Response to MSN Real Estate Article 8 Most Overrated Home Projects Part 2

There is nothing more luxurious than natural stones or hardwoods. Marble countertops, I don’t have any! I chose to go with a manmade Quartz countertop. I paid more for the quartz than I would have for marble. I installed quartz because I thought it was the better product that suited the way both my wife and I cook. I don’t think that my manmade quartz has the same class as marble or granite but it’s what I wanted, not what may have made economic sense or what the return on my investment will be if I sell my home.

I believe in the article that this relates to multi story homes, although it doesn’t specifically say that. It does however suggest that a deck off the master bedroom is never used because the coffee maker is downstairs! The article goes on to say that it is one of the most underutilized living spaces in a home. I don’t have a multi-story home.

I live in a single story bungalow. I do have sliding glass doors off my bedroom that go out onto a patio and in the spring, summer and fall I use the patio quite a lot. I have never considered my patio to be living space. I have never seen a real estate listing that includes any deck as living space! A deck is expensive to build and maintain, however if you will use it, I see nothing wrong in having it. To build or remodel anything for the sake of doing it is a waste. So again we go back to it’s a lifestyle decision and will it provide pleasure. It is not an economic decision, unless you can’t afford it, even if you want it.

Of all of the statements in the article this one is probably the most ridiculous. Why would a homeowner invest in a $20,000 home theater when he can get the same thing in a cardboard box for $3,500 or less? From now on we will remove all of the front row seats at concerts or any other entertainment scenario. No more box or front row seats at sporting events and while we are at it let’s remove all of the business and first class seats from airplanes. Is this the Hyundai Accent all over again? What if the person who wants to buy your home doesn’t like your home theater? Tough! Let them buy another home!

We don’t have a home theater, because both my wife and I suffer from hearing loss and would not appreciate the high sound qualities and more than that we are not big television or DVD watchers. But that is our lifestyle. To say to someone whose family may spend hours watching movies or sporting events that there is no benefit to a home theater is the same as saying there is no benefit to having seats at the Super Bowl on the 50 yard line.

Homeowners are turning them into raised beds for gardening, because they take too much time to maintain and they are too difficult and expensive to remove. Having a hot tub turns your backyard into a 70’s or 80’s time machine. The suggestion is that if you must have a hot tub you should get a portable unit so that you can hide it when you sell your home.

Possibly I can see the point about maintenance time. However, I do not understand the comment about the expense and difficulty in removing them.