Home Renovation Cost vs Value.

Home Repairs and Renovations.

With the influx of short sale and foreclosure properties in our market, there is no doubt there are a few owners with newly acquired “fixer-upper” wondering: …so, what do we do now and where do we start?” Most are in poor or run down conditions needing cosmetic or major repairs.

It is important to have a plan before you start knocking down walls, ripping out floors, adding rooms, and so on. These repairs and renovations may cost you plenty in the end when you put it back on the market (also referred as “Flipping” – watch for my coming post on that).

You may not even plan to resell that fixer-upper you just bought immediately after the renovations. But just the same, it is usually good to know the cost of repairs vs. the value that the improvement will add to your property.

Here’s a website referred to me recently, Remodelling Magazine. Note: it’s simply a “rule of thumb” for when you start planning your renovations; looking at homes to buy; getting estimates from trades’ people; and how an appraiser may look at valuing components of the property.

Needless to say, there may be differences in local areas, but it’s a good place to start. If you come across a better website with values of improvements, please share.