Whether you’re renovating your home for the market or for your own pleasure, it is always good to know how your changes will impact the value of your property. It may surprise you that a deck is one of the most valuable additions that you can add to your home. Your specific circumstances may change these numbers, but in general, we can tell you how much money a deck will add to your home.
Percentage of Value a Deck Adds
According to Remodeling’s 2020 Cost vs Value report, a wood deck is the seventh-best home renovation project for adding value to a home. The average homeowner will recoup 72% of the cost of the deck in the home value. That’s quite impressive when you consider it is one of over 22 different kinds of remodels that the organization tracks.
In the Pacific zone, including California, a wooden deck is an even better investment, coming in at sixth on the list and adding 77% of its value to the home, on average.
How Much Money is That?
The same study showed that the average cost of a wood deck is $14,360, which means that this deck would recoup $10,355. Adding a deck to your home can add a quick ten grand to your home’s value. In previous years remodeling had this value roughly consistent, and it is estimated that the value a deck will add to your home will continue to rise slightly.
Differences in Materials
What if you don’t want to add a wooden deck? Composite decks are only slightly behind their wooden counterparts for value added as compared to cost. They are higher cost, at an average of $19,856. However, this means that they also add more money to the home, at an average of $13,257. This is a lower percentage of overall value, at 66.8%, but this still makes it one of the most valuable additions to a home.
This example of composite decking makes an important point. Spending more on your deck may not guarantee that you put that money directly into the value of the home. If your deck has more bells and whistles than the average deck in your neighbourhood, you may be getting back a smaller portion of the cost than you expect.
Should I Add a Deck?
If you want to add a deck for your own purposes but still want to ensure it will add value to your home, then you should focus on adding a high-quality deck that will still look great when you go to sell the home.
Those who are considering adding a deck to their home just to boost the value before sale is likely on the right track. There may be other places in your home that could use renovation first. In general, we’d say work with a real estate agent to find out if any areas of the home raise red flags. If you don’t have red flag issues that need to be sorted, then a deck is a good investment.