take KARE of your MONEY: Cost vs value remodeling

Click here for more take KARE of your MONEY

"So there were two bedrooms up here, but it was the kind where you had to crouch down if you were trying to get something on the side," homeowner Julie Wicklund said of her home in Minneapolis before it was remodeled. "We didn't want to price ourselves out of the neighborhood and do things that we wouldn't get our money back, but we wanted to make it something we really would enjoy during the time we were here."

For Julie, her husband David and their growing family, the answer was a second story.

"There's a serious benefit there, to have a nice house with enough bathrooms and bedrooms. Another family could look at it and still consider owning it themselves, but still has a backyard that they can send the kids out and play," Michael Anschel of Otogawa-Anschel Design-Build said. "The second story addition is nice because you can double the square footage of your home. "

And, according to the latest numbers from Remodeling Magazine, Twin Cities residents like the Wicklunds can expect to recoup about 66-percent of the money put into a project like this.

Click here to see the entire report.

That report by publisher Hanley-Wood shows an even better return-- as high as 70-percent-- on a basement remodel. It's another project where you keep the yard and add square footage.

"This particular basement is going to add over 800 square feet to the home," Jason Fabio of Ispiri Design Build Remodel said of a house in Minneapolis. "We're going to add a bathroom, bedroom, nice laundry room."

But what if you're looking to invest in a single room?

"Kitchen is a great place to put your money," Fabio said outside of a home in St. Paul being renovated by his company.

Fabio and other remodelers say transforming a kitchen continues to give the best bang for the buck come re-sale time.

"Everyone likes to gather in a kitchen. So on a smaller kitchen we're expanding those so people can gather. So we don't have that capacity problem," Fabio added.

If they're not inside, builder Gene Eckstein of Eagle Builders says many of his clients are gathering out on decks and porches.

"It's an extension of the living space. During the summer and fall, it's very nice," Eckstein continued.

The average recouped cost of a deck addition is also pretty nice. Remodeling Magazine currently counts a deck addition among the top "cost versus value" projects-- bringing between a 68 and 75-percent return on investment.

"Little bit more living space for the house. Good place to have a family activity," Eckstein continued.

In the end, whether it's outside or in, remember Julie's quote?

"We wanted to make it something we really would enjoy during the time we were here," she said.

Remodelers agree. No matter how the reports stack up, what's good for your family should be at the top of your list.

"I also talk in terms of return on investment personally. If you're going to live here long term and you want to enjoy the space, that's where I think the personal return on investment is more than the monetary," Fabio concluded.

"We really enjoyed making our home, 'our home'. It had all the key features we wanted," Julie added.

And now that they're ready to move, they're happy another family liked the features they added. The Wicklunds home sold earlier this week.

Click here to see the entire Hanley-Wood Remodeling Cost vs. Value Report.

All of the remodelers in this report are members of the National Association of Remodelers. It's a not-for-profit trade association representing the largest network of professional remodelers in the United States. Click here to find out more.

For more information on one of the builders in this report, click on their company name.

Otogawa-Anschel Design-Build

Ispiri Design Build Remodel 

Eagle Builders

Project ReEnergize is a program distributing homeowner rebates for energy efficient home upgrades created as a result of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Click here for more information.

Check out our KARE family of Web sites:
	takeKARE		Metromix
	Moms Like Me		Minnesota Bound
	Showcase Minnesota