Our house was built on a swamp, they simply back filled the entire area and threw up houses; as a result there is heavy flooding in the area and a lot of lots are far from "level". We've pretty much just had a steep hill the entire time we've lived here, that is until this summer when we had our yard leveled into 4 tiers to at least add some function.
The ideal goal is:
Tier I: Above ground pool, play area for kids, slab to help flooding in basement.
Tier II: Raised garden beds, concrete patio for entertainment.
Tier III: Shed and wood storage.
Tier IV: Walkway to front of house, eventual chicken or duck coop.
Where a lot of this will end up having to wait until next
spring, we've got the tiering done and the concrete in place and will have the shed up in October.