Home Improvement Projects That Don’t Pay Off
No homeowner ever wants to see their homes depreciate in value. Unfortunately, not all home improvement projects necessarily pay off if you decide to sell your home later on. A lot of homeowners take on big improvement projects, thinking they’re making a great investment in their homes that will pay off if they later decide to sell their homes, only to be disappointed to find out those projects didn’t add as much value as they’d expected. So, if you’re looking to add value to your home, which projects should you avoid?
Swimming Pools
While having your very own swimming pool at home has long been seen as a symbol of luxury, it’s important to remember that many people see swimming pools as more of a burden than a luxury. Sure, it can be nice to spend a hot summer day by the pool, but pools require time and money to maintain. In some parts of the country, swimming pools can only be used for a few months out of the year so a lot of people see them as being more hassle than they’re worth. A lot of people also don’t want to risk being held liable if someone is injured or drowns in their pool. A home having a swimming pool might actually be a deal breaker for families with young children.
Permanently Converting Extra Rooms
Now and then, we all need a little extra space in our homes. When that happens, people often look for areas in their homes that are being underutilized and try to find ways to adapt them and make them more functional. If you have a job that lets you work from home, you might want to turn the guest bedroom into an office. Or maybe you’d like to turn your garage into a fun playroom for the kids or a large rec room the whole family can enjoy.
There’s nothing inherently wrong with turning under-utilized areas of your home into more usable spaces, but if you want to add value to your home, the key is to make sure they’re easy to return to their original state. You might have loved your home office, but if a potential homebuyer doesn’t work from home and has a larger family, they’d be much more interested in a bedroom than an office. A lot of potential homebuyers might also want a home with a garage that actually functions as a garage, so they might not be impressed by a garage-turned-rec room.
However, converting an attic into a liveable space seems to be an exception to this rule. This has become increasingly popular in recent years and it often does help to add value to a home.
Adding Carpeting
Homes full of carpeting were popular for decades, but nowadays, many homebuyers prefer the look of hardwood floors. Not only do many home buyers simply prefer the look of wooden floors, they also don’t want to deal with the frequent vacuuming carpets need.
Backup Power Generators
Power outages can easily happen to anyone, so you might think that a lot of people would like having the peace of mind that a home they’re considering buying has a backup power generator to keep things going if the power goes out. But backup power generators actually have a rather low return on investment.
Many High-End Luxury Upgrades
When you’re looking for ways to add value to your home, it’s important to keep the rest of your home in mind. For example, if you absolutely love to cook and spend a considerable amount of time in your kitchen, it can be tempting to go all out and turn your kitchen into a top-of-the-line cooking space with marble countertops all the best appliances. However, going over the top with luxury upgrades in one room while the other rooms in your home doesn’t get the same kind of treatment can actually make a home more difficult to sell. Not only does it not flow well with the rest of the house, there’s always the chance that potential homebuyers won’t share your enthusiasm for cooking and won’t be willing to pay more for those upgrades.
It’s also smart to consider the other homes in your neighborhood. One reason why home buyers often look for homes in certain neighborhoods is because of price. If your home is in a neighborhood full of modestly-priced homes, a home full of high-end luxury upgrades could be a very tough sell.
It’s important to remember that although these projects don’t have the best return on investment for your home, that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re not worth doing if it’s something you’ll personally get a lot of enjoyment out of. If you’re planning on staying in your home for a long time to come, it’s important to do things that will make you comfortable and let you get the most out of your home. However, if you’re thinking of putting your home on the market and are looking for some ways to boost your home’s value a little bit, you’d be better off looking into improvements like garage door replacement, vinyl replacement windows, or replacing your entry doors, which all have good returns on investment.
