5 Best Remodeling Jobs For The Money
Posted by Kelly Asmus on Jan 30, 2013
Rising home prices mean that homeowners are getting a better return on their remodeling dollar today than a year ago, according to Remodeling Magazine’s 2013 Cost vs. Value report.
Owners around the country are getting back an average of 61% of their remodeling dollars when they sell. That doesn’t compare with the high of 87% in 2005, but it’s an improvement over the last survey in late 2011, when the average project returned 58%.
Smaller projects and practical replacement jobs lead the list of best investments.
The magazine arrived at these resale values with help from about 3,900 U.S. real-estate agents. The agents estimated how each project would affect a home’s value at resale in their locale. The report also uses data on labor and material costs from nine U.S. regions. The estimates for project costs shown here include labor. They are national averages for projects described in the magazine’s report.
1. Best: A new steel entry door
Cost: $1,137
Resale value: $974
Payback: 86%
Replacing your front door with a stout, 20-gauge steel entry door.
The best steel doors are surprisingly good-looking. They add a sense of security to a home, which is undoubtedly why homebuyers value them so highly. A 20-gauge replacement door costs $1,137 on average, nationally. It adds an estimated $974 to a home’s sale price, according to the real-estate agents who responded to the survey.
In some of the survey’s nine regions, the project performed even better. Homeowners can recoup as much as 95% of the investment in the Pacific states.
2. Best: Replace exterior siding with fiber cement
Cost: $13,083
Resale value: $10,379
Payback: 79%
It’s no wonder that fiber-cement siding — made of cement, wood fiber and sand — is a hit with homeowners. It’s rot-resistant and durable in a wide range of climates. It’s often backed by a 25- or 30-year warranty. Manufacturers use it to convincingly imitate cedar shingles, wood clapboard and stucco. The panels are primed and painted at the factory, and the color on them can last 25 years.
Remodeling Magazine’s sample project includes removing 1,250 square feet of old siding and replacing it with new fiber-cement siding, factory primed and factory painted. The cost includes trim.
3. Best: Add a wood deck
Cost: $9,327
Resale value: $7,213
Payback: 77%
Adding a wood deck is the way to go. You get roughly three-quarters of your money back, on average and, in eight of the 81 cities surveyed, homeowners are earning a payback of more than 100%. In nine other cities, the return averaged 87%.
The wood deck project includes pressure-treated joists, 4-by-4-inch posts anchored to concrete piers, pressure-treated deck boards, a built-in bench and planter, stairs, railings and balusters.
4. Best: Install a new garage door
Cost: $1,496
Resale value: $1,132
Payback: 76%
You’ll get the best bang for the buck these days from exterior replacement projects including doors, windows and exterior siding. A garage-door replacement is a perfect example: It delivers about 76% of the investment back when you sell the home.
Exterior replacements give homebuyers a good impression of your home right off the bat. Besides paying back well, these jobs may help a home sell more quickly and for closer to the asking price.
This project involves installing a new, four-section garage door on new, galvanized steel tracks, reusing the existing motor. It’s a single layer, noninsulated embossed door with two coats of baked-on paint and a 10-year warranty. The project price includes removing and disposing of the old door and tracks.
5. Best: Minor kitchen remodel
Cost: $18,527
Resale value: $13,977
Payback: 75%
Your best kitchen remodel for the money is a modest project. This $18,527 project upgrades a 200-square-foot kitchen. Included are 30 linear feet of new, midpriced laminate countertops and new raised-panel fronts and hardware for the cabinets and drawers. You get a new, energy-efficient cooktop and wall oven, new medium-quality faucet and sink, new wall coverings and resilient flooring and repainted kitchen trim.
A major remodel of this same 200-square-foot kitchen using modestly priced products runs $53,931, on average. The payback drops to 69%. It includes new, semi-custom wood cabinets and a new 3-by-5-foot kitchen island, laminate countertops and a standard-issue double stainless sink with a single faucet.
If you’ve always wondered what it would cost to go whole-hog on a kitchen remodel, here’s the answer: For $107,406, on average, you’ll have top-of-the-line custom cherry cabinets with built-in sliding shelves, stone countertops with a backsplash of imported ceramic or glass tile, a new built-in refrigerator, cooktop and 36-inch commercial-grade range and vent hood.
Read the post at MSN | By Marilyn Lewis of MSN Real Estate
Renaissance Renovations is a full service general contractor that can help with the planning and execution of remodeling projects. Contact us for an in home consultation.
“Give your home a Renaissance.”
Scott Gaunt | Renaissance Renovations | 503.320.3756
Renaissance Homes is an award winning Street of Dreams custom home builder specializing in green building, remodeling and renovations for the Portland market. Visit our Design Studio to personalize your next home
