The Value of Remodels

Homeowners have always debated whether to remodel while they still live in the home and can enjoy the changes or wait until they’re ready to sell. Cost is, of course, a large factor in this debate. Some people believe there’s no point in spending money on remodels for their benefit when they might have to update those remodels again in the future when they sell. Other people believe there is no point paying for remodels right before you sell because there’s no guarantee that the next owners will like the changes and that if money is being spent on remodels, they might as well enjoy the changes.

Well, we are definitively ending this debate! At its core, this debate is about the value of a remodel. How much does your remodel have value to you? How much does the remodel resell for and hold its value in the market? Therefore, the answer to the debate depends on the type of remodel, its resale value, its cost, and its value to you personally.

Certain types of home updates have huge value. These types are often dependent on the location of a home. The best way to find the type of remodel with the highest value is to ask the professionals; we’re here to help! We’ve provided a table from Zonda Media that outlines the national and local costs of each type of home update, their resale prices, and the percentage of return on investment (ROI) they each provide.

What you can take from this information is if you are selling your home soon and want to make high-value changes that increase your home’s resale value, you should complete the projects with the highest percentage of return on investment in the Seattle area. These projects include siding replacement (fiber-cement or vinyl), electric HVAC conversion, and garage door replacement.

However, if you are not selling your home soon, you’ll put more stock into other factors of the choice to remodel more than return on investment/high value. You’ll care more about the cost of the remodel you want and the personal value it has for you.

The price tag is an obvious factor in choosing when and how to remodel. For example, if you’ve been thinking about remodeling one of your bathrooms but can't decide if you should complete it now for your enjoyment or wait for when you’re selling your home, the cost might help you make your choice. The cost of an upscale bathroom remodel in the Seattle area is about $97,000, with a resale price of about $31,000, giving it a 31% ROI. If you’ll be living in your home for a long while after the remodel is finished, then the large amount of enjoyment you can get out of the upscale, updated bathroom makes the low ROI easy to swallow. On the other hand, a mid-range bathroom remodel in the Seattle area costs about $33,000 and resells for about $18,000, giving it about a 55% ROI. If you’re selling your home soon, the higher ROI of the midrange bathroom remodel makes it the better choice.

Another thing to remember is that when you choose to remodel a room in an upscale way, it will cost more, but the higher cost will be worth it because it means the remodel will last longer. The higher-end choices in an upscale remodel often have longer lifespans than those made in mid-range or low-cost remodels. This means that not only can you enjoy your upscale remodel for a long time, but so will the next owners. You won’t need to remodel again when you’re ready to move because your upscale remodel will still be in good shape!

If you’ve always dreamed of having a free-standing tub, a rain shower, and a two-sink vanity in your master bath, what are you waiting for? Homeowners can get too caught up on the hypothetical enjoyment of the next owners of their home. Why? It’s their money they are putting into their own home, so it should be their enjoyment they prioritize.

When you’ve been waiting years for your home dreams to come true with no end in sight, you’ve lost sight of the main purpose of homeownership: ownership! You’ve paid for your home to be yours, not someone else’s. Make the decisions that make you happy!

If you’re still having difficulty deciding what, when, and how to remodel, you should talk to your Personal Home Contractor at Shirey Home Pro. We’re always available to discuss your thoughts and dreams about your house. We can help guide you in the right direction for what to remodel within your budget with your goals for selling or not selling your home in mind!