Patio Design

If you live in the jurisdiction of Wake County or the city of Raleigh you will need a permit. All jurisdictions require some sort of approval for a patio. It is very important to make sure your property has enough accessible impervious surface area to allow for the patio.

An impervious surface is any surface that does not allow for water absorption. In other words, anything that is not a natural part of your landscape (such as your lawn or mulch areas). Impervious surfaces are the footprints of your house, such as driveways, walkways, porches, sheds, etc. Even the pads under your HVAC and the tops of retaining walls are considered impervious surfaces. Every lot has a limit and these limits are dictated by the jurisdiction that you live in.

This will depend on where you reside. In the city of Raleigh, there are four main zoning districts. For Wake County, it depends on when your house was built and when your subdivision was made. If you live in Durham, you will contact the city or county inspection department to find out your limit. In Cary it will depend upon when your house was built. Many homes are grandfathered in to earlier regulations but any home built after 2003 does have a specific limit that you need to adhere to. The towns of Apex, Fuquay Varina, and Holly Springs all have limits as well. The best way to find out the surface limit for your property is to call the Inspections and Zoning Department for your city.

If you have a Homeowners Association, you will most likely need approval. You will need to obtain some property information and your neighbors signatures (if required), but we will help with the rest of the paperwork. We are experts in HOA applications!

There are several things to consider when beginning a patio project. First, you’ll want to make sure the design will meet your specific needs. The patio should fit your current needs, but also have the potential to adapt over time. Location, size, layout, flow, and usage are all important aspects to consider during the design phase.

Material is the second most important thing to consider. With options like concrete, pavers and natural stone, there are several materials to choose from. Concrete can be a wonderful product, but it has the lowest return on investment out of all the patio materials. Concrete, however, is gaining popularity due to new options for decorative lines and patterns. We will design and install it correctly which will increase the return on your investment.

Concrete pavers are the most popular material for patios. They are more expensive than decorative concrete but less expensive than natural stone. There are a lot of pavers options for you to find a look you love. Pavers have one of the highest returns on investment, some even showing 85% to 100% return.

Natural stone, like Pennsylvania bluestone or Tennessee flagstone, along with imported stone, like travertine and Asian bluestone, are the most expensive patio floors. More formal and elegant, they are used for high end patio installations. It is important to not be fooled by cheap flagstone sold at your nearest landscape supply company. Almost all natural stone needs to be professionally installed by masons and it is not an average homeowner project. In general, the cheaper the stone, the more difficult it is to install.