Did you know that improvements on your home can add tens of thousands to your house price when you come to sell?
It’s a time of year when millions of homeowners across the UK look to make improvements to their homes, but how can you ensure you’re investing your time and money wisely? Good question.
Renovating your property is more often than not a wise decision. It can make your home a more enjoyable place to live whilst you’re there, but also make it easier for you to move up the housing ladder in the future.
Looking for a little inspiration? Below, we look at what you can do, where to begin and the value you could potentially add to your property through tweaks and renovations.
Why renovate?
No matter the scale, home improvements and renovation projects are a great way to breathe new life into your property and add to its value. According to Jill Bennetts, Regional Director CWEA Group, ‘it’s best to start with the kitchen and the shared living spaces such as the lounge or bathroom. Once you’re happy with these areas, there are several ways you can continue to grow your home - from adding new rooms, to modernising the outdoor space to increasing energy efficiency.’
A new kitchen could improve your property's worth by around 6%
Nothing says ‘dream home’ like a brand new kitchen and when it comes to selling, this area of the home will be front and centre for those all-important online listings. According to Nationwide, a new kitchen will improve the value of your property by around 6%. This means that if your property is worth £200,000, adding a new kitchen would improve the sale value to over £210,000 once the work is complete. If you’re looking at making smaller changes, new surfaces, white goods or even an eye-catching table and chairs can make a big difference when it comes to attracting viewings.
Renovate your bathroom to add up to £10,000
After the kitchen, the bathroom is the most popular room to renovate, and, it’s no surprise considering that homeowners can make a drastic difference to the sale price of their home. A new bathroom could add up to 5% to the value of your property - that’s £10,000 on to a £200,000 home.
However, this isn’t a task that can be taken lightly - plumbing costs, water supply, heating, and electrical requirements all need to be considered before you start work on fittings and tiling so take your time and discuss with experts to ensure you get it right.
Adding decking or a patio makes your home more attractive to buyers
With summer just around the corner, it’s the ideal time to make improvements to your garden. Experts suggest that an inviting outdoor space could add up to 10% to the value of your home.
What’s great about renovating a garden is the number of options there are; lawns, flowerbeds, paving, decking, water features, lighting, sheds, the list goes on. It’s a chance to get creative and make a real difference in the attractiveness of your property.
Creating a home office is a great investment
Home offices are increasingly popular amongst buyers and given adequate space they are surprisingly easy to set up. If you don’t have one, it could well be worth converting one of your rooms into a workspace as, in today’s market, a home office can add up substantial value to your home.
This can be a fairly simple setup. Try to provide a good desk and chair, ample plug sockets for computers, printers and strong lighting. Perhaps most importantly, a good home office needs reliable broadband, so ensure you have the strongest possible connection.
Build a driveway to add £10,000 to the value of your home
When it comes to paving your driveway there are a range of ways to go about it (tarmac, clay, bricks, etc), and costs can vary from £1,200 to over £7,000. If done with enough care, flair and precision a new drive could add over £10,000 to the value of your home.
You can find out the value of your home with our 60 second valuation. Once you know what you're working with, come back to this blog and see how you can bring this number up further.
Convert your attic to add up to 15%
It’s not uncommon for homes across the UK to contain space that is not being utilised. An attic or a basement renovation is a fantastic way to add value to your home and it’s estimated that an extra bedroom, for example, could add 15% to the value of your home - that’s up to £45,000 on to a £300,000 property!
Change your garage into another room and add up to 20%
What's your garage doing? Sitting empty or full of boxes? You could convert this into another room and add up to 20% to the value of your home - especially if you create an extra bedroom. If you turn it into another playroom or office, you could still increase the value of your property by up to 10% so it's well worth looking into.
Increase your energy efficiency to make your property stand out
Aside from the environmental impact of using excessive fuel, the financial cost of energy is rising and smart buyers will be keen to know how efficient your home is. If you don’t already know, find out your energy rating and compare it to other homes on the market that are similar. Experts suggest that improving your home’s energy efficiency could increase its value by 14%, and in some parts of England, as much as 38%.
If you’d like to know more about how you can improve your home, the first step is a valuation to find out how much you could sell for. Here you can get expert advice specific to your property and tailored tips on exactly how you could increase its value.
