You may have added a great faux ocean view to your bathroom, but it still won't add as much value to your home as it would have in previous years.
Remodeling magazine recently released their “Cost vs. Value 2009-10” study, where they “report on the relationship between remodeling costs and resale value.” Not surprisingly, from a national perspective the amount of value a remodeled room adds to a home is down in most categories. Remodeling magazine elaborates:
“The data indicate that the trend is still headed downward: last year’s overall cost-value ratio was 67.3%, down 2.7 points from the year before; this year’s ratio is 63.8%, a considerably larger 3.5-point drop.”
For the bathroom categories, Remodeling magazine’s numbers were down in each category:
Midrange Bathroom Addition
2009-10: Job Cost: $39,046; Resale Value: $23,233; Cost Recouped: 59.5%
2008-09: Job Cost: $38,078; Resale Value: $24,187; Cost Recouped: 63.5%
Midrange Bathroom Remodel
2009-10: Job Cost: $16,142; Resale Value: $11,454; Cost Recouped: 71.0%
2008-09: Job Cost: $15,899; Resale Value: $11,857; Cost Recouped: 74.6%
Upscale Bathroom Addition
2009-10: Job Cost: $75,812; Resale Value: $43,888; Cost Recouped: 57.9%
2008-09: Job Cost: $74,325; Resale Value: $49,100; Cost Recouped: 66.1%
Upscale Bathroom Remodel
2009-10: Job Cost: $52,295; Resale Value: $32,196; Cost Recouped: 61.6%
2008-09: Job Cost: $51,455; Resale Value: $36,400; Cost Recouped: 70.7
(Note: You can look up “Cost vs. Value” data on the region you live by clicking on Remodeling magazine’s interactive map.)
Each category in Remodeling magazine’s study has a certain criteria used to arrive at the prices they used. Obviously, you can do a mini-remodel for a bathroom at fraction of the $16,142 price tag cited in the study—for an example check out this inexpensive bathroom remodel featured on iBaths. Still, Remodeling magazine can give you a pretty good idea of what you’re likely to recoup on home additions and remodels this year.
Finally, we’ve saved the saddest part of all this for the end. Below is chart from Remodeling magazine showing the decline of the cost you could recoup on a bathroom remodel. Start pining for the glory days of yesteryear.
