Your Home: Remodel or Sell?

“A house is a home when it shelters the body and comforts the soul.”—Phillip Moffitt

With US home prices cratering, you may decide to remodel your house instead of trying to sell it. One of the things you want to think about before you start on your home improvement project, is how much of your investment you’ll get back when you eventually sell the house. According to home remodeling experts, it's a decision that most people fail to weigh carefully enough—either financially or emotionally

Whatever redesign plans you may have, it's important to keep in mind that you don't always get back what you put in. The top home improvement project in terms of return on investment is adding a bathroom, which averages a 92% return on a cost that can range from $5,000 to $12,000. Other projects, their average costs, and the average payback:

Project

Cost

Average Return

Remodel

Kitchen

$9,000-$25,000

90%

Add Family Room

$30,000

86%

Build Deck

$6,000

73%

Build Pool

$10,000 +

44%

Finish Basement

$3,000-$7,000

15%

For more information visit, Remodelormove.com.

If you do decide to go the remodeling route understand that most of the problems that crop up between homeowners and home-improvement remodeling contractors come from miscommunication. Poorly-informed doctors are notorious victims here. Spell everything out and get it in writing, the experts suggest, and make sure that any changes to the contract are also in writing, not verbal.

Other tips: Always get references from others who have used the contractor, and eyeball the projects if you can. Never pay in full for a project upfront, never pay cash, and never make a final payment until the job is done to your satisfaction.

For project estimates and contractor searches, visit Contractors.com or Do-it-Yourself Network.

Read More:

• Will Upgrading Your Home Help You Sell It?

• The Least Sexy Home Improvement Could Be a Lifesaver

• The Hottest Remodeling Rrends for 2011