Making your house more efficient, adding square footage, upgrading the kitchen or bath, and installing smart-home technology can help increase its value. You want it to be worth more than when you bought it. Here are simple steps that can increase residential property value with common remodeling projects you may already be considering.
Remodel the Bathroom
Easily one of the most effective ways to increase a home’s value is by remodeling the bathrooms. Realtors report that homes with updated bathrooms receive more purchase offers. They also report that those offers are higher than offers for homes with outdated bathrooms. This is true even for small changes, such as switching out that fiberglass tub/shower combo with a trendy Cast Iron Clawfoot Bathtub and giving the walls a fresh coat of paint.
Update the Kitchen
For adding value to a home, updating the kitchen is just as effective as updating the bathroom, if not more so. The reason for this is simple: that adage of the kitchen being the heart of the home is true. In practical terms, kitchens are one of the highest traffic areas of the home. In sentimental terms, kitchens are closely associated with positive emotions of all types: family memories, much loved hobbies, morning coffee, etc. Full kitchen remodels can be expensive, but again, even small changes such as updated hardware and a fresh coat of paint increase home value. Also, consider adding value to the kitchen as part of other home-improvement projects.
Cut Energy Costs
Home-improvement projects aimed at cutting energy costs often involved changes to both the kitchen and bathroom. For example, upgrading to energy-efficient appliances most often occurs in the kitchen with fridges, freezers, dishwashers, and ranges. Along the same lines, bathroom remodels often include upgraded, energy-efficient features such as tankless water heaters. Other energy-efficient projects for the home include sealing window and door cracks and adding insulation, installing smart thermostats, and changing lighting. For example, energy-efficient light fixtures that use LED or CFL bulbs are a common way to cut utility costs.
Replace Windows
Another dual-purpose project for increasing home value and cutting energy costs is replacing windows and doors. Not only are old windows and doors unattractive to potential buyers and homeowners alike, but they also aren’t energy efficient. Heating and cooling a home takes energy, and the more of that heating and cooling that is lost through leaky windows, the more energy costs rise. An added bonus is that homeowners can claim a tax credit when they install energy-efficient windows and doors. It’s also important to consider how older doors and windows decrease a home’s selling power. During an inspection, windows that are hard to open, or don’t open at all, are often flagged as needing repairs. This is for safety: in the event of a fire, a window isn’t any use if it isn’t a means of exiting the home.
Replace Flooring
While it seems obvious, not all homeowners consider flooring when getting a home ready to sell. You may love that pink carpet with large floral designs. But many potential homebuyers won’t even consider buying a home if they must replace the carpets right away. And those who are willing to replace flooring will decrease their offer on the home to account for that expense. The same is true for outdated vinyl flooring and linoleum. According to Dave Ramsey making a home more attractive with things like new floors is a sure way to increase a home’s value.
Maintain Exteriors
Continuing with that idea, making the outside of a home more attractive with simple maintenance can increase the value of the residential property. Painting, for example, preserves and protects a home’s exterior, while making it look well cared for. Homes are often flagged during inspections for chipped, peeling paint, which can influence how much a buyer offers on a home. Along the same lines, neglected trees, poorly maintained gutters, and weathered stairs and decks can all be flagged during inspections, decreasing a home’s selling power. Aside from selling power and safety factors, there’s also the fact that a home that doesn’t look cared for on the outside is assumed to look the same on the inside. This can stop potential buyers from even wanting to look at home.
Look at the Garage and Decks
When looking at a home’s exterior, homeowners should remember to look at both the garage and deck – or lack thereof. Finished garages with storage are more appealing to homebuyers than unfinished garages; a home without a garage is even less appealing, especially in areas with long winters. At resale, simple things like replacing garage doors have a 95.6% return rate, according to the 2020 cost vs. value report. Decks are the same: homes with finished, attractive decks are more appealing than homes without decks. Adding a deck can net homeowners a 72.1% return rate while repairing and updating existing decks can increase a home’s selling power and appraisal value.
Repaint the Interior
Like flooring, giving interiors a fresh coat of paint isn’t always obvious to homeowners. But according to NerdWallet, fresh paint gives homes a clean, well cared for appearance, which can increase a home’s appraisal value. Fresh, attractive paint also increases a home’s selling power, as many homebuyers shop with their eyes. When homes look nice and are move-in-ready, they receive higher purchase offers than those buyers perceive as needing work.
Add Something Trendy
Homebuyers love features that are modern, innovative, or trendy. Water-filtration systems in the kitchen, power outlets with USB plugs, solar panels, and smart locks are just a few features of newly constructed homes that owners with older homes can copy. And like most of the home improvements on this list, these things both increase a home’s selling power and its appraisal value. Whether homeowners are considering selling, or just looking at summertime home improvement projects to tackle, these nine ideas increase the value of a residential property. In either case, increasing a home’s value has benefits. Higher offers during a home sale, and greater appraisal value for home equity loans, are just two reasons for using summertime home improvement projects to increase the value of your home.
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