Updates and Improvements Can Add to the Value of a Home

It is the coldest day of winter so far, but you are already making plans for warmer weather. With your youngest daughter graduating at the end of May, the list of home improvements was pretty long. When the warmer weather finally returns you have a contractor scheduled to come complete the patio door replacement that you have been wanting. Initially, the patio door replacement was scheduled for last fall, but some siding repair that surfaced forced you to back up the patio door replacement until the siding problem was fixed. Once you addressed the siding issues, your husband decided that you might as well rebuild the deck with a composite product.
The patio door replacement process is merely a cosmetic choice, so you understand how it has been moved further out on the calendar. As soon as the warm weather returns, however, you are looking forward to the new patio door and the look that it will bring to both the kitchen and the exterior of the house.
What Is Your Next Home Remodeling Project?
Most home projects are a balancing act between contractor schedules and weather, but when your remodel plans involve a door installation that is a part of both the interior an exterior design of the home, the scheduling can be even more complicated. From selecting types of house siding to choosing a door for a patio, home repair and remodel efforts are a series of schedule coordinations between contractors, suppliers, and the unpredictable weather.
Exterior repairs and replacements. Whether you are making the decision to replace the windows in your home or are getting bids on a new roof, many exterior improvements are both expensive and time intensive. Fortunately, most of these costly upgrades add both value and energy efficiency to a home. Although the color of paint used on interior walls, for example, may make a nice first impression on a potential buyer, major home upgrades to the siding, roofing, and windows are what influence a home\’s sale price.
For instance, single-pane glass windows, the kind that were installed in most homes built before the mid-1990s, are energy inefficient. By allowing heating and cooling dollars to escape, these windows also allow noise to get in. When a home owner takes the time and money to install newer higher energy efficient windows, the investment is rewarded by lower energy bills and a quieter home.
Most estimates, for instance, indicate that replacing standard windows with the latest energy efficient windows and doors can lower lowers energy bills by 7% to 15%. Looking for windows that meet the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Department of Energy\’s Energy Star program, according to www.energystar.gov., will provide the greatest amount of savings. You can pay for expensive window coverings to improve the look of your interior, but the installation of top quality windows will improve and increase the value of a home.
Interior upgrades and changes. Many of the interior changes that occur in a home are based on the personal preference and the latest trends. These changes, however, can have a positive effect on the value of a home. Few buyers, for instance, when everything else is equal, will select a home that is outdated over a home that has been upgraded to low maintenance countertops and flooring choices. Although these interior changes do not necessarily increase the value of a home, they can help make a good first impression.
The best way for a home owner to increase the value of a home and invest in the maintenance of a home is to pay attention to both the exterior necessities as well as the interior upgrades. Window replacement can recoup as much as 73% to 77% of its original cost, but upgrades to the most popular finishes kitchen and bathroom countertops may be what gets a potential buyer to stay at your home long enough to notice the windows, the siding, the roof, and other exterior upgrades.
Home ownership is difficult. It involves constant attention to details throughout both the inside and outside of the house. Home owners who make the upgrades and changes when they are needed, find themselves in a home that they enjoy, as well as a home that will sell well in the future.