Ways to Add Value to Your Home

[dt_quote type=”blockquote” font_size=”big” animation=”none” background=”plain”]A house is a huge asset that grows each year as the amount of money you owe on the mortgage reduces.  Therefore, when it comes to spending money on your home to add value, you should always consider the potential return if you were to sell the house.  Adding value to your home might not be the reason for the extension, alteration of other work but can help you make the tricky decisions[/dt_quote]

The planning stage

According to recent studies, over half of homeowners have done some form of home improvements in the last 12 months and of them, 25% say they have done it specifically to add value to their house.  This can be anything from adding an oak framed garage to renewing the kitchen and all of these developments offer something to the owner as well as the eventual higher selling price.

When planning to do some work on the house, how much the added value factors into the decisions is a personal choice.  If you need more room now and aren’t too worried about selling the house in ten years, then it may be a minor consideration.  But if you are planning to sell in the next twelve months, then the cost of the work may be a major consideration.

Extending the home

Adding space to the home is always a big plus and will boost your home’s value versus a neighbouring property that isn’t extended.  A single storey extension can cost around £30,000 with a double height costing around £40,000 while a well laid out extension can boost the overall value of the house by around 12%.

Another good option is to add a garage or off-street parking.  Oak framed garages are very popular in a number of house styles as they add both a feature and the practicality of extra space.  These types of garage made from oak frames can look smart and timeless, have the natural benefits of real wood while adding space that can store vehicles.  If you don’t have enough room to add this kind of garage, you can always add a carport to the side of the house to provide sheltered parking for the car without the need for a whole new structure.

Altering the house

After an extension, converting the loft is a popular choice to add space to the home and can be a cost effective option in terms of the value added to the property.

Converting the loft can add around 15% to the house value or as much as 30% depending on how useful the space is – such as making an extra bedroom or a dressing room.

If going up doesn’t work, then you may be able to go down and add a basement to the property.  Many houses abroad have basements and these can be a bit more expensive to add but increase the floor space of the house by a large amount.  Basements can cost around £80,000 to add completely when there is no existing structure though as little as £20,000 if there is already a basement or cellar.

Renovate the bathroom or kitchen

The bathroom and kitchen are the two rooms within the house that sell the house and these are the two that are often worthwhile investing money into.  Renovating either or both of these spaces can add as much as 10% to the value of the house but may not repay the money spent to do the work.

Changing the layout of the house might be worth considering.  For example, if there is a downstairs bathroom, it might be worth considering adding an upstairs bathroom in its place or in addition.  Adding an en-suite bathroom to the master bedroom may be worth considering in terms of the selling appeal of the house even if it doesn’t recoup the money spent.