Every article on Raise The Value is sourced from primary research: Zonda, NAR, Harvard JCHS, NAHB, Zillow Research and peer-reviewed studies. We publish what the data says about what raises the value of a property, organized by what matters to your situation.
Garage door figure according to the Remodeling 2025 Cost vs. Value Report (www.costvsvalue.com). © 2025 Zonda Media, a Delaware Corporation. Complete data from the Remodeling 2025 Cost vs. Value Report can be downloaded free at www.costvsvalue.com.
NAR asked 806 homeowners how they felt about their finished projects. The kitchen upgrade, the new primary suite and new roofing all scored a perfect 10, and the two of those that NAR also priced are estimated to recover 54 to 60 cents on the dollar at resale. The projects owners love most are, almost exactly, the ones buyers pay back least. The article shows how to tell which one you are buying, with the upkeep, equity and weather data behind the decision.
Read the full analysisNAR asked 806 homeowners how they felt about their finished projects. The perfect 10s that NAR also priced are estimated to recover 54 to 60 cents on the dollar at resale, and the #1 project in Zonda's resale ranking comes last in NAR's Joy Score chart. Here is how to tell which one you are buying.
NAHB asked buyers which features they want. Zonda and NAR asked what buyers pay back. Put the two lists side by side and the features split into three groups: wanted and paid for, wanted and not paid for, and wanted but never measured. Knowing which is which is the whole game.
The 2025 Cost vs. Value ranking, read in order, is a renovation sequence: two doors for $7,107 that return $17,777, then stone, then siding, then a kitchen refresh, and a clear line where the returns drop under 100% and the strategy changes.
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