Drainage on Clay Soil
Much of Farmington Hills sits on heavy clay. Clay holds water instead of letting it soak in, so a low spot in the back yard stays soft for days after a storm, and a downspout that dumps next to the foundation keeps the basement wall wet. It also shrinks and swells with the seasons, which is why a patio or walk that was laid on a thin base tends to heave and settle here.
The fix usually starts with where the water is coming from, not with a drain. We look at the grade around the house, where the downspouts discharge, and where the neighboring yards shed water toward yours. Sometimes regrading a few feet of soil away from the foundation solves it. When it does not, we put in a French drain or a buried downspout line that carries the water to a spot where it can go. If you have a wet yard, the best time to have it looked at is right after a heavy rain, while the problem is still visible.
Reworking an Older Landscape
A lot of Farmington Hills homes went up between the 1960s and the 1990s, and many still have the foundation shrubs that were planted with the house. After thirty or forty years those yews and junipers have grown past the windows, the beds have sunk, and the lawn has thinned out under trees that were saplings when the subdivision was new.
A remodel does not have to mean starting over. Often the right move is to keep the one or two mature trees worth keeping, pull the overgrown shrubs, reset the bed edges, and replant with things that stay the size you want. If the front walk has heaved, that is the time to replace it too, on a proper base. We will tell you which parts of the yard are worth saving and which are costing you more to maintain than they would to replace.
Tree Removal and the City Tree Ordinance
Farmington Hills regulates tree removal on private lots. Per the city, a homeowner can take down two protected trees (6 inches or more in diameter, measured 4 feet off the ground) each calendar year without a permit, as long as neither is a landmark tree. Landmark trees, generally 24 inches in diameter or more and in good condition, need a tree permit from the Planning Office. Dead trees are exempt.
That rule changes how a remodel gets planned. If a project would take out more than two trees, or one big healthy one, it is worth sorting out the permit question before anything is cut, not after. Call the Planning Office at (248) 871-2400 if you are unsure about a specific tree.
Spring and Fall Cleanups in Farmington Hills
The city collects yard waste curbside on your regular trash day from early April into mid December. In 2026 that runs from the week of April 6 through the week of December 14. Leaves and clippings go out in brown paper yard waste bags or in a 35 gallon can with the city’s free yard waste stickers on both sides, and each bag or can has to stay under 40 pounds.
Oaks and maples here hold their leaves into November, so a single fall cleanup in mid October usually leaves you with a second layer on the lawn by Thanksgiving. We plan fall work as two visits where the trees call for it: one when the bulk comes down and one after the last of it, before the ground freezes and the leaves mat into the turf. Spring cleanup waits until the clay has drained enough to walk on without leaving ruts.
