High Returns for Low Energy Upgrades
This encompasses several trends that help reduce monthly utility costs, decrease maintenance, increase comfort and according to Pekel, “score big with environmentally conscious homebuyers.”
Across generations, The National Association of REALTORS® 2014 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers found that nearly 70 percent of survey respondents cite energy-efficient appliances and lighting as either very or somewhat important, while nearly 90 percent said the same about a home’s heating and cooling costs.
These updates may not deliver the razzle-dazzle of a kitchen or bath rehab, but their ROI is “beautiful.”
ROI
- Insulation upgrade: estimated 95 percent ROI.*
- Replacing old windows: estimated 80 percent ROI for new vinyl windows; estimated 58 percent ROI for new wood windows.*
- HVAC Replacement: estimated 71 percent ROI.*
- New roofing: estimated 105 percent ROI.*
* 2015 Remodeling Impact Report, a joint study from the National Association of the Remodeling Industry (NARI) and the National Association of Realtors® (NAR)
Don’t Do It
If updating worn out fixtures and appliances before listing, don’t install less-expensive, water-hogging products. Environmentally conscious homebuyers won’t pay for them, as they’ll likely want to replace everything.
Cooking Up Backyard Fun
According to the NKBA 2016 trend report, outdoor kitchens remain on the top 10 list, with greatest interest in the southeast US. A custom outdoor kitchen can include everything from a brick-lined fire pit for camp-style cooking to a professional grade barbecue with side burners, warming and storage drawers, a refrigerator and a sink. Add multiple ways to prepare food and you go from an outdoor kitchen to an outdoor cooking experience. Luxury extras include pizza ovens, fryers, smokers, griddles and gas cook tops in addition to the grill. With all these choices, outdoor kitchen plans adapt to a wide range of home price points.
Don’t Do It
Finding the Experts
One way to study home trends is by reading magazines, watching TV remodeling shows and surfing websites like houzz.com. David Pekel, CEO of Pekel Construction & Remodeling, Inc., in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, also recommends finding a contractor or builder who is doing a lot of business in your market. “Invite this expert out for coffee and pick their brain,” Pekel suggests.
The National Association of Remodeling Industry (NARI), nari.org, offers remodeling pros, award-winning NARI members and helpful articles.
Scott Urquhart, CRS, broker associate with Century 21 Troop Real Estate in Ventura County, California, has another tip. “Visit model homes in your community’s new developments. The developers did a lot of expensive research to figure out what sells. Take advantage of what they know!”
Scott Urquhart, CRS, broker associate with Century 21 Troop Real Estate in Ventura County, California, advises clients to resist cementing over the backyard, which he’s seen homeowners do to accommodate family pets. “Cement makes it easier to clean up after the pups but when you decide to move, that cement will turn off most buyers.”
ROI for Outdoor Kitchen
100 to 200 percent, with a higher ROI in warmer areas and when durable materials are used.*
* According to Inman, a real estate news site.
Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow
No discussion about home trends is complete without touching on a perennial decree: remodel with the utmost respect for your home’s original style. “A home’s architectural style is in its bones—or rather, its foundation. And it’s probably a big reason you bought the house,” says David Pekel, CEO of Pekel Construction & Remodeling, Inc., in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin. “So whether you live in a Queen Anne Victorian, Craftsman Bungalow, Cotswold Tudor or Cape Cod, you want any remodeling project to be congruous with the rest of your home’s aesthetic. If it feels organic to the home, you can’t go wrong.”
