Real Estate Topics Forum :: View topic - What type of flooring would I get the most from on resale?

Ledero811 · Guest

Hello!

I have a large home in Northern Virginia (13 rooms, 5BR/3.5 baths/2 car garage - 4400sf, 3100sf on two main floors, the basement is professionally finished like the rest of the house with a walk-out to deck, yard and woods), it is arguably the largest or next to the, nicest home in my small neighborhood. I know that having the largest, nicest home in a neighborhood isn't good for resale value, generally.

I need to replace the flooring in my kitchen (400sf). While I would enjoy hardwood in the kitchen, I wonder if I would get any money back out of it. The last time we had our home appraised, the appraiser said he had to work to get appropriate comps because there weren't a lot of homes of this size and quality in the area. We were happy, but he seemed apologetic to give us the valuation he did.

I guess the root of the question is: If I put in good quality vinyl flooring will it be a disadvantage on resale? A lot of very nice homes are being built in the area, so competition will be stiff, but if I spend the money for hardwood, I may not get the investment back out of it. We plan to sell in 1-3 years. I would appreciate your input. Also, what are generally the best improvements to make for resale purposes? Thanks! Laura

nemmar · Site Admin

Laura,

Yes, you are correct that generally from an investment standpoint if you own the nicest and most expensive home in a neighborhood then your home's market value appreciation rate can be slower. This is because all the other homes are less appealing and have lower market values so they act as a kind of weight holding back your home's appreciation. This is why your last appraiser told you he had to work harder to find good sales comparables, meaning he probably went outside of your immediate neighborhood to find the most comparable sales to use in his/her appraisal report.

Kitchens and bathrooms have a strong impact on potential home buyer's (especially the women buyers) and are a great place to start your home improvements. That is why having updated and well remodeled kitchen and baths can add a lot of value to a home. So from that standpoint by updating the kitchen floor with nice hardwood flooring will have a big appeal on buyer's when you decide to sell the house.

However, with that said, let me give you a word of caution on determining how much to spend on your home improvements. Some people don't realize that just because they spend $1.00 in repairs and/or upgrading to their house, it doesn't guarantee that they're going to increase the market value by at least $1.00. That's why homeowners need to properly evaluate any extensive work they're planning on doing before they spend the money to have it done. One of the best things for a homeowner to do is to hire a good appraiser to give them an ”As Repaired” market value estimate. This is simply an estimate based upon certain conditions and/or repairs being completed. Sometimes, this type of appraisal is referred to as a Feasibility Study. An "as repaired" appraisal will be like telling the client, "Well, if you make the renovations and build the addition according to the building plans your architect/contractor has shown me, then the estimate of market value for your house when it's all completed will be $________."

So to accurately determine if spending a lot of money for hardwood floors in your kitchen is a good investment, you should ask a local appraiser in your area. He/she may tell you that by using good vinyl flooring will save you money in improvements and still have an acceptable increase in market value for your home's resale. The reason you need a LOCAL appraiser to answer that is because all areas of the country have different factors, price adjustments, characteristics, etc. that effect the market value of real estate. For example, if you made the same hardwood floor kitchen upgrade in a home/co-op in New York City it would have a very different price/resale adjustment then by making the same kitchen upgrade to a home in Tulsa, Oklahoma. That is why professional licensed appraisers are trained for their local area. This enables them to become very knowledgable on the market value adjusments of all the conditions in a house when doing their reports.