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In real estate, as in life, you only have one shot at making a good first impression. And the first thing people see when they approach a home is the landscaping job.

“If you don’t see a good front landscape, what happens? You make an assumption about the interior,” says North Shore luxury realtor Marina Carney at Griffith, Grant & Lackie Realtors.

By the same logic, “if the landscape design complements the architecture, people enter the home with a much different attitude, whether its guests or people selling,” says Steve Kooyenga, senior landscape architect at Chalet Nursery in Wilmette.

When given the right amount of TLC, landscapes can last 15-20 years from a structure and shape standpoint — and most perennials will last from five to 10 years. But if someone invests in the landscaping, then doesn’t invest in the maintenance, it shows. “When it’s not maintained properly, the investment can quickly go down,” Kooyenga says. When the landscaping is so meticulous that it shifts a house from ordinary to extraordinary, it’s clear the owner has shown the home a lot of love, and there are a few elements of landscape design that really make a lawn shine.

It starts with creating a quality outdoor living space — think a patio, firepit or deck — that’s comfortable and designed for your family. “Good landscaping basically adds another room to your house … during the summer months,” Kooyenga says. “Think about entertaining needs, how big a family is and incorporate lighting into all of that.”

Many people also want to bring natural elements into their design, which almost always translates to water features. “With these pond-less waterfalls, we can create a very natural-looking design, so you have the visual of a waterfall and the sound without having to have a pond,” Kooyenga says. “It can be very popular for people with pets.”

In luxury landscaping privacy is at a premium, particularly around a property’s borders. Then, through the use of natural stone and structural elements, the landscaping connects with the architecture of the home. “If someone has a natural stone element within the architecture of the house, we will try to repeat the use of that stone or brick as part of the landscape design,” Kooyenga says.