When considering house renovations and improvements, homeowners consider making upgrades that will improve their quality of life and increase amount of family time. Recently, we posted about remodeling your kitchen on a budget, and the benefits that has on health and quality family time.
Not all home improvement projects are considered equal, however. While many projects do offer a high return on investment (ROI), the following list of projects are ones that will meet you at the breakeven point, or even detract from your home’s value altogether, making it difficult to recoup your money when you sell.
1 | Pools
Costing anywhere from $35K-$100K to install (and not adding much to a home’s value), a pool is still on the dream list for many homeowners. Who doesn’t want to have their own back yard tropical oasis? Well, as it turns out, many prospective homebuyers are turned off by homes with in-ground pools because of the high maintenance and insurance costs.
2 | Master Suites
Though very appealing, master suite additions are not a good use of your home remodeling budget unless you intend to live in your home for many years and are doing so for your own comfort and ease. The average cost for a Master Suite addition is a staggering $130k. And with your ROI coming in at 58.5%, you’re losing over 40% of your money.
3 | Sun Rooms
Sun rooms are beautiful, versatile, and add lots of natural light to your home. Costs for adding one can be high though, especially if you want to insulate it for year-round use. Costs vary greatly for size and type, but across the board, they offer an ROI of less than 60%. A better option is to invest in a deck of the same footprint which is less expensive and provides one of the highest ROIs of any remodel project (above 70%).
4 | Additional Garage Space
Though some prospective buyers have a lot of garage space on their short list, you’re unlikely to recoup the $20K-$40K that it costs to build a standalone single-car garage. Costs only go up from there as you add more bays. With the ROI on a garage not exceeding 63%, there are other places you could invest.
5 | Built-In Electronics
Having a built-in media center seems like it would be a pretty cool feature for prospective buyers, however to many, it represents a waste of valuable space and a higher power bill. Additionally, electronics become obsolete so quickly that it would be considered a burden to have to remove them.
Ultimately, your home improvement projects are your own, and may just be about improving your experience in your home; not your return on investment. If you’re interested in listing your home or finding a home that already has features on your dream list, give us a call at 207-824-5051, or stop by our office located in the Welcome Center of South Ridge Lodge.
