Are you looking to sell your home and want the highest sale price possible? Perhaps you decided, after a mortgage comparison, you have found your current home loan lacking and want to refinance and borrow some more money. Whatever the reason, renovating your property can be an excellent way of adding value.
While reality TV has made renovating look easy, there are some pitfalls, and it’s always advisable to consider using professional’s help to carry out any works to your home. Even with the added expense of professional help, it is possible to get out more than you put in, with certain renovations almost guaranteed to net you a return.
Not all renovations are smart, some can drain money and offer no increase in value, so it pays to do your research. So, what are the biggest value-adding renovations you can do? Let’s find out.
Open Plan Kitchen
Cost: $5000-$30000
Difficulty: Moderate
In modern times, the kitchen often takes center stage in a home. An open plan kitchen gives a sense of space while offering a communal spot to bond while preparing a meal. For the keen DIY expert, a kitchen can be constructed on the cheap, with places like Ikea and Domayne offering solid, customizable cabinets and benchtops.
As with all renovations, it might pay off to hire a professional. Cabinet making is an art form, and if you plan on increasing the value and utility of your home, do you really want to spare expenses and try and do it all yourself? A well-presented open plan kitchen will inspire like no other room and well worth the money spent.
Bathroom
Cost: $10000-$30000
Difficulty: Moderate to hard
A showstopping house can be quickly let down by a dingy bathroom. Renovating your bathroom can be a little intimidating, a host of tradespeople will be required for a top to bottom renovation. For those handy with a set of tools, fittings and fixtures can be swapped out to save money, but they won’t add as much value as a full renovation.
Exterior
Cost: Free – $5000
Difficulty: Easy to moderate
You know what they say about first impressions. The ‘curb side’ appeal of a home plays a huge role in how potential buyers or assessors will value a home. All that money spent on a new kitchen and bathroom might be in vain if you can’t get buyers through the door. Renovating the exterior of your home can be as simple as tidying up the front yard, or as grandiose as a gated driveway completed with security gate and floodlights.
A fresh coat of paint will not only boost your home’s curbside appeal but increase its longevity by up to ten years. A new paint job can dramatically change the look of your home, making it a relatively cheap method of updating your exterior. When choosing a brand of exterior paint, special care must be taken in Australia as the UV radiation is unusually high.
A sculpted front garden is sure to impress, but it can cause concerns about maintenance if you go too far. Gardening is a relaxing hobby that is cheap and easy to get into. Why not practice your gardening and update your outdoor area?
Renovations To Avoid
This article is about renovations that will increase the value of your home. Just because a renovation has little potential to add value doesn’t mean its inherently bad. If you want to refinance your home loan to fund a grand backyard redesign, complete with water feature, go for it, just don’t expect to see a return on your money.
Right, with that out of the way, let’s have a look at the money pits, err, I mean renovations that should be avoided if you are hoping to see the value of your home rise. .
Pool
Cost: $10000 to infinity
Difficulty: Hard
A pool is an impressive feature of a home for sure, but it also requires regular maintenance and adherence to strict guidelines. In Australia, you can’t just dig a hole in the ground, fill it with water and call it a day, no, you have to make sure your pool is kid-safe, even if you don’t have kids.
Given the fact that an inground pool starts at around $35000 to install, a pool is not a cheap inclusion. The cost only climbs from here as you need to consider landscaping, water treatment, and the water itself. On a hot day, a pool is a godsend, but it also loses a lot of water through evaporation.
Australia’s blistering hot summers have been tamed by air conditioning; buyers are ditching the pool and saving the cash instead. A pool can be a great idea for a family who loves to swim, but a value-adding renovation it is not.
Grand Designs.
Cost: $???
Difficulty: Hard
Going big on your outdoor spaces is a wonderful way of imparting your personality to your home. A well designed outdoor area is a perfect place to entertain and spend time in. A nice backyard will add value to a home like very few renovations, but there’s a thin line between perfect and too much.
Complicated gardens, ones with hard to care for plants, and water features can be a nightmare. Potential buyers can be turned off by gardens and outdoor areas that are too over the top or dramatic. Remember that your taste is not everyone’s taste, and if you want to appeal to a wide audience, keep your ideas real.
In today’s ultra-competitive home loan market, lenders are ravenous for your business. If you are looking to boost the value of your home, it is a relatively simple process to refinance your home loan, often with a much better deal than you originally signed up for. Using the extra funds to renovate your home can be an excellent way of adding value to your home or investment. Hopefully, you are inspired to get renovating and boost the value of your home today.