In-House Realty, LLC

Home Improvements

Today's real estate market presents a tough environment in which to sell a home.  With so much market inventory available, buyers have the luxury of viewing only the "cream of the crop" when searching for a new home.  This mentality has caught many home sellers off guard.  Updates and upgrades can no longer add be added onto the selling price of a home as they once were.  Indeed, in many cases they are merely the cost of admission to showings.  So, while the return on many of the below projects is less than 70%, in today's market they might just make the difference between a home that sells and one that languishes on the market with little or no activity.

Wondering what remodeling projects will produce the highest returns?  Check out the chart below for typical returns for common projects.

East North Central 2007 National Averages Job Cost Resale Value Cost Recouped Project Midrange Job Cost Resale Value Cost Recouped $49,897 $34,204 68.5% Attic Bedroom Remodel $46,691 $35,771 76.6% $14,270 $6,687 46.9% Back-Up Power Generator $13,357 $7,748 58% $62,801 $38,398 61.1% Basement Remodel $59,435 $44,661 75.1% $39,522 $22,774 57.6% Bathroom Addition $37,202 $24,553 66% $16,631 $11,147 67% Bathroom Remodel $15,789 $12,366 78.3% $10,516 $7,540 71.7% Deck Addition - Wood $10,347 $8,835 85.4% $83,494 $51,630 61.8% Family Room Addition $78,989 $54,148 68.6% $56,290 $33,080 58.8% Garage Addition $53,897 $37,461 69.5% $28,305 $14,007 49.5% Home Office Remodel $27,193 $15,498 57% $57,496 $40,704 70.8% Major Kitchen Remodel $55,503 $43,363 78.1% $104,666 $64,001 61.1% Master Suite Addition $98,863 $68,172 69% $21,863 $16,010 73.2% Minor Kitchen Remodel $21,185 $17,576 83% $19,673 $11,208 57% Roofing Replacement $18,042 $12,166 67.4% $10,083 $8,017 79.5% Siding Replacement $9,910 $8,245 83.2% $72,276 $37,833 52.3% Sunroom Addition $69,817 $41,231 59.1% $146,337 $95,364 65.2% Two-Story Addition $139,297 $103,010 73.9% $11,011 $7,894 71.7% Window Replacement - Vinyl $10,448 $8,290 79.3% $12,146 $8,758 72.1% Window Replacement - Wood $11,384 $9,241 81.2%

East North Central Project Upscale National Averages Job Cost Resale Value Cost Recouped Project Upscale Job Cost Resale Value Cost Recouped $76,793 $48,864 63.6% Bathroom Addition $73,145 $50,442 69% $52,839 $32,458 61.4% Bathroom Remodel $50,590 $34,588 68.4% $15,357 $10,583 68.9% Deck Addition - Composite $15,039 $11,672 77.6% $86,532 $47,696 55.1% Garage Addition $82,108 $53,056 64.6% $111,953 $74,497 66.5% Major Kitchen Remodel $109,394 $81,096 74.1% $228,564 $132,123 57.8% Master Suite Addition $220,149 $141,120 64.1% $36,449 $20,588 56.5% Roofing Replacement (steel) $33,151 $21,769 65.7% $13,404 $11,040 82.4% Siding Replacement (fiber-cement) $13,212 $11,633 88.1% $12,243 $9,381 76.6% Siding Replacement (foam-backed vinyl) $12,132 $9,668 79.7% $14,289 $10,212 71.5% Window Replacement - Vinyl $13,479 $10,913 81% $18,271 $12,922 70.7% Window Replacement - Wood $17,383 $13,784 79.3%

© 2007 Hanley Wood, LLC. Reproduced by permission. Complete city data from the Remodeling 2007 Cost vs. Value Report can be downloaded for free at costvalue.remodelingmagazine.com.