Renovations To Avoid If You Don’t Want To Decrease The Value Of Your Home
When planning home renovations, it's crucial to consider how certain upgrades might impact your property's resale value. While some improvements can enhance appeal, others may inadvertently deter potential buyers. Here are eight renovations that could decrease your home's value, so choose wisely when you’re planning your renovation or upgrading your home before selling.
1. Removing Closets
Eliminating closets to create more space can be a drawback for buyers who prioritize storage. Closet space and storage space is a significant selling point, and its reduction can make your home less appealing, since most buyers are looking for more storage not less.
2. Overly Personalized Designs
Personalizing your home is completely natural, but if you plan to sell in the future, it’s best to avoid overly customized designs. Features like bold coloured kitchen backsplashes, trendy wallpaper, or statement murals may reflect your style but could make it harder for buyers to envision themselves in the space. As real estate expert Yoann Dorat notes, “bold accent walls, ultra-modern fixtures, or highly specific design choices can make a home feel like a project rather than move-in ready”. A neutral, timeless aesthetic tends to appeal to the widest range of buyers.
3. Converting Bedrooms into Other Spaces
Transforming a bedroom into an office, gym, or a walk-in-closet, reduces the total bedroom count, which can negatively impact your home's appeal and value. Maintaining the original number of bedrooms is advisable.
4. Removing Bathtubs
Replacing bathtubs with showers, especially in homes suitable for families with young children, can be a deterrent. Families often prefer homes with at least one bathtub, especially in the main bathroom. If you don’t want a bathtub in your ensuite, that’s okay to remove as long as you have a bathtub in another easily accessible bathroom.
5. Installing a Pool
A backyard pool may seem like an attractive feature, especially during the hot summer months, but it can actually lower your home's value. While some buyers see it as a luxury, many view it as an expensive and time-consuming responsibility. Pools often come with high maintenance costs and safety concerns, particularly for families with young children. Additionally, in colder climates, a pool’s limited usability can be a drawback. The cost and effort of winterizing it can make buyers hesitant, seeing it as more of a burden than a benefit.
6. Garage Conversion
Much like the bedroom conversion, you may be thinking that changing your un-used garage to a spacious home gym or workshop can be a great use of space. However, prospective buyers are usually interested in using the garage as, well, a garage. Keeping this space as it is sure to retain value on your home.
7. Unpermitted Additions or Projects
Adding extra space to your home, like a sunroom or deck, may seem like a great way to boost its value, but if the work wasn’t properly permitted, it could create serious legal and financial issues. Unpermitted additions can make buyers nervous, as they may worry about safety, building code violations, or unexpected costs. In some cases, lenders may even delay or deny a mortgage loan if they discover unauthorized renovations. To avoid complications with buyers, appraisers, and lenders, it’s essential to secure the proper permits before starting any major home improvement project. Taking this extra step now can prevent costly problems in the future.
8. DIY Projects
While certain home upgrades, like painting, installing wallpaper, or updating cabinet hardware, can be great DIY projects, larger, more complex renovations are best left to professionals. Poorly executed work—such as uneven flooring or improper plumbing—can be a red flag for potential buyers, signaling potential safety issues or future repairs. This also goes to point number 7, where many DIY projects are done without proper permits, which can complicate the selling process, impact home value, and lead to legal or financial setbacks. Investing in professional work for major renovations can save time, money, and stress in the long run.
Conclusion
Before undertaking any renovation, it's essential to consider its potential impact on your home's value. Opting for neutral, broadly appealing designs and maintaining essential features can help ensure your renovations enhance rather than detract from your property's marketability.