Which Home Improvements Are Worth Doing Even If You Never Sell

Disclaimer: This article is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, construction, real estate, or professional home improvement advice.

Some houses simply don't make sense, and yours might be one of them.

You know, the ones where the furnace is on 24/7, but you can't sit in the living room unless you're wrapped in a blanket like a human burrito. Meanwhile, there are granite counters in the kitchen and floor heating in the bathroom. Yes, the house looks impressive to a stranger, but if you're living here, there's no way you're comfortable. Regardless of what you keep saying to yourself, needing blankets all the time isn't normal.

And if you ask people about renovations, they'll start talking to you about resale value even if they have no plans to sell.

Of course, resale value is absolutely something to consider, but the average person spends over a decade living in their house. Now imagine spending more than a decade in a drafty house where the water heater groans all the time, and the door is sticky, but they never quite latch.

The avg. homeowner in the U.S. spend between 10 and 13 years inside their house. This strengthens comfort upgrades over resale upgrades in most cases. – National Association of Realtors

It's honestly a nightmare.

In this article, there will be no talk of impressing potential (and for most people, non-existent) buyers. What we’ll do is talk about something more important – what to fix so your house is more comfortable for YOU.

Home Improvements You'll Appreciate

Nobody will compliment you on your attic insulation, and looking at water heaters isn't nearly as fun as picking out new tiles.

But these so-called boring upgrades are exactly what make your house feel like a comfortable home.

Better Insulation

If the insulation is done right, you won't notice it's there.

You'll just notice that all the rooms in your house have a nice, comfortable temperature all the time, and getting out in the hallway won't make you freeze. Another great thing about insulation is that your HVAC system will need to work less, so your energy bills will be lower. A very effective long-term savings strategy.

Proper insulation is shown to reduce heating/cooling costs by up to 15%. – U.S. Department of Energy

But the most important win is that you'll be more comfortable. No more drafts and no more rooms that never seem to have a normal temperature.

Another benefit is less moisture, and if you've ever had an issue with mold, you know that this is a big deal. If the walls in your house aren't insulated well, you'll get condensation when warm air hits the cold walls, and that's exactly how you get mold and mildew.

New Windows and Exterior Doors

If you have old doors and windows, you might as well have holes in your walls that open and close sometimes.

In the U.S., loss and gain of heating via windows account for approx. 25-30% of residential energy use in the. – U.S. Department of Energy

That's how effective they are. Aside from not being efficient, they could also be a security risk because the frames may already be soft and flimsy from old age.

Yes, new windows and doors aren't exactly cheap, but they'll actually seal the place, and the temperature inside will be much more comfortable and predictable.

It'll also be quieter inside because most of that noise from traffic and neighbors' lawnmowers will be turned down. Plus, modern materials don't need nearly as much upkeep as wood frames, so say goodbye to caulking and peeling paint.

All you need to do is install them and clean them here and there when you see they're getting dirty.

Better Lighting

Bad lighting can make life REALLY uncomfortable.

Just imagine for a second if you had to chop vegetables for dinner without the lighting being appropriate/strong enough. The stress of it! That's a good way to lose some fingers. But even if the lighting is bright enough, it can still be less than ideal, especially if you have cool white overhead lights in your entire house.

That's kind of like living in a hospital.

The first thing you should do is swap out all your old bulbs for LEDs, but the color should be more on the warm side(unless you like the hospital vibe, obviously). After that, look where you always wished you had more light, and just add it there. Under the kitchen cabinets is a good place, especially if it is near your cutting board.

Compared to incandescent bulbs, LED bulbs last up to 25x longer and use at least 75% less energy. – U.S. Department of Energy

And if you're going all out, you might as well add a dimmer switch in the dining room and/or the living room.

Low-Maintenance Exterior Materials

Even though everyone always says that things were better in the past and things aren’t as high-quality these days, there are plenty of durable modern materials, especially when you factor in all the advancements in science and technology.

And what makes them even better is that most of them are low-maintenance.

Modern materials (e.g., fiber-cement, composites) measurably decrease maintenance costs when compared to wood. – U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

Take composite decking, for instance.

You don't have to seal or stain it. Ever. Fiber-cement siding doesn't care that the sun is beaming down on it like crazy; it'll hold up like a champ. You can even make landscaping simpler if you choose native plants and add some mulch.

And if you're at all concerned about resale value, these are all excellent upgrades in that regard. You'll see that a lot of investors use fix-and-flip loans to cover the cost of renovations, and these are some of the upgrades most of them focus on.

Better Storage

Most homes are short on storage, but the fix for that isn't moving into a bigger house. The only thing you need to do is use the space you already have in a better way.

For example, a reach-in closet with one rod is absolutely ridiculous. It's a waste of space unless you add shelves so you can make use of all that vertical space.

Adding extra rods helps, too.

It's the same thing with your pantry, which is probably slightly chaotic. You can handle this if you get pull-out drawers and labeled bins.

That'll turn a mess into an organized space that lets you find what you're looking for.

Conclusion

If you're a little bit disappointed with all these boring recommendations, nobody's judging you.

The truth is, none of this is very fun, and spending money on things that aren't fun is one of the worst things about being an adult.

But once you get past that sting, you'll feel as if money leaves your bank account, and you'll be very happy with the fact that your windows are no longer drafty messes.

You'll also be pleased with the numbers on your energy bills as soon as insulation is taken care of. And you'll finally be able to stop pretending that the reason you're always under a blanket is that you like things to be 'cozy'.