Home > Home & Garden > Real Estate > Buying & Selling Homes
Does a one- or two-story house have a better resale value?
Results so far:
| One-story | 45% | 219 votes | Total: 489 votes | |
| Two-story | 55% | 270 votes |
One-story
by Carolyn Tytler
Created on: February 27, 2009
A century ago, large families were in vogue. Mothers were homemakers, fathers went to work to support the family, the older children helped with chores, went to school and looked after little brothers and sisters in their spare time. That was just the way things were.
Then, large families were needed to help with farm chores, or in the family business. Having many children was the parents' old age insurance, in the days before Social Security. Large sprawling houses were built to accommodate the quickly-increasing broods..
Today the trend has changed. With the improvement in contraceptive methods and the appearance of the birth-control pill in the 1950's, family size began to shrink, as the numbers in the work force began to grow.
During the World War II, many men joined the armed forces and women began to take their places in the domestic labour force. When the troops returned, many women kept their jobs and their husbands returned to work as well.
Through the years, the economy grew, and salaries increased with it.
As a result, families soon had larger disposable incomes, and many chose to save for a down-payment on large, luxurious homes with amenities that their mothers and grandmothers could only have dreamed about. Admittedly, the mortgage payments were large, but with both spouses working, they could just manage to meet them.
Fast forward to 2008. The recession hit. One or both spouses lost their jobs and couldn't meet the mortgage payments. The bank foreclosed on their loan and they were forced to file for bankruptcy.
They have lots of company. The recession, which may well become a depression before it's over, is world-wide in scope.
When the dust finally clears, what will the housing market of the future look like?
Many families will find themselves starting over and beginning anew to build their financial resources. This time they will look for smaller, more reasonably-priced living accommodations. With the trend to smaller families, bungalows will provide sufficient space for everyone.
The baby boomers will be reaching retirement age. One-story homes, with fewer stairs, will be most attractive and will relieve the strain on arthritic hips and knees. They are also easier to clean and maintain. Cleaning eaves troughs and polishing second-floor windows is a challenge those middle-aged and older.
What of the younger generation? Many of them have eschewed marriage and instead embarked on a series of "relationships", in an effort to discover their true soul mates. These temporary liaisons are best carried out in apartments, just in case they don't work out.
By the time the younger generation finally decides to settle down, both partners will be approaching middle age. Bungalows will be very attractive to this group also. If they decide to start a family, everyone will still fit handily into a one-story home.
Just as family size has changed in the past century, so has preference in housing. The post-recession house that will sell quickly and easily will be a single story, low-maintenance model with lots of labour-saving features.
The average buyers will be in their mid-thirties or older, career-oriented, and hoping to find a home in which to be comfortable until they reach their sunset years. One-story homes, up for resale, won't last long in the post-recession real estate market.
Learn more about this author, Carolyn Tytler.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.
Two-story
by Venture Out
Created on: November 04, 2008 Last Updated: July 24, 2009
The fact is, with any style home, values are determined by square footage of living space, acreage, amenities, location, market conditions,. This is called "Fair Market value of a home/property.
Whether it is a one level, two level or tri-level, the difference is is all the factors relating about. To conclude, structure condition and age of mechanicals.
Let's face it, every home has a story to tell, but values truly are determined by factors, comparisons of sold homes in the current market within one year and a one mile radius of the subject property. Mechanical and Structural upgrades to a home add more value by a percentage then replacing a counter top in a kitchen or bath.
If a home is in need of TLC, cosmetically speaking, there are choices of materials and design anyone can choose. However, if you choose a home in need of TLC and get it for a price where you can flip it, make sure your cosmetic upgrades leave room in your staging repair budge to make a profit when you re-sell a home again.
But no matter what, as mentioned above, location, square footage of living space, acreage, amenities and current fair market values in the location of any home is what truly determines the value. Not the style of a home.
Keep a perspective in facts, not pictures. Many home sellers tend to believe their home is worth more because of remodeling purposes. The truth is, most homes get a new interior paint job every 5 to 10 years, carpeting, tile and hard wood flooring touch ups do to wear and tear every 7 years and counter tops, just go on line, spending $500 on counter tops for a kitchen does not make your home worth $10,000 more.
Keep your mechanicals and structure of your home upgraded the most. That is what retains the value in any market condition in any economical changes across the country. Without mechanicals and structure upgrades working properly, the home is not considered "functional" or in need of mechanical and structural upgrades. These upgrades cost more the remodeling and retain the value of a home by the age they were replaced. A hot water heater for example is known to last 15 years in a life time. Depending on the type of roofing, replacements for roofing is 20-25 years. Is the home built before 1978? If so, does lead paint exist behind layers of paint in the walls through the years of changing the room's color? The plumbing, are there or have there been any plumbing problems? Roofs and plumbing, cracks in foundation walls and flashing will result in water seepage if not maintained by a home owner yearly. Does the home have an oil tank, if so how old and is the tank in the home or under the ground? If under the ground, get it out of the ground, have your soil tested. Does the home have wood that has been destroyed by wood destroying insects, if so, was it treated, when and do you get it re-checked every two years?
Locations are important as well. They say where you pay more in a tax mill rate, prices of homes are lower. But where you pay less in a tax mill rate, prices of homes are higher. The savings are in the taxes of the property depending on location. Any location in any town/city is desirable to many. But no matter what color the wall is, carpet, flooring, etc., values are determined on the facts stated above. Please do not confuse facts verses the style of a home.
Learn more about this author, Venture Out.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.
Write and get published
Share with other writers
Polish your freelancing skills
Quality articles from proven freelancers
Exclusive rights, fast turnaround
Brand engagement, business blogging -- our writers do it all
INFORMATION
Copyright © 2002-2012 Helium, Inc. All rights reserved.
Helium.com: A Service of RR Donnelley