Investing Intelligently - Home Upgrades & Additions That Pay Off

Upgrading, modernizing, and renovating a home can be tricky business. A home purchase is a huge investment and should be considered as just that – an investment. Unfortunately, many homeowners get wrapped up in making a home their dream home by pouring money into expensive, and often impractical upgrades, and never recoup their investment. So which home improvement projects should you invest in, and which should you avoid? Below are three home improvement projects that will give you the best bang for your buck and insure your home value continues to rise.

A Change in Hue
A little paint goes a long way. Not only is it very economical (especially if you do it yourself), but a change in wall color alone can transform the look of a room or exterior, if chosen properly. Not sure what color will work with your space or worried you’ll pick the wrong color? Don’t fear, there are some really great tools out there for making a fool proof decision. Sherwin Williams has a fantastic (and free!) service called ‘Color Snap’ that allows you to upload a photo of your space, drop one of their paint colors in, and watch your room transformed before your eyes. Gone are the days of paint swatch-ing the walls! Visit https://www.sherwin-williams.com/homeowners/color/try-on-colors to check it out!

Add A Bath
If your home only has one bathroom, you can recoup a large chunk of your investment by adding another one. HGTV estimates that you can recoup 80%-130% of whatever you spend adding a bathroom. When it comes to finding room in your house for an extra bathroom, take a look at any extra rooms or underutilized spaces. Consider other spaces, such as closets or areas under the stairs, too. If you want a half-bath you need at least 18 square feet. If you want a full bath, including a stand-up shower, you need at least 30 square feet. If you want a bathtub, make sure you have at least 35 square feet to work with for a bathroom addition.

Reinventing a Room
One of the greatest investments you can put into a home is transforming unused (or underutilized) space. Attics and basements are the perfect places to start. Whether you are planning to sell your home, looking to create more space for a growing family, or even transforming a space to add an income property (think about transforming that backyard shed into an Airbnb), this is a great way to add value to a home. For the handy, much of this can be done yourself. No HVAC? There are some really great options for heating & cooling a small space, and we aren’t talking about those old, bulky window units. Here is a low profile heating & cooling unit from Mitsubishi Electric, for less than $1,000! https://www.mitsubishicomfort.com/node/1098