Choosing Upgrades and Features for Your New House or Condo
By Marcia Luke
The experience is overwhelming. You walk into the décor centre and see a multitude of colours, finishes, and upgrades. Should you go with the standard features or upgrades? You’ve always wanted a soaker tub with jets and the hardwood flooring is beautiful. Suddenly you have a list as long as your soon-to-be driveway in upgrades, each of which costs extra.
Or perhaps you’re reluctant to upgrade because you can’t see past the dollar signs. How do you keep your upgrade spending in check?
An important factor to consider is how the value of your home plays a part in choosing your features, finishes, and upgrades.
Upgrades that will add the most value to your home are hardwood floors, granite countertops, and stainless steel appliances. These are all things that show well for resale. And while you may not be thinking of reselling while you tour the décor centre, you should keep it in the back of your mind for the future.
As with any property—a house or condo, car or cottage—there are two sides to the coin: you will get more out of your property if you put money into it, but the value of your home also has limits. Spending more than you’ll get back isn’t a wise investment. This guideline is to keep spending within reason - keep a 5% limit on upgrades if you want to get the cost back.
Sarah recently moved into her new home. Having been through the important selection process, she explains, “I made a list of everything that I wanted and put it in order of importance. I had a ballpark of what I wanted to spend.”
Sarah then started eliminating the non-essentials, ultimately cutting the cost of her list in half. Each homebuyer will likely have different priorities and qualify non-essentials differently. “Most of the upgrades were structural decisions that would be difficult to do later, like a rough-in [bathroom] for the basement, cold cellar, and larger basement windows.”
Of course it doesn’t all come down to dollars and cents. You should have fun in the process—it is, after all, the most expressive way to personalize your home. Jones says “the design consultant helped with the grout colour that would match the tiles and the most popular paint choices for the wall.”
Every choice makes your home your own. Baker cautions, “when choosing colours, I recommend that you keep them neutral, for example, creams and whites.” She continues that colour can be brought in with focal points and items that are easily changed or that can be taken with you. For instance, furniture, window coverings, accents, area rugs, and art can infuse your new home with life and personality.
Though it may be an overwhelming part of the home buying experience, at the end of your décor centre visit, you should feel confident that you’ve not only created a comfortable environment for yourself, but that you’ve also made choices that will enhance the potential value of your home and secure your already sound investment.
Upgrades Galore!
Here are some common features and upgrades to consider for your new house or condo. Investigate the specific list of features and upgrade options with your builder.
Kitchen/breakfast bar
* Stainless steel appliances
* Granite countertops
* Kitchen cabinetry
Living Area
* Gas fireplace
* Coffered ceilings
Bathroom
* Ceramic flooring
* Soaker tubs
* Double sinks
Throughout
* Hardwood flooring
* 9 or 10-foot ceilings
* Trim packages
* Carpeting
Other
* Laundry room cabinetry
* Rough-in for 3-piece bath
* Rough-in security
* Rough-in central vacuum
* Rough-in gas line for BBQ
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