The Utah lawn rebate, explained without the runaround.
The water district will pay you to take out your lawn. The money is real, the rules are short, and one of them catches almost everybody. Here is the whole thing on one page.
Per square foot, top tier
Most of the cities we work in sit in the top tier. The outer ring is paid $1.25.
Square feet, minimum
You need at least this much living lawn coming out. A typical park strip is well past it.
Cap per property
Far more than a house will ever reach, so treat it as no ceiling worth worrying about.
Apply before the lawn comes out.
This is the rule that costs people thousands. The district has to approve your project, and on most projects see the yard, before a single square foot is removed. Pull the grass first and you are not eligible, no matter how good the finished yard looks. If you are thinking about it at all, apply first and decide later.
What is your lawn worth?
Drag it to about the size of the grass you would take out, then pick your city.
At $2.50 a square foot for Farmington.
This is an estimate of the rebate, not a quote for the work, and the water district has the final say.
Apply and get approved before the lawn comes out. Remove it first and the money is gone.
What counts, and what gets you turned down.
Counts
- Living grass that is actually growing, taken out and replaced
- Low-water plants, planted with real coverage, not a token few
- Gravel, mulch and hardscape as part of a planted design
- Drip irrigation converted from the old spray heads
- Park strips, front lawns, side yards, back lawns
Does not count
- Lawn you already removed before applying
- Artificial turf, which the programme does not allow
- Bare gravel with nothing planted in it
- Ground that was already dead, dirt or weeds
- Swapping one kind of lawn for a drought-tolerant lawn
The district publishes the full terms and updates them from year to year. We design to whatever the current requirements are, and we will tell you plainly if something you want puts the money at risk.
Five steps, and the first one is not calling us.
-
01
Apply with the water district.
You do this part yourself, which keeps the approval and the money in your name. Be honest about anyone who offers to file it for you.
-
02
Wait for approval and the site visit.
The district checks the lawn is real and growing. Nothing comes out before this is done.
-
03
Get the yard designed.
This is where we come in. The design has to hit the plant coverage the programme wants, and it has to be a yard you actually like looking at.
-
04
We build it.
Utilities located, depths measured and recorded, plants and rock in, drip run to every plant.
-
05
Submit your photos and get paid.
We document the job as we go, so you have what the district asks for instead of hunting for it afterwards.
The rate depends on where you live.
| Rate | Cities |
|---|---|
| $2.50 | Bountiful, Centerville, Clearfield, Clinton, Farmington, Fruit Heights, Kaysville, Layton, North Salt Lake, Riverdale, Roy, South Ogden, Sunset, Syracuse, Uintah, Washington Terrace, West Bountiful, West Haven, West Point, Woods Cross |
| $1.25 | South Weber, unincorporated Davis County |
| Check | Ogden city has its own water supplier and is not on the district's tier list. If you are in Ogden, the rate needs checking case by case and we are happy to do that with you. |
Tell us about the yard.
Send it over and Ian or someone on his crew will call you the same day, or the next business day if it is a weekend.