It's not about resale value…
With the country experiencing a surge in sales activity and skyrocketing home prices, one may think that most Canadian homeowners would be undertaking home renovation projects in order to increase the resale value of their home and take advantage of the red-hot market.
However, a new survey from RE/MAX Canada found that “lifestyle impact” is the top reason for renovations - with 29% of respondents saying they are renovating to enhance their lifestyle for non-essential reasons (aesthetic and/or recreational purposes) and 29% saying they are doing so for essential reasons (safety and maintenance).
Read more: Sotheby’s: Home renovations impelling further price growth in cities
Meanwhile, only 16% of survey respondents said that their motivation is to “increase the value of their home with the intention of selling in the next one to three years.”
Still, the survey found that practicality was never far from the surface – with over half (59%) of respondents saying that they “always consider the return on investment that a renovation will have on their home’s overall market value.”
“The notion of the home as an investment continues to be an important consideration for Canadian homeowners; however, they clearly value the home for what it is meant to be: a place to live and enjoy spending time,” said Elton Ash, regional executive vice president at RE/MAX of Western Canada. “The pandemic has influenced virtually every aspect of our lives, including what Canadians want and need in a home. The uncertainty also compelled many sellers to move to the sidelines or renovate their home to accommodate current quality-of-life needs, which has further tightened conditions across many Canadian real estate markets.”
