Happy New Year,
In the current economic times, I'm often confronted with the question of whether or not it makes sense to remodel or add onto one's home. With all the doom and gloom in the news every day, would it not make more sense to sock your money away in an IRA or money market account than to spend it on remodeling your bathroom, kitchen, or some other home improvement project? Maybe, maybe not. Lets put a slightly different spin on things and see what makes sense to you:
1. Right now, your dollar goes farther than it will in 2 or 5 years. While remodeling a bathroom now (in the range of $20k for an average bathroom to $50k or more for a master bathroom remodel) may seem a bit pricey, we were doing those same project for $12k and $40k a few years ago. Project this same trend out a few years and you'll wish you had done those projects "back in 2009". With demand for materials lower than it has been in years, manufacturers prices are also down as they work to reduce inventory, further reducing the cost of your project.
2. You can get the project done soon. Let's face it, work has slowed down for many of us in the industry. While we all like to claim that we're swamped, the reality is that the amount of work out there has slimmed down, translating into more contractors being available for your project.
3. You can enjoy the results. Assuming that you're not doing the project for a quick sale, you can live in an upgraded home for many years to come, not only realizing the increase in home value, but also the added comfort and convenience of the newly remodeled or added space.
4. Money is cheap. I'm not a big advocate for going into debt, but if you are planning on borrowing money for your home, now may be the best time in a long time to do just that. Interest rates are historically low, making home improvement projects even more affordable.
If all this isn't enough to make you want to remodel, consider that in the past year, traditional investments have shrunk by nearly 40%. While it is true that home values have gone down (around 6-10% in our area I believe), home improvement projects continue to add value (monetarily) to homes, as well as improving one's personal level of comfort in the home.
- Photograph by jenerik images