Both recent and long-time trends continued in 2017. "Curb appeal" projects—changes to doors, windows, and siding—by and large generated higher returns on investment than work done inside the home. Meanwhile, projects that called for replacing something, like a door or window, scored higher among real estate pros than did remodels.

What is the Cost vs. Value report?

The Remodeling Cost vs. Value Report, produced by Remodeling magazine in cooperation with the National Association of REALTORS® and REALTOR® Magazine, provides estimated costs for 29 midrange or upscale home-improvement projects, along with the percentage of cost that owners can expect to recoup when they sell. Projects range from a new garage door to a master suite addition.

The average cost for those 24 projects rose 3 percent, while the value that real estate pros put on the projects went up 4.2 percent. Minor gains, yes, but welcome ones compared with the trauma induced by the Great Recession nearly a decade back.

Both recent and long-time trends continued. "Curb appeal" projects—changes to doors, windows, and siding—by and large generated higher returns on investment than work done inside the home. Meanwhile, projects that called for replacing something, like a door or window, scored higher among real estate pros than did remodels.

Cost matters

As was the case last year, putting loose-fill insulation in an attic　is the only project that returns a higher value than its cost. It came in at 107.7 percent. Next up is the　steel door replacement, a perennial high finisher, at 90.7 percent, followed by　manufactured stone veneer　at 89.4 percent.

Those projects that packed the biggest payback also are three of the five cheapest to complete, which helped their cost-recouped scores. But none of the three scored as high this year as last because the cost of doing them rose faster than their perceived value.

In general, the lower-priced the project, the higher the percentage of costs that goes to materials. Over this past year, manufactured stone veneer costs increased 4.4 percent, while the cost to install a steel door went up 5.8 percent and the price to put in loose-fill fiberglass insulation rose 5.9 percent.

In contrast, several of the most expensive projects—the upscale bathroom remodel,　upscale master suite,　two-story addition,　grand entrance, and　family room—saw the biggest year-over-year percentage increases in value, rising between 5.6 percent and 7.4 percent. All those increases outpaced the rise in cost to accomplish the projects, and suggest　that real estate pros are rating such home improvements more highly than they did half a decade ago. Why? Because the real estate market continues to recover.

According to the National Association of REALTORS®, the median price of an existing home sold in September was $234,200, up 5.6 percent from a year before and the 55th consecutive month of year-over-year gains. Meanwhile, the S&P/Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index found that the price of a new home in major metro markets rose 5.3 percent in August from the year before. In general, when home prices go up, real estate professionals feel better about how much a project will increase a home's value, and they score the project accordingly.

Timing also figures here. The backup power generator　had a payback in the 40s prior to our 2014 report, but that year it spiked to 67.5 percent. That's because real estate pros were surveyed for that report in late 2013, just after Superstorm Sandy struck. The further we get from that event, the less of a payback the generators become; their cost recouped slipped to 54 percent this year from 59.4 percent in last year's report.

What's new?

Cost vs. Value aims to remain valuable to you by keeping up with trends. This year, the focus is on two such developments: indoor/outdoor living and meeting the needs of aging and multi-family households.

What's to come?

The housing data specialist Metrostudy　says its　Residential Remodeling Index　(RRI) for the third quarter forecasts remodeling activity nationwide will increase 4.4 percent in 2017 and 3.3 percent in 2018. That activity is for pro-worthy home improvement and replacement projects worth at least $1,000.

"Over the next few years, as mortgage rates increase, we expect more people to choose to stay put in their current homes and renovate, giving further support to a stable forecast for the remodeling industry," Mark Boud, Metrostudy's chief economist, said in a news release. Metrostudy is a sister company of Remodeling.

"Workers are now beginning to see more money in their pockets, and that, combined with the tight housing market, is driving remodeling activity across the country," Boud said. "Additionally, tight supply in the housing market continues to push up home prices, allowing more owners to tap home equity lines of credit to invest in updating their homes."

Once again, though, geography matters. Of the nation's 381 metropolitan statistical areas, 369 were forecast by Metrostudy to show growth in 2016; the other 12 declined.

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