Too often, that’s not the case. Real-estate agents and appraisers say they regularly see homeowners make changes that don't increase the value of the home by much, if at all. Some renovations or alterations can even drag down the value of a home. Then, of course, there is all the damage that a lack of upkeep and upgrades can do.
Here are some common Don'ts for maintaining the value in your home.
1. DON'T Go Overboard For Your Area
The common mistake: A common mistake homeowners make is improving a home too much for the neighborhood, turning the home into a pricey outlier. How much is too much? That depends. "If you're in a really nice neighborhood, it would be hard to over improve something," says Jay Josephs, a certified appraiser for 23 years and the president of the Josephs Appraisal Group in Phoenix. But if you, say, install a $20,000 pool behind a $60,000 house, "you might get $5,000 to $8,000 return," Josephs says.
What you should do: "Pay real close attention to the common denominator in a neighborhood," says Sandra Nickel, the owner of Sandra Nickel Hat Team, a real-estate agency based in Montgomery, Ala. Talk to a trusted real-estate agent or an appraiser, and ask for an appraisal without improvements and another with them. If it doesn't pay off, "it's not a good value," Nickel says.
2. DON'T Inconsistently Upgrage
The common mistake: Homeowners goof by upgrading inconsistently, which hurts value, says Josephs, who is also a partner at Value Trend Solutions. "I have seen completely remodeled kitchens where people have spent $40,000 or $50,000 on a kitchen, and the rest of the house is untouched — there are vinyl floors, blue shag carpeting," he says.
What you should do: "The best way to get the greatest return on your home is to cure the deficiencies. Find out what's the baseline in your particular neighborhood — and anything you can do to bring your home up to that baseline … is probably an investment worth doing," Josephs says. "One of the things I like to say is, 'Stone floors and vinyl floors should never be touching.'"
3. DON'T Screw Up The Floorplan
The common mistake: Too many people aren't careful when they add square footage to a home, agents and appraisers say. "Adding a bedroom where you've got to walk through the laundry room to get there — most appraisers would call that 'functional obsolescence,'" Josephs says. Another example: adding a bedroom on the east side of the house when the bathrooms are on the west side of the house. "Those are additions that are probably not going to bring you a return on the investment that you're going to be satisfied with."
What you should do: "Keep in mind the functional integrity of the floor plan," Josephs says. Better yet, hire an architect who is trained to think about the design and flow of spaces.
4. DON'T Get Too Trendy
The common mistake: Everybody wants a fashionable home, but too trendy can be a trap.
"Something that's real hot today that I think is going to be a problem in a few years? Those skinny tile backsplashes" in kitchens, Nickel says. "It's gonna be like avocado appliances" were a few years ago, Nickel predicts. "Ten years ago, garden tubs and separate showers were all the rage," she says. "Nobody wants a garden tub anymore; we figured out we don't get in them." Homeowners are ripping them out to put in a nice standing shower, she says.
What you should do: "Be very aware of what's trendy, and avoid it at all costs," Nickel says. Steer toward looks that are a bit more timeless, she says — so hip doesn't become dated.
5. DON'T Hold On To Brass Door Knobs
The common mistake: "One thing I see a lot is that homes that were built in the 1990s still have brass hardware," says real-estate agent Kim Baker with Russ Lyon/Sotheby's International Realty in Scottsdale, Ariz. "It's very noticeable, if you walk into a home that has been updated with counters, cabinets and yet they haven't updated the hardware."
What's wrong with brass? "It's dated; it looks old," Baker says.
What you should do: "The No. 1 thing I tell people to do is change out your brass hardware," Baker says. Try fixtures made of chrome, brushed nickel or oil-rubbed bronze instead, she suggests. If you can't afford to redo your cabinets, "even changing out the brass will add value."
To read about more DON'TS before you sell, go to "14 Mistakes That Will Kill Your Home's Value" on MSN Real Estate.
Source: MSN Real Estate
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