Mike Walters Real Estate Blog

Realty World – Advantage

Top Return on Remodel Item?

Leave a comment General / Home Improvement / Marketing / selling

What would you guess to be the top return on home improvement dollars spent?

I have incorrectly stated for years: “a kitchen improvement gives you the highest return of added value for your remodel dollar”.

While it typically adds 80 – 83% of your remodel dollar-to-value, there is an inexpensive improvement which gets an even higher return – almost 100%!  Hint: a contributor to curbside appeal.

Take a look at this article (see the list at the bottom) and you may be as surprised as I was.  I’m assuming the photo above hasn’t helped you figure it out already.  It is still an eyebrow raiser for me.  It’s also motivating because I can redo our front door out of  “pocket change” vs influencing the national debt for a full-on kitchen do over.

BTW: there was a secondary point made in the article which should be self evident: a $75,000 kitchen remodel on a $100,000 house does not make sense.

What have you done before sale which gave you the best return?

Bathroom Floor Ideas, Remodeling

Leave a comment General / Home Improvement / selling

One of the  first, physical experiences you have in the morning and, just before you go to bed: your footsies on the bathroom floor.  Is it cold?  slippery?  woolly (carpet)? Yucky?

Is it time to redo the bathroom?  Start with the flooring.  Here is a good article for the newest, old ideas and options that are reasonably priced.  Once you have decided on the floor color and texture  the rest will easily fall into place.

Next to the cost of a kitchen remodel, a bathroom is the second most expensive. However, like the kitchen, remodeled bathrooms really add to a home’s value – one of the highest returns on your improvement dollars.

Not only will your bathroom look fresh and clean, it will feel great on those adventurous toes in the AM and weary souls at the end of the day.

What do you think?  Do you have a floor you want to share?

New Kitchen Trends in 2014

2 Comments General / Home Improvement

If 2014 is the year you plan to redo your kitchen, consider the sun setting trends we’ve seen over the last 10 years and, the rising, new ideas.  Granite counter tEnglish: A park interpreter demonstrates a typ...ops, lacquered cabinets, dark floors and the “triangle” work alignment are become less chic.

This article

provides some trendy textures which are becoming more and more sought after.

We plan to remodel our 14 year old kitchen and like the new counter top choices of color, the open cabinet doors with down-lighting and, lighter floor accents which, seem to be the way of kitchen’s future.

So, before you head for the warehouse-type home improvement stores to buy a “gourmet kitchen” face lift, consider what may be the kitchen profile for the next 10 years.

Have you remodeled your kitchen recently what changes did you make?  If like us, this is the year for that project what materials are you considering?

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