According to the Fast Track an e-publication of Metropolitan Indianapolis Board of Realtors the Midwest fared well in recouping costs of remodeling. Read on......

What Does Your Cost Vs. Value Report Say?

The 2008 version of the Cost vs. Value Report, a joint effort between Remodeling and REALTOR® magazines, shows a decrease in project recoup costs across the board compared to 2007. Only a handful of upscale projects –bathroom remodel, deck addition and siding replacement (foam-backed vinyl) – saw an increase on the national scale.

Despite being the toughest region in the U.S. to see recouped costs, the Midwest saw an almost 80 percent recoup on upscale siding replacements (fiber-cement) and more than 70 percent in both midrange (vinyl) and upscale (foam-baked vinyl) siding replacement projects. Inside the home, a midrange minor kitchen remodel paid off the most with 69.1 percent of costs recouped.

Each summer, over 2,500 appraisers, sales agents and brokers are surveyed and provide an estimated value of what remodeling projects would add to the home at resale. This, combined with cost information from HomeTech Information Systems, a remodeling estimating software company, provides the cost vs. value percentages.

Even though recouping costs in 2008 was down in comparison to 2007, renovations are still holding their value. Nationally, home prices fell an average of 7 percent in 2008; however, the value of remodeling projects only fell 3.86 percent. To view the Cost vs. Value Report, click here.