Six Home Projects That Don't Pay

Six Home Projects That Don't Pay

Okay, so the other day I was reading - I know you find this hard to believe - yet another article about real estate.  Just let me say that it takes quite a bit of reading to stay at the top of your real estate game.  And it takes quite a bit of being able to sift out the good from the bad advice/information/statistics to be a local expert. Anyway, about this article.  It was in Yahoo Finance and was about home improvements that simply do not pay off. 

We, as consumers, have been taught that if you upgrade your home in any way it will pay off when you get around to selling your home.  Well folks, that's no longer the case and hasn't been for a few years now.  There are simply some home improvements that are much too costly to ever get a return on your investment.  So get ready to change the way we think!  (Notice I said WE!)

DISCLAIMER: Now, before we get into a few of them, let me say that in different parts of the country, some of these would not even be considered, such as a home office remodel.  And the costs reflected in the article are on a nationwide scale.

Something that stood out to me was as "UPSCALE MASTER SUITE ADDITION".  Really?  How sad for me as a homeowner as I can just see the Cosmo closet I would have with a whole entire wall for SHOES!  But according to the article, the cost for adding this much square footage to your home while using only the best materials would come to a whopping total of over $232,000.  And in some of our cities right now, you could buy an entire home for that amount which was built recently and probably has dual walk-in closets to begin with.  (That's okay for me because Rich can use the closet in the spare room!)  Bye,Bye Cosmo closet... I'm so sad to see you go!

Another insteresting thing was the ADDITION OF ANOTHER BATHROOM.  The cost varied due to building materials in the Yahoo Finance article from $21,695 to $40,710.  The result either way was a 53 cent return per dollar upon sale of the home.  Really, not a very good deal if the only reason you're doing it is for resale value.

So, my conclusion is that most home improvements I would like to make would be for my own personal use and to my own personal taste.  I won't get a good return for my investment on SOME home improvements and so it simply won't pay off. After all, the next owner may hate the Cosmo closet and want a home office or something different.

You can learn about more home improvement returns by clicking on the article link above.

If you are interested in buying or selling or simply have questions about real estate, please feel free to contact me.  I will be more than happy to assist you!

Warmest Regards,
Linda K. Mayer,
Realtor, Office Manager  
License # 01767321
A Realtor you can Trust!
(626) 824-8927 Cell
(909) 670-2711 Direct
LindaKMayer@live.com
Linda's Website