There’s no sign on your front lawn. No one’s making appointments to see your house. You don’t have even know a real estate agent. Okay, that’s ridiculous–in Wilton, you know at least ten.

But you’re not selling.

Or are you?

In one sense your house is always on the market. It’s always a “property” even while it’s being “home,” and like any investment, you want it to grow.

Which is why the annual Remodeling Magazine Cost/Value listing of potential improvements is worth a serious look.

As the market continues to show signs of life—sales up in 98 percent of the country, prices up even while the weather kept volume down in February, our local Wilton market really heating up—it’s a good time consider how improvements to that investment will pay dividends later, all while they enhance your enjoyment of home now.

The good news from this year’s list is that your improvement project need not be gigantic to pay off sizably. For example:

  • Upgrading the entrance to your house, estimated to cost $7,300, returns more than $5,100 or just about 71 percent nationally; but in our Fairfield County real estate market it pays for itself, with a return of 101.2 percent (which is why stagers so often recommend it). Even just an entry door replacement can return almost 85 percent of its cost.
  • A mundane old garage door replacement, estimated to cost $2,935 in our local Wilton market, actually makes you money, returning more than 125 percent of cost in value! 

And bigger projects–does the same hold true?

For the most part, yes.

  • A bathroom remodel costing $53,670 is worth 92 percent of that at resale, almost $50,000.
  • Add a composite deck for $37,093 and you get almost 99 percent of it back.
  • Window replacement pays even more. Nationally this is an improvement that returns about 77 percent of cost; in our Fairfield County market a $17,000 window replacement project returns 104 percent of that cost!
  • Roofing replacement? A $42,000 project produces $33,300 in value—or almost 80 percent.

What also great is that all of these percentages are up from a year ago, in yet another sign of market life.

Wait! you say, what about the things that would really improve our lifestyle around here, like my new dream kitchen or redoing our bedroom? Are those good investments?  

Remodeling estimates that in an upscale market like Wilton a “major kitchen remodel” costs on average $114,677 and creates a value of 84 percent of that. A master suite addition with an estimated cost of $235,500, adds about $165,500 in value—or just 70 percent.

But remember, you’re trying to strike a balance here. Yes, you want to build on your investment, especially in a market that’s encouraging you to do that. But sometimes the improvement is mostly for you and your family. If your own enjoyment, convenience and peace of mind may change that cost/value ratio substantially, it may just make you want to stay awhile.

Julie Carney is GMW’s real estate columnist. One of Wilton’s leading realtors, she heads up the Julie Carney Group at William Raveis. Her award-winning real estate career spans twelve years and sales exceeding $115 million.