UPDATE AND REJUVENATE
Plan ahead so you can reap the rewards and avoid the potential pitfalls of renovation season
It’s that magical time of year once again, the time of year when people of all ages gather together and celebrate ‘out with the old and in with the new.’ No, it’s not Christmas, it’s better — it’s renovation season. Renovation season starts every year at the tail end of January after spending our dark, frozen winter days staring at the same dated and worn fixtures. That once-popular orange shag rug that made you groovy when you picked it now makes you grumpy, so you decide that now is the time — to renovate, to update, to rejuvenate. Renovating your home is not just about increasing or maintaining the value of your home, but it’s also about boosting your quality of life. I get asked all the time about what renovations would increase the value of a home, and unless you are renovating to sell profit may be your secondary motivation. However, if you are specifically renovating to sell, there are two general rules of thumb to keep in mind. The first rule: Do not renovate beyond the value the neighbourhood can bear. What I mean is, you can renovate to such an extent that you will not get your money back. An example would be high-end brand-name fixtures in an entrylevel location. You can literally spend tens of thousands of dollars upgrading a home in such a way that you can’t recover the costs. On the flip side, there are also locations that will support a highend renovation.
Talk to your realtor or appraiser about what your home could sell for when you do the renovations you have in mind, to help get a good feel for the value of your property (and whether it fits the neighbourhood) once the upgrades have been completed. The second rule of thumb when renovating to sell: Keep your colour palette neutral and up-todate. Add colour in your accessories, rather than your wall and floor colour. This will allow your buyers to see their own decor tastes in your home. The top three renovations that provide a good return on investment are paint (both inside and out), kitchen upgrades and bathroom renovations. These three can have a big impact on how people see the value of your home. That being said, you can easily overdo it when renovating the kitchen and bathrooms, so be careful and get multiple quotes. Typically, an average kitchen reno costs from $20,000 to $25,000 but could cost up to $70,000 or more without any additional return on investment when it comes time to sell, so be wise with your dollars. If you are thinking about doing some outdoor renovations, a new roof offers the best bang for your buck for the home’s exterior, while a new pressure-treated fence has the greatest return in the landscaping department. And let’s not forget the double-detached garage — providing a great return on investment while boosting the property’s appeal to prospective buyers. Some outdoor upgrades offer a poor return on investment, including solar tubes and skylights, alarm systems, stamped or exposed aggregate concrete, pergolas, concrete curbing, removing mature trees, hot tubs and swimming pools. While these are nice features, buyers generally are not willing to pay much for them. A swimming pool can actually have a negative impact on your home’s value, as people often like the house but don’t want the additional cost and maintenance of a pool. Once you figure out what areas to renovate, you need to figure out a budget. You may wish to start out getting quotes from multiple contractors, figuring out which upgrades you can tackle yourself and which ones you are going to hire out. Remember that contractor pricing can vary drastically, seriously affecting the amount of work you can afford to have done. Get multiple quotes, and if the contractors don’t add in a contingency amount to their quote make sure you do. Add in an extra 10 per cent for any unforeseen costs or changes. There’s always something behind the walls you didn’t expect. Another contractor tip is to ensure every part of the quote is in writing, so that both you and the contractor equally understand the full scope of the work being done. If your contractor says “oh yeah, I can do that” make sure you put it in writing. Finally, do not pay the full amount until the project is complete. It is common practice to pay a negotiable percentage up front to cover the costs of materials, and then progressive payments at agreed-upon points. However, the final payment should only be delivered after the project is complete. Hold back at least 10 per cent until the final walkthrough is done and you are satisfied the job is complete. Keeping these tips in mind can reduce stress during renovation season, provide the greatest return on investment, and help ensure that you’re satisfied with the end result. Happy renovating! Heather Faulkner is a realtor with RE/MAX Excellence with more than 13 years of experience. You can follow her on Twitter at @faulknergroup, on Facebook, or check out her webpage at www.heathershomes.ca.