December 2022 - Anderson Studio

Home Renovations & Non-Monetary Returns

Besides contributing to your home’s resale value, home renovations offer non-monetary returns, like improved home functionality. Updating your home can create a more enjoyable environment for you to live in no matter how it impacts your home’s overall resale value. For this reason, a high ROI should not necessarily be the main deciding factor on remodeling unless you’re in the business of flipping houses.

4 of the Best Home Projects for a Greater ROI

If a high ROI is important to you, consider one of the following updates.

#1 Home Additions

Whether you expand your home to include a new room, build a second story, or finish an existing basement or attic, creating more liveable space typically results in a high return on investment. Although constructing a new room or adding a second story to a single-level home requires a large investment upfront, it also has the potential of 65% ROI. Finishing an existing basement or attic space is a cheaper alternative to adding square footage. Alternatively, building a mother-in-law suite in your backyard can also be a budget-friendly addition. Creating liveable space often involves finishing walls with insulation, drywall, and paint; installing new flooring; and updating heating and cooling.

#2 Kitchen Update

Nicknamed the heart of the home, the kitchen is one of the most frequently used places in a home. It is also a space that has the potential to reap a huge ROI for renovations, ranging from intensive makeovers to small upgrades. Larger renovations may involve rearranging kitchen cabinets, swapping old countertops for more high-end materials, and installing new flooring. Even smaller kitchen renovations, like replacing old kitchen appliances with newer models and painting existing cabinetry, can ultimately boost your home’s resale value.

Here are a few ideas to get you started:

Create a coffee bar

Add color to your cabinets

Brighten up the room with new lighting

Add a splash to your backsplash

Add a chandelier above your kitchen island

Add a kitchen island

#3 Bath Update

Addressing functional and aesthetic issues in high-traffic rooms has the potential to earn a big ROI and contribute to increased home resale value. Much like the kitchen, bathrooms are used daily, and renovations can range from small-scale to large. Keep in mind that larger makeovers often become quite expensive as moving plumbing fixtures often requires specialists to move/extend underground pipes; this ensures that tubs, toilets, showers, and sinks all have adequate draining capabilities. Smaller fix-ups in the bathroom can also have a tremendous impact on the functionality and style of your home. Some smaller fix-up ideas include updating fixtures, replacing cabinets or vanities, installing new flooring, or upgrading lighting. You may also consider:

Refinishing or replacing your shower or tub

Adding a standalone bathtub

Installing seamless glass paneling

Adding an extra sink or showerhead

Installing new ventilation systems

#4 Curb Appeal

Exterior changes that improve your home’s curb appeal can also experience a noteworthy ROI. These renovations range from replacing windows and doors to replacing old siding or adding a fresh coat of paint. Adding a deck or patio to your home is another idea for an exciting project! Some budget-friendly ideas that can enhance your home’s curb appeal include:

Painting the front door

Planting a tree or two

Installing window boxes

Cleaning and pressure washing your driveway, walkways, fence, etc.

Replacing the mailbox

Coordinating your home’s colors to create a cohesive color palette

Displaying your house numbers with customized plaques

Adding window shutters

Updating lighting

Are You Ready to Get Started?

We hope you enjoyed this guide on home projects with the potential to deliver the biggest ROI! If you’re ready to start interviewing potential designers for your next home renovation, get started today at The Anderson Studio. Find inspiration by viewing our portfolio. Or, contact our team today to start imagining your new exciting project.

Remodeling your home can make the space more enjoyable, comfortable, and better suited to your family’s wants and needs. More than that, remodeling projects are often shrewd investments that not only improve the look and feel of your home but also increase its resale value. No matter what the motivation, if remodeling your home is one of your New Year’s resolutions for 2023, you can enjoy a revitalized space with any of these 5 fresh remodeling ideas.

#1 Improve Your Home’s Energy Efficiency

Today, simple remodel projects can reduce a home’s energy consumption without sacrificing modern comforts, such as heating, air conditioning, or high-performance appliances. As we progress into 2023, energy efficiency is a common theme for many homeowners who want to embrace new technologies that contribute to lower annual energy costs. Even small changes to your home can vastly improve energy efficiency.

Weatherization refers to updating your home’s existing structures to prevent wasting energy. Ultimately, it leads to improved energy conservation over time. As a part of regular maintenance, homes should be weatherized periodically, including re-sealing key areas, such as windows and doors, adding or replacing insulation in walls and attics, repairing weaknesses in the roof, and checking the performance of heating and cooling systems.

Beyond weatherization, you can remodel your space to be more energy efficient by upgrading your windows and doors to more insulative models. Choosing a new style or color also presents an opportunity to refresh the aesthetic of your home.

#2 Design a New Kitchen for Customized Functionality

The kitchen is the heart of the home, and many families find themselves gathering in this space a few times each day. That’s why, for many homeowners, remodeling the kitchen is an obvious first choice. Updating a kitchen can be involved and costly, but often results in improved and personalized functionality, greater energy efficiency, modernized aesthetics, and contributions to the home’s overall resale value.

Remodeling your home kitchen can range from small cosmetic changes, such as replacing cabinets and adding a fresh coat of paint, to more transformative projects, like rearranging the layout of cabinets and appliances or installing new flooring. Changing the layout of your kitchen can truly modernize your home and improve the functionality of the space in a way that is tailored to your family’s specific needs. However, moving plumbing hookups or certain appliances can be more complicated and expensive to achieve than may be worthwhile.

#3 Update the Bathrooms in Your Home for a Spa-Like Experience

Aside from the kitchen, bathrooms are the most commonly remodeled rooms in the home. This may be because these projects improve safety by eliminating and preventing health risks such as mildew or mold—which can build up over the years in cases of inadequate ventilation—or replacing outdated plumbing. Regardless of why homeowners opt for bathroom remodeling, the process often creates an oasis for self-care and personal wellness with the added benefit of boosting home resale value as well.

Over the years, new technologies are continually developed to make bathrooms more comfortable, improve water efficiency, and create the look and feel of a private spa retreat in your own home. New showers have a variety of flow settings as well as aromatherapy capabilities. New baths are luxuriously large, and some have massage jets to recreate the stress relief provided by a jacuzzi.

#4 Replace Outdated Flooring Throughout Your Home

If you’re looking for a remodel project that can refresh your entire home, consider replacing old flooring. Flooring materials like luxury vinyl tile come in many styles making it easy to match your existing furniture. New flooring also presents benefits such as being waterproof, scuff resistant, and durable for long-term use. Other materials, such as porcelain tiles, have been updated over the years to better suit the average household’s needs, such as having more grip or being made of eco-friendly components.

Depending on the materials you choose, when you remodel your home with new flooring, you may also have an opportunity to install an under-floor heating system for improved comfort. Heated floors can be extremely practical in areas of the home that are prone to getting wet, such as bathrooms, kitchens, or entryways.

#5 Add a New Room to Your Home

For a large-scale transformation, consider a remodel that increases the square footage of your home. You can do so by adding a room, or mother-in-law suite, finishing an existing basement or attic, or even constructing a second story. Keep in mind that while finishing a basement or attic space does not necessarily require as much time or intrusion, projects that involve constructing new rooms or entire floors require educated architects and engineers working with the permission of local building authorities.

New Year, New Look

As 2023 approaches, you may consider creating a resolution about remodeling your home. There are so many potential benefits of doing so, like improved energy efficiency, improved functionality tailored to your needs, greater home resale value, and personalized aesthetics.

If you’re ready to start interviewing potential architects and designers for your next home renovation, get started today at The Anderson Studio! Find inspiration by viewing our portfolio. Or, contact our team to start imagining your new exciting project.

Which Home Projects Deliver the Most Return on Investment?