What you like in a home is not always going to be what someone else likes. That can be helpful to remember if you're thinking of making some home improvements.
What you like in a home is not always going to be what someone else likes. That can be helpful to remember if you’re thinking of making some home improvements. After all, even if you may plan on living here until you’re carried out (grim as that sounds), someone will likely someday, and someone, maybe your children, will sell it.
Of course, we’re talking about your home. Go with orange carpet and purple walls if you want. It is your house. Still, if you’re making improvements and taking cues from shows you’re watching on television, you may come to regret it later, says Allen Shayanfekr, CEO of the New York City-based real estate investment company Sharestates.
“The stuff you see on TV is for entertainment, and it’s not always the most profitable way to operate,” he says.
Here are some home improvements that may make it harder to sell your house one day.
Turning an extra bedroom into a walk-in closet.
This is done more often than you might think, say many , and many of them will also tell you not to do it.
Thomas Miller, a listing specialist with Keller Williams Capital Properties in the District of Columbia, says he had a client who had turned a four-bedroom home into one with three bedrooms and a large walk-in closet.
That sounds like a fine idea, but in this case, the fourth bedroom was in the basement, and the sellers had taken the third bedroom upstairs and made that the walk-in closet.
Miller says that most of the buyers in this neighborhood had children.
鈥淗aving the third bedroom in the basement was a deal-breaker for the majority of the because they didn鈥檛 want one of their kids sleeping in the basement two levels apart from the rest of the family,鈥� Miller says.
The house was eventually sold, for about $40,000 to $50,000 less than the original sales price.
Sissy Lappin has similar thoughts. She is a Houston-based real estate broker and co-owns ListingDoor.com, a website that helps people sell their homes . Bottom line, she says: 鈥淏uyers value bedrooms more than closet space.鈥�
(AP Photo)
AP Photo
Remodeled kitchens and bathrooms.
For the most part, don鈥檛 worry 鈥� your upgrades are probably going to be very appealing to any future homeowners. But 鈥� yes, there is a but 鈥� a remodel can actually backfire on you if it isn鈥檛 pulled off right. No surprise there, but it may rattle you to know that a remodel can even somewhat backfire on you if you do everything right.
鈥淚f a remodeled kitchen or master bath makes the rest of the space look dated, that won鈥檛 help sell the property,鈥� says Jamie Gold, a San Diego-based certified kitchen designer and an author of books on kitchen and bathroom remodeling.
(AP Photo/Matilde Campodonico)
AP Photo/Matilde Campodonico
Dog doors.
Homebuyers who don鈥檛 have pets probably won鈥檛 appreciate pet doors. That said, this is that if you feel strongly about, many experts say you might as well go ahead and do.
鈥淭hey are hit and miss,鈥� says Emily Mort, a graphic designer at S&D Real Estate Services and McDonough Construction in Lakeland, Florida.
鈥淥n the other hand, this is not a huge problem,鈥� she says. 鈥淭he worst-case scenario, the buyer would just have to replace the door. Which in the grand scheme of things is not that bad.鈥�
In fact, Gold thinks that with the rise in pet features in homes (some custom homes are being built with dog-wash stations) it may be a selling point.
Still, you might want to rethink installing a pet door in every door inside the house. That would be a lot of doors to someday replace.
(Mark Zalesky/The Tennessean via AP)
Mark Zalesky/The Tennessean via AP
Wheelchair lifts and sit-down bath tubs.
This could be exactly what a homebuyer is looking for 鈥� or a serious deficiency for a homebuyer.
鈥淚t鈥檚 really about where the house is located,鈥� Mort says. 鈥淚f these features are in a house that sits in a 55-or-older community, these can be massive pluses.鈥�
In New York City, where you鈥檙e just as likely to buy an apartment as an actual house, Julie Gans, an agent with the real estate company, Triplemint, says that she, too, has seen young couples planning to have a family take a pass on showers and bathtubs retrofitted for the elderly. She also says some owners will actually eliminate a second or third bathroom, turning it into a laundry room, and later regret that decision when it comes to sell. Removing a toilet and bath to bring in a washer and dryer would seem to be a practical move appreciated by homebuyers, but Gans says you鈥檙e probably hurting the value of your home.
鈥淭here tends to be a in apartments,鈥� she says.
(Thinkstock)
Thinkstock
Swimming pools.
You鈥檝e probably heard this before, but it bears repeating 鈥� many homeowners aren鈥檛 overly thrilled about having an in-ground swimming pool.
鈥淯nless you live in Florida, and possibly even there, only a small segment of the population wants a swimming pool,鈥� says William Hirsch, an architect and author of 鈥淒esigning Your Perfect House.鈥�
What鈥檚 not to love about being able to swim at your own home? 鈥淢ost of the potential buyers see a pool as a costly, not very useful item that they would probably prefer to chop out and fill in,鈥� Hirsch says.
And believe it or not, 鈥渂uilt-in hot tubs rival swimming pools as detrimental home improvements,鈥� Hirsch says.
Those, too, require a lot of maintenance.
(Thinkstock)
Thinkstock
Just about anything custom-built.
If you鈥檙e going to have an amenity into your home 鈥� so that it becomes part of it and difficult to remove without some considerable expense 鈥� ask yourself first if a future homebuyer will like it, too. For instance, Hirsch says that he recently saw a home that has a built-in beer tap.
鈥淩eally nice if you love beer,鈥� Hirsch says. 鈥淏ut it鈥檚 something that has to be removed, and the countertop and cabinetry replaced by the new owner, if they don鈥檛 want to see that intrusion in their kitchen.鈥�
Lappin feels the same way. She is currently working with clients who made a custom gun closet.
鈥淚t looks like they are a survivalist,鈥� she says. 鈥淭hey spent a fortune on this walk-in gun and ammo closet 鈥� custom racks for guns. Not everyone is a hunter, and many homebuyers are anti-guns and pro gun control.鈥�
After touring the home, buyers, she says, don鈥檛 remember what the house looked like. They only remember 鈥渢he gun arsenal closet.鈥�
(AP Photo/Better Homes & Gardens, Michael Partenio)
