Home Improvements That Don't Add Value

The best thing about owning a home is the ability to change things up, whether knocking down a kitchen wall to open up space or filling your backyard with your favorite fruit trees. That freedom also offers unlimited opportunities to make mistakes when spending money on?home improvements?that don't add home value.

Of course, not all home improvements are made to add value. Your home is your castle to enjoy. However, if you are?planning to sell soon, it might be a good idea to consider whether the improvement projects you’re considering will pencil out when you’re ready to move on.??

Don’t expect a dollar-for-dollar return

Modest home improvements that make the home cleaner, safer, and more functional are good bets for sellers. Big-ticket items, such as pools, major kitchen and bath remodels, and extensive landscaping for the sole purpose of adding value might not bring the same return.

According to the?Remodeling 2023 Cost vs. Value Report, which estimated the return on investment on some common home improvement projects, only four improvements boosted value on resale: electric heating and air conditioning conversion, garage door replacement, manufactured stone veneer, and replacing a steel entry door.*

With that in mind, here are some home improvements that might not pay off when you sell your home.?

Turning your kitchen into a white wonderland:

According to Zillow?research?into the paint color preferences of home buyers, a white kitchen can hurt a home’s sales price by more than $600. Instead, today’s buyers tend to prefer dark gray tones such as charcoal and graphite.

Adding a walk-in closet:

Zillow’s 2024 research into home listings shows that walk-in closets can hurt a home’s value by 0.7%, a relatively small amount but an indication that it might not be worth the cost to add the space. If you’re tempted to turn a small bedroom into a closet, think twice before doing so. Home shoppers usually search for homes based on the number of bedrooms, and a home’s value is derived in part from the number of bedrooms it has.

Adding a deck:

A wood deck costs about $17,051, but this home improvement does not add value overall — it only adds $8,553 at the time of sale, a return of about half what you’ll spend, according to the Cost vs. Value report. The cost is even higher for composite materials, and the return is lower by just under 40%. However, home buyers’ enthusiasm for outdoor features remains high, so anything that enriches home life outdoors could be a win.

Turning your garage into a bedroom:

While bedrooms are certainly important, you might not want to sacrifice a garage to create one. Listings that mention garages are associated with a slight sales premium: 0.3%, according to Zillow’s 2024 analysis of listings data.? Parking is often tight in urban areas, and with the high price of cars, homes that allow for safe parking could have an edge over homes without a garage that can also serve as a handy storage space.?

Installing an in-ground swimming pool:

This one is a mixed bag. Whether the?pool?becomes an asset or a liability depends on several things, including the pool’s size, age, condition, location on the property, and housing market. ?An in-ground pool can set you back about $23,370, according to the home services website?Thumbtack, which calculated the national average cost of installing a pool over the last four years. Add in fencing and landscaping, and you’re looking at an investment of nearly $30,000, according to Thumbtack.

DIY — DONE BADLY:

We love?DIY, and there are plenty of projects you can do yourself to improve your surroundings. But there’s also a reason skilled tradespeople command a high price. Their expertise helps ensure beautiful outcomes that a new buyer isn’t going to have to spend money to redo.

Creating a luxury bathroom:

Bathroom remodels are some of the most expensive improvements you can undertake.? Even a simple bathroom remodel can set you back more than $20,000 and won’t necessarily pay for itself when you go to sell. But the?*more luxury?bells and whistles you add, the lower your return on investment.

For example, the cost report estimates a $24,000 mid-range bathroom remodel would provide about a 67% return on investment, but an upscale one would return only about 37% of the $77,000 such a remodel could cost.

Wall-to-wall carpeting:

Carpet has a lot of upsides, especially when it comes to warmth, and there are a ton of new styles and textures to spice up any space. But carpeting isn’t as popular as some other flooring options. For-sale listings that mentioned new carpet sold for slightly less (0.4% less) than comparable homes without it.?

Bamboo flooring:

Bamboo is a relatively inexpensive and more sustainable form of flooring, but it, too, has fallen in popularity. Listings that mentioned bamboo floors sold for 0.8% less than comparable homes.

Laminate countertops:

Changing up countertops can transform a kitchen or bath, but one material never seems to make it to the list of trendy or popular materials, and that’s laminate. Although there are some attractive options that mimic natural and made-made stone for a fraction of the price, homes sold in 2023 that mentioned laminate sold for 1.1% less than comparable homes.

If you’ve got the money and derive pleasure from eye-catching fixtures, go for it. But it’s unlikely someone is going to buy your home because they’ve fallen in love with your $3,000 chrome faucet or light fixture. Consider choosing cost-efficient, attractive, well-made fixtures for updates instead.

Home maintenance has a big impact on home values

A well-maintained home can sell for about 10% more than a similar home in average condition, according to Thumbtack?research.

So, while improvements can add value to your home, regular maintenance will keep your home in better condition so that there are fewer improvements to tackle when you do decide to sell. Some things to keep an eye on; cleaning gutters, resealing grout in the kitchen and bath, and having heating and air conditioning systems serviced regularly.

Source: Susan Kelleher, Author at Zillow 03.26.2024

?*? 2023 Zonda Media, a Delaware Corporation. Complete data from the Remodeling 2023 Cost vs. Value Report can be downloaded free at?www.costvsvalue.com.

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