You likely won’t get all your money back from these projects, but if you plan to stay in your home, you’ll benefit by living with the improvements.
NEW WOOD DECK
Add a 14-18 foot cedar wood deck to the house for $16,900 and gain an exterior living or dining room for more months of the year.
RETURN: 89%
BASEMENT CONVERSION
When you want to stretch your living space, a basement conversion is a good place to start. Experts in the remodeling trade say you’ll likely spend about $57,500 to convert an existing 15X25 foot unfinished basement space into a finished rec room with a TV.
Return: 86%
FIBER CEMENT SIDING
Remove old siding and replace with factory-primed and painted fiber cement siding, and caulk all seams. The typical cost for a 2,450
square foot home is $18,600.
RETURN: 86%
KITCHEN UPGRADE
Remake your kitchen for better function and updated looks. A $45,000 budget to upgrade includes new energy-efficient appliances, laminate countertops, sheet vinyl flooring, and cabinetry refacing with veneer and new hardware. Add a new sink and faucet, and repaint the walls and ceiling for a totally satisfying remake.
RETURN: 67%
BATHROOM RENOVATION
Remodelers say you’ll pay about $35,000 to tear out an old bathroom and replace it.
RETURN: 71%
WOOD WINDOWS
For about $48,000 you can replace 27 windows with new insulated wood windows
featuring factory-painted, metal-clad exterior frames and natural wood interior frames; argon-filled, low-emissivity (low-E) glass; and tilt-in sashes for washing.
RETURN: 63%
FIBERGLASS FRONT DOOR
The typical cost of this improvement is $3,500 and includes a door with a three-panel window, better-quality locking handle set and deadbolt, plus new exterior and interior trim painted to match the existing trim.
RETURN 60%
FIRE FEATURE
You can expect to spend about $9,000 to install a dry stacked-stone firepit with a gas burner and wrap it with a flagstone patio that’s about 10 feet in diameter.
RETURN: 56%
IN-GROUND POOL
You can install an 18X36-foot pool with a depth ranging from 3 to 7 feet, a standard filtration system, and a wide concrete deck for about $90,000.
RETURN 56%
