When you remodel or do improvements, it can increase the market value of your home. Some improvements add more value than others. If you are looking to increase the value of your home, choose improvements that your house requires to help boost the value.
10 Valuable Home Improvements
Projects that can add value to your house range from small fixes and changes to large-scale remodeling projects.
Remodel Kitchen
One of the biggest renovations that can give you the biggest bang for your buck is a kitchen remodel. According to Remodeling's Cost vs. Value Report (2014), you can expect to receive close to 74% of the investment you make in a kitchen remodel back as an increase in value of the house. For example, if you spend $55,000 to remodel the kitchen, you can expect to increase the value of your home by about $41,000.
Remodel Bathrooms
After kitchens, bathroom remodels boost the house's value the most. Remodeling's Cost vs. Value report says bathrooms allow homeowners to recoup close to 73% of the investment when the home sells. If you cannot afford a bathroom remodel, then spruce up your bathrooms with small fixes.
Repurpose a Room
Forbes lists nurseries, master bedrooms on the first floor and craft rooms as big sellers for properties. Unfortunately, most houses do not come with these specific-purpose rooms. It doesn't mean, however, that you cannot turn a room into one of these special-purpose rooms. While you cannot change the entire floor plan, you can make some adjustments. Turn a den or dining room with doors into a master bedroom or nursery on the main floor. Transform a guest bedroom into a craft room, so buyers can see the potential in what they can do with the house.
Add Square Footage
When you add living space or square footage, you are also increasing the value of your home. Adding a master bedroom can add as much as 73% of your investment amount as value in the house. Adding a sunroom brings a 51% return on your investment, while adding a second story allows you to recoup 72% of your investment.
Finish an Attic or Basement
Attics and basements are often neglected spaces. While you can use these areas for storage, finishing attics and basements allows you to add living space without adding square footage. Turn an attic or basement into a den, office or bedroom. Turning an attic into a bedroom brings you about 83% of your investment when you go to sell the home.
Paint
Paint gives the outside or inside of a house a fresh new look. Painting the front door helps to give the home curb appeal and leave a good first impression as potential buyers enter the house. Painting also covers peeling or chipping paint on the exterior.
Painting rooms can also give the home a fresh new look that creates a welcoming environment. One or more cans of paint can be one of the least expensive ways to spruce up the house while adding value.
Landscape
Landscaping doesn't have to require a huge monetary investment. Landscaping can be as simple as trimming trees and bushes and mowing the grass. Add some plotted flowers or planted flowers to the front doorway or garden beds and you can add curb appeal in this way too. By creating a pleasant, clean and landscaped view, it makes potential buyers want to see what the inside of the house has to offer. If the landscaping is overgrown and not manicured, then it can drive buyers away.
Replace Windows
Energy efficient windows can also add value. It is a selling point because it shows buyers that they can save money on utilities, such as heating and cooling, because the windows are trapping air inside and keeping outside air from entering the house. Remodeling reports that you can expect 78 to 79% of your investment back, depending on whether it is a vinyl or wood window replacement.
Add Energy Efficiency
Energy efficiency is a big selling point. If you add energy efficient appliances, you can expect an increase in the property value. Buyers can be willing to pay a premium upfront to save money over time in electricity, gas and oil costs.
Replace the Entry Door
The front door is its way of making a good first impression. Replacing the front door can enhance the first impression visitors receive. Replacing the front door can also add value to the house. Depending on whether the door is fiberglass or steel, you can expect to receive 71% to 97%, respectively, of the money back in value that you spend on the door.
Adding Value
Improvement efforts to your house do not increase the value dollar for dollar. Instead, you can expect to receive an increase in value that is a percentage of your investment. Some improvements bring in bigger values than other improvements, but you can take proactive measures to increase the value of your home.
