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Window Replacement Can Pay for Itself in a Few Years
Most homeowners here in San Diego like to do whatever they can to keep their home
looking good. At the same time, spending those improvement dollars with an eye on
future return if the home is sold can be an important consideration. The two main
consideration from an economic point of view are energy savings and resale value.
New windows? Could be a winner. It's definitely an upgrade that can improve
appearance, and it can reduce energy costs as well as providing a positive return on
investment when it comes time to sell. You can usually figure it takes about two years
for new window installation to pay for themselves -- sometimes even as little as one
year. You might be surprised to know this can be true for newer homes as well, not
just older houses with rotting sills and broken sashes. The choices made by the
builder in new construction sometimes leaves room for improvement. The factors to
consider, aside from your personal preferences if you don't like the style of what
you've got, are pretty simple.
Climate
The first thing, which is so obvious you might forget to consciously take it into
account, is the weather where you live. If you live in a place with extreme
temperatures, the insulation provided by the windows can be a big factor in the cost of
cooling or heating the home. With extremes, either hot or cold, buying new windows
can make a big difference in the cost of maintaining a comfortable temperature.
Although it may be hard to dollarize the satisfaction of helping to limit damage to the
environment, a contribution to that goal has value as well.
How Many Windows Need to Be Replaced
You may not have to replace all the windows. If your goal is to minimize heat loss in
the winter and you don't have much of a summer heat problem, then you will maximize
your return by just getting better-insulated windows on the cold side (usually the north
side) of the house. The more new windows you have to buy and install, the more it will
cost and the longer it will take to break even on the transaction. If the windows you
have are insulated poorly or not at all, then the savings from each replacement will be
higher -- so if that is the case a larger number of replacements can be justified in the
long run.
Resale Value Considerations
If you plan to stay in the home for a long time you might not consider this important --
but plans change. Having better quality or custom windows is a positive selling point in
any selling scenario. As a homeowner with an eye on the long-term resale value of
your home, putting in new windows is an investment that has a good payoff.
Prospective buyers who find upgraded features such as attractive and efficient
windows will have to take that into account in their evaluation of the sale price. This
applies, however, more to home buyers who are looking for a place to live in San
Diego rather than a fix-and-flip investor. If your target market is in the latter category,
you will likely be looking at spending your improvement dollars, if any, on more basic
safety and appearance work before selling and this may not be the advice for you.
Looking at the next phase of such a transaction, the buyer who has acquired a house
and wants to resell it quickly, whether or not window replacement will pay for itself
depends on the cost of the property and the quick-turn resale value. In this case, the
nature of the deal and the market will be the dominant factors; window replacement
would be only one of a number of candidate improvements and a minor one in most
cases.
Content provided by Automated Homefinder, a Colorado Real Estate Company.
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Most homeowners here in San Diego like to do whatever they can to keep their home
looking good. At the same time, spending those improvement dollars with an eye on
future return if the home is sold can be an important consideration. The two main
consideration from an economic point of view are energy savings and resale value.
New windows? Could be a winner. It's definitely an upgrade that can improve
appearance, and it can reduce energy costs as well as providing a positive return on
investment when it comes time to sell. You can usually figure it takes about two years
for new window installation to pay for themselves -- sometimes even as little as one
year. You might be surprised to know this can be true for newer homes as well, not
just older houses with rotting sills and broken sashes. The choices made by the
builder in new construction sometimes leaves room for improvement. The factors to
consider, aside from your personal preferences if you don't like the style of what
you've got, are pretty simple.
Climate
The first thing, which is so obvious you might forget to consciously take it into
account, is the weather where you live. If you live in a place with extreme
temperatures, the insulation provided by the windows can be a big factor in the cost of
cooling or heating the home. With extremes, either hot or cold, buying new windows
can make a big difference in the cost of maintaining a comfortable temperature.
Although it may be hard to dollarize the satisfaction of helping to limit damage to the
environment, a contribution to that goal has value as well.
How Many Windows Need to Be Replaced
You may not have to replace all the windows. If your goal is to minimize heat loss in
the winter and you don't have much of a summer heat problem, then you will maximize
your return by just getting better-insulated windows on the cold side (usually the north
side) of the house. The more new windows you have to buy and install, the more it will
cost and the longer it will take to break even on the transaction. If the windows you
have are insulated poorly or not at all, then the savings from each replacement will be
higher -- so if that is the case a larger number of replacements can be justified in the
long run.
Resale Value Considerations
If you plan to stay in the home for a long time you might not consider this important --
but plans change. Having better quality or custom windows is a positive selling point in
any selling scenario. As a homeowner with an eye on the long-term resale value of
your home, putting in new windows is an investment that has a good payoff.
Prospective buyers who find upgraded features such as attractive and efficient
windows will have to take that into account in their evaluation of the sale price. This
applies, however, more to home buyers who are looking for a place to live in San
Diego rather than a fix-and-flip investor. If your target market is in the latter category,
you will likely be looking at spending your improvement dollars, if any, on more basic
safety and appearance work before selling and this may not be the advice for you.
Looking at the next phase of such a transaction, the buyer who has acquired a house
and wants to resell it quickly, whether or not window replacement will pay for itself
depends on the cost of the property and the quick-turn resale value. In this case, the
nature of the deal and the market will be the dominant factors; window replacement
would be only one of a number of candidate improvements and a minor one in most
cases.
Content provided by Automated Homefinder, a Colorado Real Estate Company.
Back To Articles
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