[mikester]

I would rather not go into debt to finish the house but such is life. I would rather 'live' than and I also believe that my house could stand to gain a very significant 'value' increase with a good landscaping job that turns it from 'ugly' to 'pretty'. Right now I feel like it is the most unattractive house on the block from the outside. The inside is pretty normal but the outside is well below par for the neighborhood.

I recall the housing boom and even the value they tell me it holds today, something I always used to say 'I've been to my house, it's not worth that much.' I'd like to remedy that a bit, when I speak like that I am mostly referring to the landscaping.

My neighborhood has not been hit horribly by the housing bust; we have a low inventory of homes for sale and a low inventory of forclosures and that has kept the values more stable. Our house is worth more than we paid for it but ultimately it is unlikely that we would want to move soon.

I'm not saying that if my dream house became available that I wouldn't want to go for it but it is unlikely that would happen in the near term. In 5 years or so I will probably be into looking. I want a better garage situation and my kids and I will probable need a bit more space. Still, I need to do this work anyway I'm comfortable that I can handle the debt and through some hard work take care of it in 1.5 to 3 years.

I do have a good relationship with my bank so I'll see what they say. I do want to do it 100% above board - I'm looking for good references but first I want to secure the money. I good landscape can change a property and mine needs some help.