The above is excellent advice!! Too often I have clients that focus in on what is rather than what could be. They have the notion that what is currently in place - a garden shed, an aging patio, a big tree, the AC pump - has to remain and must be worked around. It doesn't - anything can be changed/removed and in doing so, it opens up many more opportunities to create something they really want or will find useful and attractive. It's easy to think about making major changes in the flow or floor plan and remodeling of the interior of the house but many have difficulties grasping those same 'remodeling' visions to the exterior of their property. Or that there is value in doing so and worth the investment. Frankly, that's often why they hire a designer...........or post on this forum :-) Often the completely objective views of an outsider, someone with no personal attachment to the situation, can help them see beyond what is to what could be. There may be a cost associated with the removal of these 'vision impediments' and sometimes that cost can be hefty but I encourage them to try to see the value of the cost investment, just as they did when reworking the interior aspects. Often I will ask new clients to describe to me their "lottery landscape" - what they would want if money was no object. And then we get to the nitty-gritty of budgets and practicalities and attempt to come up with a compromise that will incorporate the best/most important features of the lottery landscape with a real landscape plan that will accommodate the budget. And that often involves the removal of fixtures they had assumed had to be permanent. It is also important to remember that outside of HGTV shows, a revised or recreated landscape is an evolving entity. Rather than looking at it as a fait accompli or an all-at-once finished deal, this is something that can be completed over time as energy and budget allows. Just don't allow what's there now overly influence how you move forward. Anything can be changed :-))

Cherry Laurels love shade and grow fast once established (evergreen shrubs to small trees) but are poisonous to dogs. I planted a row of them on my north side to block out a purple house on the hill, and will just take my chances that I don't get a stupid dog when I get another dog :) Camellias also love shade and they flower in the fall and winter. They are shrubs but really they are small trees, they do grow slow however. Tulip poplar would grow very quickly to reach for the light, and the leaves would get rather large in the shade. That tree gets big though! Also, a thought: drive around and look for houses in similar conditions... What is growing in those situations?! I “cheat" all the time this way with landscaping. Also, maybe you could befriend the new owner and convince them to grow cross vine or Virginia creeper on the side of their house? Think understory trees too, several people have mentioned some great ones (especially hornbeam/ironwood/musclewood, dogwood, and redbud). I would add serviceberry and beech to that list (although beech eventually gets large. It keeps its leaves in the winter).

Just removing the lattice work would make it much more clean. Railings without lattice and the big posts without lattice would do wonders. Speaking of the big posts ... do they need to be that big? Is the decorative lattice work around it just there to give it visual substance or is the actual support structure behind it that big? And if you don't use or care much about the upper level, then getting rid of the "pergola roof" or whatever it's called would simplify the look. Just make it open. Removing all that and just rebuilding it the way it is would be a huge improvement.

Arch you are right, we are close to neighbors and we used to have a patio but we built the addition over it, and added the glass doors to get direct access. the house is 34" above grade which is why we thought of the deck that is a few steps down from the house - privacy + more integrated with the lawn and paver stone area. our architect started with steps down, but they projected out 9' (3' landing + 3 risers + 3' landing). this is required to meet code without guardrails. it was also wide -- I think 12'. therefore, we thought this took up too much yard space and chopped up the area we'd want for adult hangout close to the house. we thought the deck that is a few steps down doesn't waste as much space, gives us a good location to the house / kitchen, privacy and we'll use it more when it's closer to the kitchen. we're thinking of Aztek decking. any other ideas? if there was a concise way to get to ground level we'd prefer that, but we need 3' landing at the door and each riser can't be more than about 7.5" per code. included the first option from architect with the steps down and landing. thank you all!!