The 10 worst home improvement projects for the money

When homeowners decide to remodel, many of them make the crucial mistake of not thinking about the future owners of the home might care about. If you’re 100% sure that you’ll stay in your home forever, then by all means, remodel to your heart’s content. But if there’s even a chance you’ll sell your home at some point, keep in mind that your remodel can actually make it harder to sell your home, and you probably won’t recoup much of the money that you spent on remodeling when you do sell. Here are the ten worst home improvement projects ranked by how much of your money you get back at resale.

Major kitchen remodel (mid-range)

A minor kitchen remodel is a great home improvement project if you want to sell your home, but a major kitchen remodel will cost about $60,000 and you’ll only recoup about 65% of that when you sell.

Composite deck addition (mid-range)

Buyers really appreciate a nice outdoor living space these days. But if you spend too much, say about $17,000 for a composite deck, you’re only going to get back about 64.4% of that when you eventually sell.

Master Suite addition (mid-range)

Adding square footage is a surefire way to add value to your home. But if that additional square footage is a mid-range master suite addition it’s going to cost you $115,000 and you’re only going to get 64% of that back.

Major kitchen remodel (upscale)

If you thought a mid-range major kitchen remodel was bad, then don’t even think about an upscale kitchen remodel. That will set you back $120,000 and you’ll only recoup 61.5% of the cost at resale.

Backup power generator

If you thought prospective buyers appreciated having a backup generator, you’d be wrong. It costs almost $13,000 and buyers are only willing to be 59.4% of that when they buy your home.

Composite deck addition (upscale)

Just like with the kitchen, an upscale deck addition is worse than a mid-range. It will typically cost around $38,000 and you’ll only see 57.7% of that money again. If you’re going to go all out with a new deck, better get your money’s worth out of it before you sell.

Bathroom remodel (upscale)

Don’t get too crazy with the bathroom remodel. If you go upscale you’re looking to spend about $57,000 on average and you’ll only recoup 57.5% of your cost.

Master Suite addition (upscale)

Want a master suite addition that looks like it belongs in a mansion? Prepare to spend a quarter of a million dollars and be prepared to recoup just 56.7% of that amount at resale.

Bathroom addition (upscale)

If you thought an upscale bathroom remodel was bad, an upscale bathroom addition is even worse. It’s going to cost about $80,000 and you’ll be lucky to get 56.7% back.

Bathroom addition (mid-range)

But the worst of all home remodeling projects, and it seems to contradict the pattern already established, is a mid-range bathroom addition which has a worse return on an investment than an upscale bathroom addition. You’ll spend about $42,000 and you’ll only recoup 56% of your costs.

Source: The Fiscal Times

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