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Not All Home Improvements Give You A Good Return On Your Investment

Updated on March 16, 2013

Careful Planning Insures Best ROI For Home Improvements

Take time to study the housing market, check local property values and make solid plans for the best home improvement ROI.
Take time to study the housing market, check local property values and make solid plans for the best home improvement ROI. | Source

Return On Investment For Home Improvements Is Not Always Guaranteed

Home improvements are generally touted as a way to increase your property values, but this isn't always so. There are practical home improvements, such as replacing all your old kitchen appliances with new, energy efficient ones, that will always pay off. There are others, such as putting a tiled backsplash with an ethnic flair behind your kitchen sink that may or may not. Read on to learn how to judge which home improvements will pay off for you.

A Pool Is A Great Health And Well-Being Investment

Adding a swimming pool is a big investment. Not only must you invest in having the pool installed, you must make certain to have proper safety features in place, and you must have the pool serviced and properly cared for to protect your investment. Additionally, when you add a pool, your homeowners insurance will cost more, and your property taxes will increase. In short, it had better be one heck of an attractive pool, and you’d better find just the right buyer right off the bat if you want to get your money back. On the other hand, a pool is an investment in your own enjoyment of your home, and if you will use it to reduce your stress levels, increase your fitness level and spend quality time with your friends and family members, it may be well worth the money you spend on it in health, fitness and entertainment value. These are considerations you will need to ponder carefully before investing in a pool.

Less Is Not More When It Comes To Bedrooms

Reducing the number of bedrooms in your home is always a bad idea. No matter how tiny and cramped your bedrooms may be, you are better off keeping more bedrooms if you want your home to sell for a higher price. You are better off building a bedroom on or expanding your home into the attic, basement or garage if possible to increase the usable square footage. This may cost you a bit more than tearing out a wall to turn two small bedrooms into one large one, but it will be well worth it. Additionally, you might be able to get financing for expansion, but you won’t get financing to reduce the value of your home!

Creepy & Kooky Is Never A Good Home Improvement Investment

Avoid strange exterior features. You may have always liked the belfry on the Addam’s Family house, but you can be sure your neighbors will not like it if you put one on your house. No matter how whimsical you may think it is, this is not a good investment! When you make improvements to the exterior of your home, your goal should be to try to blend in. This approach raises your property values and the property values of those around you. You can satisfy your taste for whimsy with all kinds of movable ornamentation inside your house, but when it comes to permanent, exterior features, keep it normal if you want a good return on your investment.

Built-In Features Are Seldom Good Home Improvement Investments

Try to keep rooms inside your home fairly generic at the bare bones level. For example, if you need a home office, you are far better off investing in good office furniture that you can take with you when you leave than having all kinds of office features built in. You’re better off financially if you can take everything out of the house and leave a blank slate for the buyers to work with. They may not want a home office, and the fact that you have built-in office furniture in one of your bedrooms will detract from your selling price.

Investing In “Champagne” Tastes In A “Beer” Neighborhood Is A Bad Idea

Remember where you are. If you spend more money on home improvements than the average home in your neighborhood is worth, you will never get your money back. If you want a very valuable home, but you don’t live in a high value neighborhood, you are better off simply selling as-is and taking your profit and your home improvement money elsewhere.

Your Own Enjoyment Of Your Home Is Worth A Great Deal

Having said all that, if you have no intention of ever moving and you would really love to live in a house made to look like Buckingham Palace with an Olympic sized pool in the back and a professional croquet pitch instead of a front lawn, go for it. Your own enjoyment of your home is worth a great deal. Just remember not to be disappointed if you change your mind and decide to sell then have trouble getting a good return on your investment.

Copyright:SB:3/15/13

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