Are you kidding? In this market? Absolutely not. We sold our house for about $5,000 more than we paid for it back in 2006 during the housing boom, and while that might sound like a small win after all the work we put in, there’s more to the story. We estimate we spent roughly $35,000 on upgrades — new bathrooms, a renovated kitchen, new flooring, replacement windows, a new roof, a paved driveway, a cobblestone patio and finishing touches like crown molding and wider doorways. Financially it might not look like a huge profit on paper, but the full picture is a lot more positive.
We’re sleeping like babies and thrilled about selling our old home and buying a new one. Why? Because the timing and the outcome feel right for us. Call us crazy if you want, but here’s what led us to that conclusion:
- Our monthly mortgage payment for the new house is $200 less than what we were paying for the smaller old house. Historically low interest rates and a good deal on the new property made that possible — more space in a better neighborhood for less money each month felt like a clear win.
- Unimproved houses in our previous neighborhood — homes that look a lot like ours did when we first bought it — are selling for $30,000, $40,000, even $50,000 less than our sale price. The updates we made helped our house retain value and even gain a small increase despite buying in a hot market and selling when conditions were tougher.
- We received an offer within a few days of listing the house on MLS, which is a welcome outcome in this market.
Want more details? We’re happy to share.
We never set out to be house flippers; we’re home lovers. We renovated because we wanted to live in a house that fit us, not to flip it for profit. Those renovations made the house enjoyable while we lived there, and as a bonus they helped prevent the value from falling into a distressing price range. We also got practical enjoyment from the improvements — for example, diverting our venue budget for a wedding into a paved driveway and a cobblestone patio allowed us to host an inexpensive backyard wedding that left lasting benefits. The kitchen renovation even helped launch this blog and a business that now lets us work from home with our kids nearby.
On the buying side, it’s a favorable market too. We purchased a larger house in a nicer neighborhood at a significant discount — over $40,000 less than its valuation five years ago. With interest rates being low, we stand to save tens of thousands in interest over the life of the loan. Rolling equity from our previous home into the new purchase, combined with that lower rate, is how we reached the lower monthly payment mentioned earlier.
We also weighed future possibilities. If the market recovers in some unpredictable timeframe, the appreciation potential of our new home seems greater than the potential gain from waiting to sell the old home in a few years. By waiting, we might have been priced out of a house like the one we now own, just as we were during the last boom. Even more importantly, the new house supports our love of DIY, gives our family more room to grow, and fuels our business — all practical reasons that contribute to peace of mind.
Back to the $35,000 we spent on improvements and the roughly $5,000 increase in sale price: the math may make it look like a loss. But those upgrades didn’t go to waste. Comparable homes in our old neighborhood without updates are selling for substantially less. A similar, slightly larger ranch just a few houses down sold this summer for $50,000 less than we did. That reinforces that the work we invested set our house apart, preserving and even slightly increasing its value compared to the broader market trend. Looking at it this way helps keep perspective: rather than plummeting $50,000, our home held steady and edged upward.
Our lender pointed out something interesting: homeowners often don’t recoup all renovation costs in sale price, but they do get faster sales. A buyer may not pay a huge premium for granite counters over laminate, but they’re much more likely to move quickly on the house with nicer finishes. That was our experience — we received an offer within two days, whereas a larger, less updated house nearby has been on the market for months with no offers despite being listed for $30,000 less.
Do we wish the market were stronger? Sure. But we have no regrets. Some might say we’re optimistic, and not everyone would choose to sell now. Still, these factors — lower monthly payments, the immediate enjoyment of renovations, a strong purchase in a better neighborhood, and the faster sale — made the move feel right. We’re grateful to be in our new house in time for Clara’s first Christmas, and now it’s time to unpack some boxes.