March 29, 2021 •Reid Geiler
When you decide to renovate a part of your home, you want to stay away from things with low return on Investment. While it might sound like a fun idea to completely revamp a kitchen with brand new marble countertops, this costly project may not increase your home value as much as you’d think. In the end, you could end up losing money on the house when you move out, leaving behind the gorgeous new counters and your precious time and money.
The best updates to increase home value are actually those that are more affordable. One of the most satisfying yet simple options is installing a new faucet. This addition can add modern flair and clean style to your kitchen or bathroom. When you choose the right design and style, a new faucet can increase your home value and make your stay there more enjoyable.
Quick advice for planning renovations
Any time you update something in your home with the overall home value in mind, make sure it’s something that makes sense for the house. You should choose your remodeling projects to fit the feel and context of the overall design, as well as the price range. If you invest $10,000 upgrading to expensive, luxury appliances in a starter home, you won’t get a great ROI. Similarly, it doesn’t make sense to spend $60,000 dollars on a new kitchen in a home that will go for $120,000.
A good rule of thumb is to get the most impact you can with an update for under $1,000. You can get a new faucet for your kitchen or bathroom for just a few hundred dollars. New faucets might cost as low as $150, but more expensive models can cost closer to $350. If you are updating your faucet in a way that will require the services of a plumber to adjust the water lines, you’ll need to pay a little more. Still, even at the highest cost, a new faucet almost always brings in great ROI for under one grand.
In the kitchen
Small kitchen upgrades tend to have a much better ROI than the major ones. Adding a fresh coat of paint to the cabinets, for instance, is a better investment for your home’s overall value than installing a completely new storage set up. And when it comes to the sink, upgrading the faucet is a great budget-friendly alternative to replacing the entire thing.
Bringing a new faucet into your kitchen can elevate the aesthetic appeal of the room while adding extra functionality to the space. Some starter homes are still equipped with a very standard faucet model. Not only do these faucets often look outdated, but they may lack the convenience of accessories like sprayers. Selecting a kitchen faucet with this accessory — either as a separate piece or as part of a pull-out faucet — will appeal to buyers looking for a modern space for cooking and cleaning.
In the bathroom
The Cost vs. Value Report notes that bathroom renovations can have a recoup value of 87.7 to 93.5 percent. Home buyers love to see a crisp, clean, and modern bathroom, and you are sure to enjoy some updates to your home as well. However, just as with the kitchen, less is more when it comes to increasing your home value with home updates.
As you consider how to renovate your bathroom, keep in mind that the best ROI is in the details. Once again, a new faucet adds a lot of value for relatively low cost and little effort. Focusing on the bathroom fixtures as a complete set is a great way to tie the space together with a fresh and modern appeal.
For the biggest effect, don’t stop with a new sink faucet. Round out the minor but impactful innovation with a new shower head to match. The shower and bath can be the focal point of a bathroom, so you want it to impress. When you upgrade the shower head from an overused, rusty piece to a brand new one, the bathroom will feel more high-end right off the bat. There are lots of options to choose from, like the common fixed shower heads, handheld shower heads, and fixed shower-heads with spray handles.
As with any home renovation, you should select a shower-head that matches the overall feel of the bathroom and home. This will help give buyers a great first impression with both the quality and style of the space.
How to pick a new faucet
Now that you’re sold on the idea of increasing your home value with a new faucet, it’s time to pick the right one. This process starts with deciding on the style you want. There are several attractive finishes you can pick from, like a brushed nickel or a shiny chrome. You’ll also find a huge range of styles, from classic and elegant bathroom fixtures to sleek, efficient kitchen faucets.
When you’re looking for a new kitchen faucet, try to pick something that will tie into the style of the space, and match the appliances and color theme of the room. For a bathroom, a faucet and handles that match the shower head and bathtub fixtures generally look clean and attractive.
Before you start shopping for a faucet that suits your home, you need to make sure you’re only looking at faucets that fit your current space’s configuration, particularly on a kitchen counter. What you don’t want is to choose a faucet that needs more accessory holes than you already have.
For example, if your current faucet has one hole for the faucet and integrated handle, you’ll need to look for a faucet that just needs one hold. If you wanted to install a faucet with separate handles for hot and cold water, that would require three holes which would mean modifying your countertop. That extra step can add up quickly, so it’s best to find something that works with what you have.
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