This is a discussion on whether or not to invest in a home improvement project, what constitutes a “good investment”, what to watch out for, and what the best times to invest in. If you’ve ever had a home that you want to improve, this is the conversation you need to have.
This is the classic case of one of those “don’t get me started”-style arguments. I think if you’re not a real estate investor, I think you should probably stay away from the topic. But if you’re a home improvement investor, I think this is worth at least a few posts, if not many.
This is my version of the debate. I think the two most important investments you can make in your home are: 1) a new roof, and 2) a new kitchen. If either one of these is on the downslope, you will be well ahead of the curve. But if either one of these is on the upslope, you might want to be a little more cautious.
The first two are relatively easy to get right, but the last one is a bit trickier. In the last couple of years, new roofing has improved by leaps and bounds. And I know of only two companies that have developed new kitchen appliances since 2006. One of the companies, KitchenAid, is probably still good though. So I’m not sure that I can point to a good reason why anyone should buy a new kitchen.
New kitchen appliances are important for two reasons. First, kitchen appliances are generally cheaper than roofing, and second, new appliances are built with newer materials which usually means that they are more durable. For roofing, if you don’t have a roof, you’ll have to spend money on a new roofing system.
A new refrigerator and a new sink are two things that are critical to any kitchen. Both are critical to kitchen efficiency. The new home insurance market is also a good indicator as to whether or not you should have a new appliance.
I think its safe to say that everyone is a consumer. In other words, most people are willing to spend money on things that they know will make their lives easier.
What about things like a home insurance policy? Are we going to spend money and pay for someone else to pay for a new refrigerator? If you didnt have a fridge in your old home, you would have to pay for someone to come and replace that refrigerator with a fridge that costs five times as much.
The last time I checked, we actually had a fridge in our old place. It was a plastic one that we bought at a garage sale. I don’t think we spent more than a couple of hundred dollars on it. But maybe I was just lucky in that it was in the garage.