Every day, homeowners are faced with the dilemma of outgrowing their homes. From needing more space for a growing family to needing different functionality to age in place, your needs change over time and your home should change with them. The extremely complicated decision boils down to two options: remodel or move.
Home Remodel or Relocate — Where Do You Assign Value?
When homeowners initially consider a major remodel project, they often start dreaming up how to make drastic improvements to their lifestyle. The next thing homeowners think about is the major financial investment involved. Which brings us to the question — what’s a better return on investment?
Which option is the “better” choice varies from person to person. Is the value of your remodeled home greater than or less than the value of a new home? It’s important to consider how long you plan to live in either location as that varies the impact of the expense over time. While the financial commitment of a remodel is an important consideration, it’s not the only value you should be considering. Consider other priorities, like loving your neighborhood, being close to your children’s school, proximity to family, etc. Is your priority resale value or improved quality of life to stay in your home for a long time?
What Are the Pros of Home Remodeling?
Do you love your neighbors, neighborhood, community, view, anything that you will only have at your current home? Then, you have an extremely compelling reason to upgrade your existing home. It’s easier to improve the things you can control, like your home, rather than relocating and facing unforeseeable circumstances like nosy neighbors or pesky HOA boards in a new neighborhood.
Another upside to remodeling right now is that you already have your home to work on. Home inventory for purchasing a new house these days is limited and astronomically priced. Looking for your new perfect home may not be within financial reach. Because the odds of you finding the perfect home that won’t also need repairs or improvements to meet your standards is unlikely.
There’s the stress and disruption that moving to a new home can cause. New neighbors, new school districts, new everything. All that being said, you might still have some compelling reasons to move. We recommend starting your decision-making process by asking yourself to rate how you feel about your current home? Do you love your current location — or do you wish you’d never moved there? It’s also important to keep in mind the equity you may have built in your home if you’ve been there for a while.
What Are the Pros of Relocating?
While we can make a long list of arguments for reasons to stay in your home and remodel, there are also good reasons to relocate.
Sometimes, the work required to make your home suit your current and future needs doesn’t make financial sense. Maybe you never intended this house to be your forever home. For whatever reason, you ended up staying longer than planned, having outgrown your home may be the sign you need to move on and up!
If the gap between the home you started with and the home you need now is greater than the investment of a remodel to meet those needs, it is likely in your best interest to move. Maybe you have new neighbors who are … less than ideal. Or the neighborhood has gone downhill. Whatever the reason may be, only you can decide what the best decision is for you and your family.
How To Make Your Home Somewhere You Want To Stay
After careful consideration, you’ve decided to make your current home somewhere you plan to stay for years to come. Start by making a list of all the things you’d like to see change in your house. Then, rewrite that list in order of priority. Having a clear plan will help you, and our contractors will keep your remodel focused and cost-efficient.
Only staying for a while? Focus on a few modest projects that will help improve your curb appeal. Think more “refresh” than full-scale remodel. If you’re planning to stay longer, consider projects that will improve your living spaces for years to come. You should anticipate potential changes in lifestyle and ability level. Set yourself up to create a design that improves your overall quality of life and has the capacity to evolve with you over time.
Perhaps most importantly, make sure you pick the right team to work with. To see a list of questions you should ask contractors in your interview process, visit our post “What You Should Ask Your Contractor.”
