Which DIY Projects Bring the Most Bang for Your Buck?

Huerkamp Home Group Minnesota Real Estate Podcast

The home remodeling market is absolutely booming right now. So, which projects truly bring you the most bang for your buck?

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Right now a lot of people are wondering what home remodeling projects will get them the biggest bang for their buck.

As a trend, home remodeling is absolutely skyrocketing. The market for it is seeing a lot of intense growth right now. In fact, it’s up 6% year-over-year in terms of spending. This amounts to $324 billion being spent on home remodeling projects.

Impressively enough, that means that a quarter of all real estate spending is directly related to home remodeling. With that being the case, it’s no wonder people are curious about which projects are best.

Today, I’d like to give you a look at the top five projects that will give you the most bang for your buck.

1. Kitchen remodels. With kitchen remodels, you are going to get about 85% of your value back. However, it’s important to keep in mind that you should never spend more than 20% of your home’s total value on projects related to your kitchen. If your home is worth $200,000, don’t spend more than $45,000 on your kitchen.
2. Bathroom remodels. Bathrooms are another great place to get back a large portion of what you’re putting in. For bathroom remodels, you aren’t going to want to spend more than about $20,000. The right updates and changes will bring you about an 80% rate of return on your investment.
3. Deck remodels. Remodeling your deck can be a great idea, but be careful that you’re making the right choices. Even though there are a ton of fancy new products out there, keeping things simple is going to be the best choice. Maintenance-free products are going to cost you more than they may be worth. Like bathrooms, deck remodels will bring you approximately 80% return on investment.
4. New siding. Peeling or chipping siding can do a lot of harm for a home’s appearance. Sometimes the best option is to simply replace it. For vinyl siding, it’s going to run you about $10,000 to $15,000 to have it replaced. This amount will go up depending on if you opt for more expensive siding, or if you have an especially large home.
5. Replacing old or outdated windows. This remodel specifically will generally bring about a 70% return on investment, but don’t overdo it. It’s easy to go overboard by choosing a particularly expensive window system.

A quarter of all real estate spending is directly related to home remodeling.

Finally, keep in mind that all of these returns are based on you having contractors do the work. If you don’t have contractors doing the work, you could double your return by doing it yourself. For example, you could get a 140% return on investment instead of a 70% return if you were to replace your own windows instead of hiring someone else to do the work.

When it comes to remodeling and construction, about half of your money will go to materials. The other half goes toward labor.

If you have any other questions or would like more information, feel free to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.