Best Ways To Spend Your Tax Refund
It’s the most wonderful time of the year for some — the season in which your state and federal government pays its debt to you in the form of a tax refund. I know it’s typically not enough funds to add an addition your home or do a kitchen renovation, but it can provide enough extra cash to do a few home improvements. Here are some ways to enhance the value of your home with your tax refund.
$400-$500 refund – The small details
Repaint and re-caulk your baseboards
Caulking and giving your baseboards a fresh coat of paint can really bring your walls back to life. They can tend to get really dirty over time. Painters and contractors charge around $2.50 to $6 per linear foot depending on the size of your baseboards.
Hire a professional organizer
Since tax refunds come during the springtime, you can tie this to spring cleaning. Hiring an organizer can help you with decluttering your home or organizing your pantry and closets.
Curb appeal is everything
Updating the outside of your home with a few essentials like some new flower boxes, a new mailbox, outdoor lighting, and power washing your driveway will give your home a fresh new look.
$1,000 refund – Think upgrades
Upgrade your water heater
Upgrade your water heater to a tankless model to save energy and money. A new tankless water heater costs between $1,500 and $2,000 (installed)
Change the color scheme
Nothing makes an older home feel new again like a change in color scheme. Homeowners who have had the same scheme can get a new look with an interior paint job. You can have an entire living room repainted for under $1,000 by a professional or $200-$300 as a DIY project.
Update your lighting
Updating your homes light fixtures will give your home a customized look. You can find incredible deals on gorgeous light fixtures on websites like overstock.com and wayfair.com for under $300. If you have $1000 to spend, you can buy enough lighting for your dining room, kitchen and even your entry way!
$2,000-$3,000 – Add style
You can’t go wrong with wood flooring
You can expect to pay anywhere from $5 to $12 per square foot for quality hardwood flooring — potentially more if you choose professional installation. But this home upgrade can return 1.5 to two times its cost when you sell, so it’s a worthy investment.
Replace your entry door
Buying a new front door is one of the best inexpensive upgrades you can make, because it has a nearly 100% return on investment. Spend a little extra on a custom, hand-carved door that will run you around $3,000, and you can tack $3,000 onto the price of your home.
Build a deck
Decks can vary based on the size and details you want, but a small sized deck can cost about $2,000. Decks bring in about 80% to 120% return on your investment.
Kitchen upgrade
Some of the highest returns on investments when it comes to home improvements are in the kitchen. Updating your kitchen backsplash is perfect way to updating and adding value.
$5,000 Go BIG!
Modernize the bathroom
We all know that the bathroom, or any room with utilities, is a great place to do some upgrading when you want to add value. If your bath features an old, outdated tub/shower combo, it may be a good time to replace it with a modern fixture like a glass or tiled shower stall or a jetted tub. For an average-sized bathroom, you’ll spend between $2,800 and $4,700 updating this feature. With bathroom renovations regularly recouping 80% to 90% of their costs in home value, this simple update could easily add an extra $3,500 to $4,000 to the price of your home. Other ideas for the bathroom include new vinyl flooring, updated sink fixtures, and updated lighting.
Replace your old fence
The cost will vary depending on the size of your yard and the materials you use. An updated fence will bring life back to your backyard.
A home is the largest investment most of us will ever make, it makes sense to know the ins and outs of how to maximize that investment. By doing any of these updates we listed above can add significant value, and aesthetic appeal to your home.
