Quote:
Originally Posted by DoubleF
I think renovations are hard to gauge, so if you do them right, you can run away lower taxes if no one around you is comparable. The problem is that someone could get an appraisal on a home, but the home, pour in $100K of renovations, but afterwards, the appraisal isn't exactly $100K more. It can be less than $100K or more than $100K.
I own a cookie cutter townhouse in Tuxedo and I pay the same as my neighbors. Of the ones I know of, one basement is undeveloped, one spent $15K to partially develop her basement as a gym, and one spent $5K tossing things together in his basement himself to convert it closer to a workshop space. I spent $40K developing my basement in a manner that matches the premium trim of the upper floors and includes an entertainment room and guest bedroom with full ensuite. If all our units were on the market at the same time, I don't think the difference is exactly $25-40K. TBH, I think my unit would be more expensive than theirs by around half that at most.
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From chatting with some acquaintances in real estate, renos don't often have a net positive resale value (this isn't hard and fast, since the time since last reno, age of home, quality of finishes etc. all factor in). Basement development is usually the only one that is guaranteed to have net positive value since it "adds" usable square footage to the home, but everything else is usually a crapshoot.
The guy who spent 5K probably added the most positive net value to his home realistically, assuming it has 4 walls, a ceiling, and properly installed flooring, lighting and electrical.