Rent Guarantee Insurance Comparison | Which DIY home improvements add most to your house price? Experts’ tips

Rent Guarantee Insurance Comparison | Which DIY home improvements add most to your house price? Experts’ tips

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Which DIY home improvements add most to your house price? I asked a range of experts involved in selling and buying property because it’s the easiest way for most of us to work tax-free, without getting involved in complex tax avoidance schemes.
Every householder who is capable of picking up a paint brush can benefit if they are willing and able to invest time and money in home improvement.
While HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) will want its share of almost every other effort you make to increase your wealth, all gains on your “principal residence” – which most of us think of as “home” – are completely exempt from tax.
So, now that British summertime is bringing longer days and the chance to start work when you get home in the evenings, which are the do-it-yourself (DIY) projects that will do most to boost your house price?Rent Guarantee Insurance Comparison
Some of the simplest are also the surest to pay for themselves because they cost so little but will almost certainly increase your property’s appeal and price. Nor is there any need to take my word for it; plenty of estate agents know from experience what pays. Edward Rook, a partner at Knight Frank Sevenoaks office head, explained: “A lot of buyers over-estimate the cost of work to refurbish a house and, therefore when refurbishment is needed, reduce their offer disproportionately.
“As a result, it makes sense to present the property well to avoid any discounting from the price. If the décor of a house is only five or 10 years old, then most vendors will be best advised to refresh the paint work and carpets. A well-presented house also has the added benefit of giving the buyer confidence that it has been well looked after.”
Similarly, Claudia Stacey-Ralda of Prospect Property Search said: “De-cluttering and cleaning sound too obvious but this simple DIY measure is a sure fire way of increasing the value of one’s home. It affects the psychology of buyers and how they view property.
“Re-painting is always a good idea. Some people take buckets of fresh magnolia to their walls when they come to sell because it gives the property a crisp, new feel to it in a colour that people feel is neutral enough to appreciate.”
Ed Mead of Douglas & Gordon, agreed: “Interior condition is all, so people will notice grubby grouting and cut up work surfaces. Pretend you’re a buyer and walk round your house. What looks bad – clean it or replace it.”
But, if profit is your motive, beware putting too much of your own personality into this particular DIY project. Trevor Abrahmsohn of Glentree advised: “Let us put it this way, if you were buying an ‘off the peg’ suit you would choose blue as the colour, size 14 medium, to gain the biggest market and you wouldn’t choose a 33”, extra small, canary yellow or lime green, 48” extra long.
“DIY is no different. If, for instance, you want to ruin value then lots of heavy dark colours with a plethora of clutter will do the job nicely. If you want enhanced value keep it neutral, light, airy and luxuriate in elegant simplicity.”Rent Guarantee Insurance Comparison
But bigger projects can boost property prices even more. Some home improvements that are only within the scope of the keenest DIYer could add twice as much to value as they cost to complete.
John Waldron, a director of Connells told me: “The basic improvements to a property which add value above their cost are central heating, double glazing, the renewal of kitchen and bathroom and possibly adding in a second or en suite bathroom facility. The cost of these improvements vary according to your location but, generally speaking, they would deliver twice the value of the work. For example, putting in double glazing may cost £2,000 but probably add £4,000 to the eventual price.”

Rent Guarantee Insurance Comparison

Such wide profit margins may prompt the prudent to engage a professional to do most of the work. That would almost certainly be the case with improvements such as a loft conversion to provide an extra bedroom or study.
But some householders do acquire craftsmen’s skills and turn their home into their own artwork; an expression of their personality that others are willing to pay for. James Greenwood of Stacks Property Search buying agents pointed out: “I recently looked at a house in Cardiff for a client. The vendor had made a superb use of space with some really clever joinery.
“He’d made cubby holes, wardrobes in awkward spaces, doors that opened and folded in ingenious ways, an inspired loft conversion that required a tricky staircase. All the work was highly labour intensive, but he certainly added value to the property, making it very appealing.”
However, it is important to beware that success is not guaranteed. Ed Church of Strutt & Parker recalled: “The worst DIY disasters are usually amateur efforts such as fake fireplaces, particularly brick or stone effect.
“Cheap laminate floor that doesn’t reach the skirting board and creaks when you walk across it is best to avoid at all costs! . Badly painted windows, where there is half a tin of paint on the grass is also a big no-no. It’s always better to pay somewhere else rather than attempt something that you’re not skilled at.”
I know this from bitter experience, having bought a DIY garden tap kit many years ago. Having spent a day that would have been better-invested in writing freelance copy failing to prevent it dripping, I pleaded for a plumber to fix it. Net result: one garden tap that cost nearly twice as much as it needed to.
Or, as the poet Hilaire Belloc put it more pithily: “Lord Finchley tried to mend the Electric Light
“Himself. It struck him dead: And serve him right!
“It is the business of the wealthy man
“To give employment to the artisan.”
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Tags: Connells, DIY, Douglas & Gordon, expert tips, Glentree, Hilaire Belloc, HM Revenue & Customs, HMRC, home improvements, house prices, Knight Frank, profit, property, Prospect Property Search, Stacks Property Search, Strutt & Parker, tax avoidance, tax-free, wealth

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