complete outdoor environments. Share your property, priorities and anticipated investment with our Client Concierge. Your Concierge can recommend the right Elevate, Lifestyle or Legacy Makeover consultation based on your project.
Explore our Buyer’s Guide to compare project teams, or check our service ZIP-code directory and confirm your property’s coverage with the Client Concierge.
Start a conversation about your outdoor project
For editors and researchers
Please attribute these findings to Outdoor Makeover & Living Spaces, Atlanta Backyard Design Report: A 16-Project Study and link to this page. Include the sample size and selected-sample limitation when citing the counts. Visit our Press & Media Kit for company information and media resources.