What are the best home improvements you can do to increase your homes ROI? Below we have put together 10 of the best home improvements you can do for a better return on investment when it comes time to resale.

If you’re a homeowner looking to increase the value of your home, your first move will likely be remodeling or updating. Before you hire a contractor and start knocking down walls, consider how much those (sometimes) costly renovations will actually benefit you when it comes time to sell. Click image to see.

Best Home Improvements For Your ROI

We’ve compiled a list of projects that will most likely prove worth it in the long run without breaking the bank. By comparing the average cost of a renovation with the expected amount of money that upgrade will bring in when selling the home, we’ve provided a return on investment (ROI) percentage for each project below. The higher the percentage, the higher the profit.

Update Your Garage Door

Your home will gain some major curb appeal with a new garage door. As an added benefit beyond being one of the least expensive projects on this list, replacing your garage door also has a great ROI. Price depends, of course, on the quality and style you choose, but the average cost for an un insulated steel garage door is around $1,600 while the average recouped cost calculates to about 88.4 percent for 2015 (80.7 percent average over the last 14 years).

Add a Wooden Deck or Patio

Building an outdoor entertaining area is a great way to raise curb appeal while also bumping up living space. A modest, wooden 16-by-20-foot deck is going to cost about $10,000 and retain 80.5 percent of that cost (80.6 percent average over the last 14 years).

Invest in New Siding

What better way to spruce up your home’s look than with new siding? Like the garage door, the cost and percent recouped depend on what type of siding you choose to have installed. Vinyl siding will cost between $10,000 and $12,000 with an ROI between 79.5 percent and 81.5 percent since 2002. Fiber-cement siding is higher quality, so while it costs more at about $14,000, it also has a higher return on investment at 83.9 percent.

Upgrade Your Kitchen

The kitchen is the center of your home. It’s where families gather and guests are entertained. So is it any wonder that a kitchen remodel is on this list? You can expect a minor remodel for a 200-square-foot kitchen to cost around $19,000 with 79.3 percent of that recovered when you sell (81.8 percent average over the last 14 years).

Buy a New Front Door

The face of your house, the entryway to your home, the greeter of guests. Replacing your front door increases curb appeal and likely improves energy efficiency as well since older doors with warped weather strips can leak air to the outside. The cheapest option on this list, it will run you about $1,200 for a steel door. It is also the highest return on investment on this list, giving back a whopping 101.8 percent (98 percent average over the last 14 years)!

Make Your Attic a Livable Space

Adding a bedroom to your attic increases living space without increasing the footprint of your home. As the priciest item on the list, a 15-by-15-foot bedroom with a 5-by-7-foot bathroom will cost upwards of $50,000, but the extra bedroom will be priceless. The cost recouped is about 77.2 percent for last year with an average of 79.3 percent since 2002.

Update Your Bathroom

Replacing old fixtures and tile in a 5-by-7-foot bathroom will give it a fresh new look and should cost about $16,000 with an ROI of 70 percent (77.1 percent average over the last 14 years).

Replace Your Windows

Old windows will not only lower your home’s curb appeal but will also significantly raise your power bills. Replacing those with new, energy-efficient vinyl windows will cost around $11,000 with an ROI of 72.9 percent (78.6 percent average over the last 14 years).

Get Started

Looking to get the most value from your home? Our loan officers are ready and waiting to help you out! At Low VA Rates, we have an Energy Efficient Mortgage (or EEM) available that will provide the financing you need to make your home more efficient and increase its curb appeal. We also have very low VA rates on all our refinances. Check out our site to see if financing with Low VA Rates is right for you.