How Much is My House Worth?

How To Increase Home Value?

According to DaveRamsey, the best 5 ways to increase your home’s value is to add beauty, add more space, add more efficiency, add updated systems/appliances, and add technology. Don’t guess which features will help increase the worth of your house. Dave’s blog says, “For more confidence on what project to spend your money on, ask a local real estate agent which features are helping homes sell for more in your area.” 

Who is Primarily Responsible for Determining the Market Value of the Home You Want to Buy?

One source states that you shouldn’t work with a listing agent that is hired by the seller to determine the value of your home, as they will want to get top dollar on the sale. Hiring an appraiser might give you a fair market value buy gives the opportunity for another buyer to come in and purchase the home before you make an offer. ManaUSA says that the best way to find out the market value of your house is to work with a home buying specialist. According to their blog, “Your buyer specialist can determine this value and help you use it to formulate a smart offer. Most inexperienced buyers learn the hard way that merely offering less than the asking price (to see what the seller will do) is no way to buy a home.”

How to Find The Value of Your Home

The easiest way to find out “how much is my house worth” is to search Google for home value estimators/calculators like Zillow, Nerd Wallet, Redfin, and ReMax. According to Nerd Wallet, “In fact, 22% of U.S. homeowners who determined their home’s value used an online estimator, according to the survey. The technical term for these tools is automated valuation model, or AVM, and they’re typically offered by lenders or real estate sites like Zillow and Redfin.” Nerd Wallet’s blog states that the best 5 ways to determine the value of your home are to use online valuation tools, get a comparative market analysis, use the FHFA house price index calculator, hire a professional appraiser, and evaluate comparable properties.

What Home Improvements Add the Most Value?

According to Home Light, the home improvements that add the most value to a home are finishing your basement, opening up the floor plan, adding stone veneer to the exterior of your home, installing a steel door, installing a new garage door, touching up your exterior paint, swapping out features in your bathrooms and kitchen, doing a minor remodel, installing or refinishing hardwood floors, painting a neutral palette, replacing the roof, replacing the HVAC system, installing home siding, replacing toilets, installing energy-efficient appliances, installing energy-efficient windows, make your laundry room more accessible, turning your shower into a walk-in shower, and installing a smart thermostat.

Above all else, the most important factor to most homebuyers is ‘more space’. Home Light says, “Homebuyers appreciate ample space. Regardless of income bracket, people who bought a home within the past three years or planned to buy a home in the next three years wanted more square footage.” With that being said, make sure the renovations you perform make the home feel more spacious if you really want it to sell quickly.

What Adds Value to a Home Appraisal?

As stated above, renovations can help increase the appraised value of your home. Home Guide says, “If you want to raise your appraised value, make sure any renovations you do along the way will provide a boost. Bathrooms and kitchens offer the highest returns on your renovation investment, followed by improvements made above ground. Finished basements are nice but rarely add significant value to a home.” As you can see, the bathrooms and the kitchen should be your first 2 focus points if you really want to increase your home’s appraised value. Adding a new wall color in the kitchen and bathrooms is one of the least expensive improvements you can make to give your appraisal a boost.

How Much Does a Pool Add to Home Value?

According to a study performed by House Logic, a pool can add as much as 7% to your home’s value. HGTV confirms by stating that an in-ground pool can increase your home’s value by as much as 5 to 8%. Dave Ramsey’s blog says that a 7% increase is more likely if you live in warmer climates like Arizona, Florida, or Hawaii. However, if you don’t have a pool installed already, it might be a costly venture. Daves Ramsey’s blog goes on to state that, “the average cost to install, equip, and fill a 600-square-foot concrete pool starts at $30,000.” So, installing a pool likely isn’t the most effective method of increasing your home value.

How Much Does Hardwood Floors Increase the Value of a Home?

Simple Showing says, “As CNN reported, hardwood floors can also increase home value by 3-5%. This makes them a very attractive prospect for anyone looking to sell their house in the near future. However, even if you don’t plan on moving any time soon, hardwood floors may still be a good investment.”

According to the Simple Showing blog, 88% of homeowners that installed hardwood floors enjoy being home more. Their blog that you should make sure and choose the right type of hardwood flooring as they are not all created equal. However, they also say that installing hardwood flooring won’t give you the same increase for the amount of money you spend as kitchen or bathroom renovations will.

What is Assessed Home Value?

According to Investopedia, “An assessed value is the dollar value assigned to a property to measure applicable taxes. Assessed valuation determines the value of a residence for tax purposes and takes comparable home sales and inspections into consideration.”

Simply stated, assessed home value is used for the purpose of property taxes. A lower assessed home value means you will have a lower tax bill. Buyers and sellers use assessed value to their own advantages. A seller might compare the assessed value to the value the homeowner is asking for the justify the price while a buyer might use assessed value to justify a lower price.

How Much Does Landscaping Improve Home Value?

Improving your landscaping can improve your home value by 5.5% to 12.7% depending on several cost factors.

According to Home Guides, “A well-landscaped home has a significant price advantage over a home with no landscaping. This advantage ranges from 5.5 percent to 12.7 percent depending on the type of landscaping and the home’s original value. That translates into an extra $16,500 to $38,100 in value on a $300,000 home.”

Home Guide’s blog post also states that you can start with inexpensive things like planting flowers to add a splash of color to the exterior of the home.

How Much Do Solar Panels Increase the Value of Your Home?

According to CNBC, solar panels can increase your home value by up to 4.1% or an additional $9,274 on average. This is especially true if you live in sunny states like Arizona, Texas, and Florida. Alternative Energy states, “Yes, solar panels can increase your home’s value up to 2%-3% in Arizona. On the other hand, choosing to lease solar panels will decrease your home’s value. A leased solar system can lower a home’s value by 3%-8% in Phoenix, Arizona.”

The important factor to remember with solar is to make sure and purchase your solar panels. Don’t lease them. Leasing solar panels can decrease your home value. Purchasing solar panels is the only way to increase home value.

How Much Does a Kitchen Remodel Increase Home Value?

According to Dave Ramsey, “The national average ROI for a major upscale kitchen remodel is almost 54%. That means you recoup about $68,000 after spending around $126,000. What about a smaller renovation project? The average cost of a minor kitchen remodel is about $21,000, and the average amount recouped is $17,000.”

Their blog also states that your location can also influence how much return you will get out of a kitchen remodel. The national average return on investment for a minor kitchen remodel is about 81%, but if you live in the Pacific area of the US that percentage can increase to 83%.

How Much Value Does a Garage Add to a Home?

On average, an attached garage can increase your home value as much as $21,000 according to one source.

Coastal Steel states, “In practically any case, building a garage can and will increase the resale value of your home. According to Pocket Sense, the average attached garage will cost around $27,000 to build. Most homeowners see about an 81% return on their investment or an increase in the resale value of $21,000.”

Other sources say that adding a garage makes perfect financial sense because you will see plenty of ROI when you go to sell your home and might even be able to recoup the whole investment according to Garaga.

How Much Over Assessed Value Should You Pay for a House?

According to The Nest, “Fair market value is a better guide to asking price than assessed value. The National Association of Realtors recommends that once you get a good FMV, you set the asking price 1 to 3 percent higher.”

According to other sources such as inman, assessments can be irrelevant due to the real estate market moving faster than the tax assessor.

How Much Over Assessed Value Should You Pay for a House?

List With Clever says, “More often than not, adding a bedroom increases the value of a home for when you sell. For every bedroom that’s added to a home, expect the price of a home to go up between $30,000 and $50,000.” However, their post goes on to state that increases depending on the specific real estate market and how it is a wise decision to contact a local realtor to get an idea of how much an extra bedroom can add to the value of a home in your area.

Think long and hard before adding an additional bedroom to increase home value, adding an extra bedroom to a 1 bedroom house can cost as much as $30,440 according to PriceOnomics.

How Much Does a New HVAC System Add to the Value of a House?

Installing a new HVAC system will allow you to see a 35% to $50 ROI for your purchase.

According to Climate Control, “We’re not going to sit here and say you’ll get all your money back from an HVAC replacement by selling your house for more money. We will say a good rule of thumb is you can see a 35% to 50% return on investment. More importantly, new heating and/or cooling systems can help get buyers interested.”

Homeowners are more likely to purchase a home with a new HVAC system vs a home with a 15-year-old system. So, not only will a new HVAC system increase your home value, it will also help you sell it faster.

What Percentage of Home Value Can You Get with a Reverse Mortgage?

If your home is paid off or at least halfway there, it might be a smart move to get cash for the equity in your house, aka, a reverse mortgage. There are no restrictions or rules on what to do with the extra cash. You can take it in regular monthly installments, as a line of credit, or as a lump sum.

According to Zacks, “Typically, you can take about 60 percent of your equity in a reverse mortgage. There must be enough left over to cover closing costs, which are due in advance and can run as much as 5 percent of your home’s value.”

Buy or Sell a Luxury Home in the Phoenix Valley

Are you trying to buy or sell your luxury home in Phoenix Historic, Scottsdale, Paradise Valley, or Arcadia? Best of Luxury Homes can help. From listings and negotiations to showings and paperwork, we are here for you every step of the way.