We often see fences around suburban homes and neighbourhoods, but more homes, especially those with modern or contemporary designs have started to forego having fences around their property as they don’t fit the style of the house or they see no need to have one. However, fences provide more than just aesthetic appeal to one’s home, and style shouldn’t be the only consideration in one’s home and property. So let’s take a look at reasons why fences should still be an integral part of one’s home:
Safety
Safety is arguably one of the most common reasons why people build fences around their homes. Fences (and gates) keep unwanted persons from entering your property who might steal, vandalise, cause property damage, or worse. It would also keep wild animals from damaging your garden and any furniture or equipment in your front or backyard, as well as preventing them potentially hurting people in the property. Fences could also keep children and pets in the property safe by creating a barrier, ensuring that they won’t stray from your property or run off into the road. And, depending on your home’s location and geological features around it, a fence would prevent anyone from falling off a bluff or accidentally falling into a body of water.
Privacy
Tall and solid fences keep prying eyes from seeing into your property and provides privacy to one’s pool or yard. Privacy does depend on the type of material one opts to use. Wooden fence panels would be able to obscure sight (and partially sound), but metal or wrought-iron fence would still allow neighbours and passersby to see your house and whatever’s within the fence’s perimeter. So if you’re not worried about your neighbours or anyone eavesdropping or looking into your home but still want to provide a safe enclosure for your property, you can opt to choose non-obscuring fencing materials and design.
Boundaries
One of the main reasons why people have built fences is establishing the boundary of their property. Setting boundaries provide homeowners with both safety and privacy as it tells people that whatever’s within the fence is privately-owned. Fences avoid people from trespassing, which could happen accidentally if there’s no fence or any clear boundary of the property line. This also makes neighbours more aware of any shrubbery or plants of theirs that may cross towards your property.
Curb Appeal and Value
Well-chosen fence design and material could add aesthetic appeal to your home. Having wooden or wrought-iron fence could give a rustic look to your home, and would even increase its market value should you opt to sell it one day. Although, one of the major reasons why some homes, especially modern ones, don’t wish to have fences is that they don’t fit into a home’s design. Some owners prefer to have their property seem more open and wider instead of enclosed. However, with the right design and materials, you could still put a fence for safety and boundary-setting without it having stick out like a sore thumb.
Conclusion
Fences could undoubtedly provide a lot of benefits to one’s home. Fence-building could even be a fun DIY project that you can do with friends and family. But if you’re worried about fences ruining your home’s style and appeal, it’s best to hire professional fence builders for your Ottawa home so they can determine the best fence design and material to go with your home while still being able to provide the advantages that fences offer.
