Around the House

Around the House

Making Your House a Home

Most popular alterations from coast to coast

You bought the place, but it needs work. Where should you start? Every house is different, of course, but some remodeling projects offer a better payback than others. Each year many publications, such as Remodeling Magazine, put some of the most popular home improvement projects to the test, asking real estate agents in dozens of cities how much the project would add in the first year to a mid-priced house in an established neighborhood. The results are instructive: Buyers will pay for state-of-the-art kitchens, luxurious master bed and bath suites, family rooms, and extra bedrooms.

Here's a region-by-region breakdown of the projects. Actual prices can always vary widely depending on material, labor costs and design.

Minor kitchen remodeling

Project description: Refinish cabinets; install new energy-efficient oven and cook top, new laminate counter tops and cabinet hardware, new wall coverings, and resilient flooring; and repaint the entire room.

Major Kitchen Remodeling

Project description: Update an outmodel 200-square-foot kitchen with design and installation of a functional layout of new mid-priced cabinets, laminate countertops, energy-efficient oven, cook top and ventilation system microwave, dishwasher, garbage disposal, and custom lighting. Add new resilient flooring, wall coverings, and ceiling treatments. Kitchn features 30 lineal feet of cabinets and counter-top space, including a 3-by-5-foot island.

Remember that during their first year in a new house, homeowners spend thousands of dollars on furniture and accessories. Some big-ticket items include the following: bedroom furniture, living room furniture, washer, dryer, television, lawn mower and more. Photo by Elena.

Bathroom Addition

Project description: Add a second full bath bath to a house with one or one-and-a-half baths. The 6-by-8-foot bath is within the existing floor plan and in an inconspicuous spot that is convenient to the bedrooms. Include cultured marble vanity top, molded sink, standard bathtub with shower, low-profile toilet, lighting, mirrored medicine cabinet, linen storage, and ceramic floor tile, Walls in the tub/shower area get ceramic tile, with vinyl wallpaper elsewhere.

Bathroom Remodel

Project description: Update an existing 5-by-9-foot bathroom that is at least 25 years old with a new standard-size tub, a new commode, and a new sold-surface vanity counter with molded sinks. Also install new lighting, mirrored medicine cabinets, and ceramic floor tiles. The walls in the tub/shower area get ceramic tile, with vinyl wallpaper covering all other walls.

Family Room Addition

Project desription : In a style and location that is appropriate to the existing house, andd a 16-by-25-foot, light-filled room on a new crawl space foundation with woodjoist floor framing. On exterior, match wood siding and fiberglass roof shingles on original house. Include drywall interior and batt insulation, 120 square feet of glass doors and windows, and hardwood tongue-and-groove flooring. Tie the entire addition into the existing heating and cooling system.

Sun Space Addition

Project description: Add a 12-by-16-foot living space off the kitchen, dining room, or living room. Custom build on site including foundation. Walls and ceilings are mostly insulated glass, tinted or shaded if necessary for climate. Half the windows are for ventilation. Includes ceiling fan and tile floor. Ties into existing heating and cooling.

Master Suite

Project description: In a house with two or three bedrooms, add over a crawl space a 24-by-16-foot master bedroom with a walk-in closet, dressing area, master bath, whirlpool tub, separate ceramic tile shower, and a double-bowl vanity. Bedroom floor is carpeted: floor in bath is ceramic tile.

Exterior Remodeling

Project description: Replace 16 existing single-pane 3-by-5-foot windows with energy-efficient vinyl or vinyl-clad aluminum double-paned windows,; cover 1,250 square feet of existing siding with new vinyl siding, including 200 lineal feet of trim. Apply 15 squares of new roofing over single layer of old roofing.

Deck Addition

Project description: Add a 16-by-20-foot deck of pressure-treated pine supported by 4-by-4 posts set into concrete footings. Include a built-in bench, railings, and planter, also of pressure-treated pine.

Attic Bedroom

Project description: In a house with two or three bedrooms, convert unfinished space in attic into a 15-by-15-foot bedroom and a 5-by-7-foot bathroom with a shower. Add four new windows, oriented to capture views and a 15-foot shed dormer. Insulate and finish ceilings and walls. Carpet unfinished floor. Add separate forced-air heating and air conditioning. Retain existing stairs.

Home Office Addition

Project description: Convert existing 12-by-12-foot room into home office, install custom cabinets configured for desk, computer work station, overhead storage, and 20 feet of plastic laminate desk. Rewire room electronic equipment, telephone lines. Include drywall interior and level-loop carpeting.

Two-Story Addition

Project description: Over a crawl space add a 24-by-16-foot, two-story wing with a first-floor family room and a second-floor bedroom and full bath. Features prefab fireplace in the family room, carpeted floors, 11 windows, drywall, and atrium-style exterior door. The 5-by-8-foot bathroom has a fiber-glass bath/shower, standard-grade commode, ceramic tile flooring, and mirrored medicine cabinet; walls are papered.