Daily Real Estate News  |  October 19, 2007  |   Get More Bang for Your Buck in Rehab Projects
Remodeling magazine’s latest "Cost vs. Value" report, which is prepared in cooperation with REALTOR® Magazine, won’t be released until Nov. 1, but the magazine’s editorial director Sal Alfano says returns on remodeling projects are down.

In 2007, 14 percent of remodeling projects had a return of at least 75 percent. That was down from 16 percent in 2006 and 20 percent in 2005.

The best return in 2007 came from replacing old siding with fiber-cement. Home owners got an average of 88.1 cents for each dollar invested after they sold their homes. Remodeling kitchens and bathrooms no longer net such large returns.

The 2007 decline reflects the slowdown in the real estate market and high materials costs, Alfano said in an e-mail. The return is not bad, he said, because home owners are paying "12 cents and 43 cents on the dollar" to remodel their homes, depending on the type of project being done.

Plus, he said, "You get the use of the newly remodeled space until you sell."

Source: The Washington Post, Sandra Fleishman (10/19/07)

Be sure to check out the December issue of REALTOR® Magazine for more findings from the "Cost vs. Value" report. Access previous reports at REALTOR® Magazine Online.