Let’s forego “conventional wisdom” for common sense when it comes to the value of adding a deck or patio to your Nashville-area home. Who doesn’t love a beautiful deck or patio? – or both, if you’re contemplating a deck and patio combination. First, you will love these outdoor structures for the enjoyment you gain while you live in your home. Then, you may love them even more when it comes time to sell.
Many homeowners have heard that only heated and cooled room additions can be calculated in your home’s square footage, for determining market value of your home. Let’s put the question into a broader context. Whether you’re considering your increased enjoyment or the increased allure for home buyers, heated and cooled square footage is not the only way to assign value.
What Kind of ROI Can I Expect If I’m Adding a Deck or Patio for My Own Enjoyment?
Most of our Archadeck of Nashville clients do add outdoor living amenities for their own enjoyment. Yes, it’s possible they may choose to sell the home at some point in the future. But their primary concern is usually creating an outdoor space that’s inviting and comfortable – either for personal relaxation or for entertaining.
When you add a low-maintenance deck to provide a new recreation area for your family, your return on investment comes from smiles and laughter. You may count your blessings as you sink into a cushioned deck chair and put your feet up to enjoy the fresh air. You’ll count your blessings again when you walk out onto the deck and find your teenager curled up, asleep, holding a tablet or book.
Are you thinking about adding a paver patio twice as large as your original one so you can entertain twice as many friends? Each gathering that rings with merriment, music, and the clink of glassware reminds you that you made an excellent decision. When you invest in an improved outdoor living space, you are not necessarily looking for a return you can measure in dollars and cents.
Read more: The Value Of A Custom Outdoor Living Space From Archadeck Of Nashville Is More Than Just The Sticker Price
What Is the ROI on a New Deck or Patio When Selling a Home?
Are you currently preparing your home for sale? Or, do you plan to live in the home for a few years before selling it? You may be wondering if you should go ahead and add a new deck or patio. Or is that an investment you’ll never recoup?
Our research indicates that a well-designed patio can bring an ROI of more than 80% when you sell your home. Likewise, you may be able to recoup as much as 66% of the cost of a new wood deck. From a different perspective, though, consider that simply adding a new patio or deck may help you sell your home. If the majority of homes listed in your neighborhood have an impressive deck or patio and yours does not, interest in your home may be affected.
Decks and patios are sought-after amenities in many neighborhoods throughout the Nashville area. If adding a new outdoor living space helps your home stand out in comparison to others in your area, your home may sell more quickly.
Read more: Invest Wisely in a High-Quality Outdoor Living Space with Archadeck of Nashville
How Can I Get a Better ROI on My New Deck or Patio Addition?
If you want your new deck to boost to your efforts to sell your home, include outdoor lighting in your deck design. Strategic deck lighting on stair risers and railing posts adds ambiance and increases safety, too – both excellent selling points. Including vertical hardscapes or steps in your paver patio design gives you opportunities to incorporate outdoor lighting around a patio as well. Your family will enjoy the magical effects while you live in the home, and buyers will be impressed. You want prospective home buyers to recognize your outdoor living space as the one they can picture themselves enjoying. Keep in mind that a paver patio is a low-maintenance outdoor space, another selling point for buyers.
Read more: Surprised To Learn Paver Patios are Low-Maintenance Outdoor Living Structures?
Here’s another tip if you plan to add a deck or patio prior to selling your home. Don’t let your new outdoor structure take up too much of your yard. Many families love big yards, especially if they have children or grandchildren at the age when they enjoying playing outdoors. Your Archadeck of Nashville deck and patio designer can help you find the right balance. When selling your home, you want to add an outdoor space that is large enough to be functional but not so large your yard disappears.
Will a Wood Deck or Composite Deck Be a Better Investment When Selling My Home?
Before we can answer this question, we need to know how soon you plan to sell your home. If you are going to live in the home for at least 3-5 years, a composite deck may prove to be the better investment. While the cost to build a wood deck is lower, the cost of wood deck maintenance adds up in just a few years. For more information, read Comparing Composite Decks vs. Wood Decks: Is a Low Maintenance Composite Deck Worth the Money? The information in this article is especially relevant if you are not planning to sell your home right away.
On the other hand, if you do plan to sell your home in the very near future, a wood deck will provide the better return. Research shows that a new wood deck addition increases a home’s resale value by about the same amount compared to a composite deck. This comparison assumes the wood deck has not begun to look weathered from age and lack of maintenance. Obviously, a weathered deck will detract from your home’s value and reduce your home’s appeal in the eyes of prospective buyers.
Whether you want to add a deck, a stand-alone patio, or a patio and deck combination, we would love to design and build your project. Why wait? Contact Archadeck of Nashville today to schedule a design consultation for your new or expanded outdoor living space.
Archadeck of Nashville and Archadeck of Chattanooga are owned by Russell & Magan Henderson. After successfully building thousands of projects for Nashville homeowners, the homeowner-beloved outdoor building team is bringing the Archadeck magic to Chattanooga! For the best experience in outdoor building, choose Archadeck of Nashville and Chattanooga!
