Before trying to tackle too many projects, figure out what home improvements your budget has room for.
What will your budget let you renovate?
Home prices are high and interest rates are rising, so
many homeowners are opting to stay put and renovate rather
than search for a new house. According to Houzz’s 2018 study of renovations in the LIS., 51 percent of Houzz users have plans to renovate in 2018, with a median budget of $10,000. But
how far can your budget get you? We’re breaking down
the cost of some popular home renovation projects to help
you figure out the best ways to spend your remodel money.
Kitchen
It doesn’t matter if you’re a gourmet chef or a
microwave connoisseur — you want a welcoming
kitchen that makes the space worthy of spending time,
not just prepping food. A kitchen renovation is the most common planned project for homeowners, according to the Houzz study, with 31 percent of respondents noting they plan to remodel their kitchen. But it’s also a costly project. Remodeling Magazine’s 2018 Cost vs Value report breaks down the national average cost for kitchen remodels as such:
Midrange minor kitchen remodel: $21,198
Midrange major kitchen remodel: $63,829 Upscale
Major kitchen re-model: S125,721
Knocking Down Walls
Removing a wall tends to cost the same in every room, but these days it is commonly done in the kitchen to create a more open floor plan. Wall demolition costs vary based on whether the wall is load bearing – meaning it is a key part of the house’s structure – or if there is plumbing or electrical wire running through it. HomeAdvisor provides national averages for the cost of removing a wall.
Budget: $300 to $1,000 for a wall that doesn’t bear any weight.
Midrange: $1,200 to $3,000 for a load-bearing wall in a single-story house.
Splurge: $3,200 to $10,000 for a load-bearing wall with two or more stories.
Bathroom
The second- and third-most popular home renovations, according to the Houzz study, both fall under the bathroom category, covering guest or
secondary bathrooms and master bathrooms.
Current design trends show homeowners want a
spa experience in their bathroom, whether that
means a rain-style showerhead, double vanities or exquisite tile work. Remodeling Magazine separates the cost of remodeling a bathroom into two categories, based on national averages for 2018:
Midrange bathroom remodel: $19,134
Upscale bathroom remodel: $61,662
Bedroom: master suite addition
Sometimes, though, the bedroom you have isn’t the
one you want or need. Master suites are frequently
high on the list of homebuyer wants, but they’re also not always common in older houses. Making an
addition to a house is an extensive project that will cost you a lot of money, but your investment does come back to you, at least somewhat, in the increase in property value. Remodeling Magazine notes a
master suite addition recoups just over 48 percent of the cost in resale value for upscale projects and more than 56 percent for midrange projects. Here are the average costs for both projects, per the Cost vs. Value report:
Midrange master suite addition: $123,420
Upscale master suite addition: $256,229
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