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When purchasing a home, many immediately begin thinking of ways to improve upon it. You may be motivated to make improvements, so you and your family will better enjoy the home, or it may be to raise the home’s value. If you pick the right project, it can accomplish both. Making improvements can be risky because things don’t always turn out exactly how you imagine them. Even when they do, this won’t necessarily increase home value. One project that is seen almost universally as the best use of your money, though, is building a deck.
The Numbers
While almost no home improvement project raises the value of the home more than the cost of the project, decks get the closest. Depending on the area of the country, the size of the deck, the materials, the neighborhood, and other factors, a deck is said to recoup 80-90 percent of the investment. Studies, including by Remodeling Magazine, list building a deck as the project with the best return on investment. Replacing entrance doors, adding a patio, bathroom remodels, and a few other practical improvements are also near the top of the list. Projects that are more customized, like a home art studio or game room, do the worst at adding value. This is likely because these do not have the same levels of broad appeal.
Inexpensive Usable Space
The reason decks do so well is they add usable space, even though it’s on the outside of your home. This gives the feel of having a larger square footage without spending the money it takes for an addition. A deck costs around $35 per square foot, while National Association of Home Builders estimates a 2,000 square foot home is $85 per square foot. Having usable space for that little money is a safe investment and one you can use in the meantime.
A deck is a great place to gather with friends and family when the weather is nice. Despite not being part of the square footage of the home, it improves the value of the home because it is often used as if it was. People prepare their meals on decks, eat and drink, lounge-like they were in a living room, and play with their pets and children. This is why prospective buyers assign value to the deck at a higher rate than other home improvement projects. Appraisers acknowledge this demand and increase the value accordingly.
If you are looking for ways to improve your Charlotte North Carolina home, you can’t go wrong with building a deck. Well, you can if you try to do it yourself and it doesn’t turn out well, but that’s why we’re here. Ebony Home Improvement is an expert in building decks that improve not only the value of one’s home but the lives of the people who are there now.