Lifestyles
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Reinvent, Renovate
Remodeling and additions top home improvement trends in 2008.
Written By Maayan Jaffe
Then the house gets so cramped that brother Joe is rooming with sister Jill, and Mom and Dad are stuck brushing their teeth next to the toddlers, it’s time to think about change. Is it better to sell and buy, or add on to an existing structure?
That question is one many homeowners are grappling with this year, as the press alerts Baltimoreans that the market is down and folks might not be able to get as much out of their house as they once thought they could. With the slowdown in new construction, the trend to remodel has greatly increased.
“There are some more people now who are thinking of adding on to their homes because they don’t think they can sell for what they want,” said Libby Berman, real estate agent with Long & Foster of Greenspring Valley-Lutherville. “They figure they might as well fix it up now and sell when the market is better.”
But there are challenges to remodeling, cautioned Ms. Berman, who has been in the field for 30 years. She said that often people think to renovate only to find they don’t have the space to burst out to the desired square footage. If they do add on, they might discover they need new air conditioning or heating units (older ones are sometimes incapable of servicing a greater area), which can be expensive.
Other challenges: Renovating takes a lot of time, living in the discomfort of a construction site and, as Ms. Berman puts it, costs “usually run higher than the estimates given, so you have to have a budget for overage costs.”
It’s not that it’s a bad time to sell and buy, she said, but clients should keep in mind, “You can’t buy low and sell high in the same week.”
Money Back?
If you were to sell, how much return would you get for your renovations? These figures are from the 2007 survey by the National Realtor’s Association.
Bathroom Addition:68.2 percent
Family Room Addition:2 percent
Master Suite Addition(includes master bath):72.8 percent
Major Kitchen Remodel:79.3 percent
Eli and Michelle Sharaby, Fallstaff area
Addition/renovation:Larger kitchen, mud room and fitness center
Renovator:Owings Brothers Contracting
What’s the best part?
The contractors were consistent. “My wife is happy!”
What was the hardest part of the process?
Living through it. We had no kitchen for two months. It was take-out every night.
What would you do differently?
Go out even further.
Lisa London, Stevenson
Addition/renovation:Converted first floor bedrooms into luxury master bed and bath with powder room, installed new lighting and roof, redid kitchen, added sunroom and office
Renovator:Lisa London Architecture & Construction
What’s the best part?
It’s the house I want with the features that are desirable today, such as larger closets and more storage space.
What was the hardest part of the process?
I was the homeowner, architect and contractor, so I was trying to look at it as an investment so as not to over-improve for the neighborhood, but I wanted what I wanted.
What would you do differently?
I would incorporate more green technologies, look at a ground source geothermal heat pump and perhaps some solar hot water.
