Hey, Landlords: Plant a Tree, Then Jack Rent

Landlords, grab your shovels. Having a tree on your property translates to an extra $5.62 a month in rent. So say two researchers (one of them from the Forest Service) who played around with Craigslist apartment listings in Portland, Oregon, along with tree data on Google Earth, reports Good. Even better: Having a tree on the city-owned strip of land near the curb. That's good for another $21. Read the study in PDF form here.

Good also notes that the same Forest Service researcher concluded previously that a tree at an adjacent house can boost your property value by up to $13,000. (You get the shade, without the raking.) "So the surest way to benefit from trees' added value is to ask your neighbor to plant some trees (nicely, of course)," writes Zak Stone. (More trees stories.)