# door upgrade to increase resale value?



## skill-junkie (Jan 4, 2007)

I have 7 hollow-core doors in my house which, to me, don't look very attractive. I am thinking about replacing them with pine solid doors. I will eventually sell the house. Would it increase the resale value beyond my investment? My neighbor thinks that it's not worth upgrading them.


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## Square Eye (Jan 4, 2007)

Not worth it to an appraiser.
May by chance be a selling point, but not likely.
Trim packages add value, crown, baseboard, chair rail.
Usually not as much as expected though.
Most effective upgrades?
bathroom upgrades, kitchens and mechanical systems (HVAC).
Then new roofing, new concrete, new siding etc..
Flooring will only increase the value if the existing floors are really bad.


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## glennjanie (Jan 5, 2007)

I'm just guessing here, the doors may be stained and varnished; if that's the case perhaps you could consider a coat of enamel to up-grade them.
Glenn


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## Kerrylib (Jan 8, 2007)

If you are going to be living there, do the upgrade for yourself if you want the "better look".  If you are getting ready to put the house on the market and are considering this only to boost the resale value, then I'll bet it is a loosing proposition.

However, if it does set your house appart from the others that prospective buyers are looking at, then it might be beneficial to make yours more appealing and move it quicker.  You may spend $1500 (guess) replacing the doors, but not get any higher sale price for the house, but if your market is in the doldrums and that is the magic bullet that makes it sell in 1-2 months instead of 10-12 then it may be a worthwile investment.

Only YOU can decide.

Like I said, if you are doing it for yourself to live in the house, then go for it and you will get to appreciate the investment for a few years before you do decide to sell.


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## Quattro (Jan 8, 2007)

I agree with Kerrylib. Our home had hollow doors that were just awful. When we looked at the house, we noticed the cheap doors, but it wasn't enough to keep us from buying it. After we bought it, we stumbled across a person who was replacing their doors, and selling the old ones. Turns out they are heavy, solid spruce 6-panel doors that have already been finished in a pleasing color. We snatched 'em up for $250 (5 doors and 4 bi-folds). It was a steal. I had to re-mortise the hinge-mounts, but that was easy, and now every room has high-quality solid doors. 

So, keep your eyes open for something like that!


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