Judge Judy Scheindlin is a real judge but makes an insane amount of money due to being on tv. There are real legitimate shows where they do a legitimate job. This old House comes to mind.
Home Upgrades That Are A Waste Of Money, According To HGTV's Mike Holmes
- Thread starter GON
- Start date
We have a leftover chunk in the basement. I'll do a comparison, but with the usual cleaning, I don't think there is a difference. Everyone warned us about getting it wet, hot, etc but with two teenagers around it has all that and more...most of the time. Talking to the installer at the time, he spoke of the polishing they do to it before installation, but nothing about sealing it. Asked what would happen if we used it as a cutting board, his only reply was that your knife would get dull very quickly. Not atypical use:
Last edited:
I think it matters more if next to the sink and water from faucet handle / dish rack gets on it and mold grow in there. If it is a dark color granite it isn't as obvious but light color one may discolor over time.
Zee09
$200 Site Donor 2023
- Joined
- May 5, 2018
- Messages
- 20,830
Same here and they look great.
Not reading all that, but laminate counters work just fine.
I think it's nuts that some folks pay in the 5 figures for what amounts to a workbench for food.
I think it's nuts that some folks pay in the 5 figures for what amounts to a workbench for food.
Isn't the whole point of granite or quartz countertops their durability? Sure, they may stain a bit easier, but that shouldn't be a problem if the family isn't a bunch of slobs. Other than that they can take a beating or hot pots. They have in our experience without issues.
Again-you can't hurt granite by putting hot pans on it. It's in our kitchen I have been sitting 350 to 450 degree pans on it for nine years with no issues.
It seems there are those who have granite-and know what it is-and others who don't know it can handle high temperatures-even tho it comes from a side of a mountain with sun shining on it.....
I seal mine once a year-with the same solution that I have had for the last nine years-it doesn't take much. I am surprised your installer didn't tell you-because once a year sealing is pretty much accepted as standard practice. That's about the only thing GON has ever posted I agree with....
You do home projects for you, to help with your everday living. Except for a few exterior upgrades ( front entry and garage doors ), you will never recoup those dollars spent for remodels when the house is sold.
Can't stand colored kitchen cabinets and all white interiors. Reminds me of a hospital . If it's wood, I like to see the grain of natural wood , especially oak.
Can't stand colored kitchen cabinets and all white interiors. Reminds me of a hospital . If it's wood, I like to see the grain of natural wood , especially oak.
Honestly - never heard of this guy.
Incorrect. Kitchen and bathroom upgrades increase home sale value.
I see it routinely in home sales where we live. $50-$$70,000 differences in sale price between homes that need those upgrades and homes where they were never done.
I agree.
I think I said this already. No hack jobs.
My example is odd, but so far the work on this house is neutral - IOW it's for US but, adds some level of appeal. Example is adding an arched exposed beam cover on the breezeway. It made no sense that the house/shop distance wasn't covered. I had to permit it and pay a licensed structural engineer $700 with the plans, hired a guy for beam setting and such, paid for a matching professional roof, gutters, etc and mein gott the lumber was expensive (2021!!!) , but we love it, looks great. ~$12K. Potential buyer would not think it was added, yet appeal is there in all ways. Neutral yet adds some value.
I have soapstone countertops, near black and look gorgeous. Almost impossible to stain but we gotta stay mindful they are easier to scratch , but it’s not like scratching a car as the color doesn’t change.
Tasteful and thoughtful house renovations or upgrades absolutely add value to your house. The exceptions are if you pick some odd color choices or something that is super specific and will not appeal to most people.
As far as recouping the cost, it all depends. If you DIY a lot of the work and don’t make a butchery of it, then it’s pretty much a guarantee you will make a nice profit.
If you contract it out and don’t go “crazy” then at the very least you will break even.
But some people do go “crazy” thinking they will recoup the costs when selling, and in that situation there may be some big disappointments.
As with anything, you need to use your head and apply some common sense.
As far as recouping the cost, it all depends. If you DIY a lot of the work and don’t make a butchery of it, then it’s pretty much a guarantee you will make a nice profit.
If you contract it out and don’t go “crazy” then at the very least you will break even.
But some people do go “crazy” thinking they will recoup the costs when selling, and in that situation there may be some big disappointments.
As with anything, you need to use your head and apply some common sense.
Sure it will increase the value, not by the amount invested. . Remodeling to just increase the value or to sell is money poorly spent. You will recoup about sixty cents for every dollar spent. That's not a good investment to me.
Nonsense. If I paid $18,000 for new kitchen cabinets, new quartz countertops, new tile back and new kitchen lighting and I did a good job because I can, that's a $30-$40,000 upgrade in the sale value of my home. If I paid a contractor it would be a wash. So for $18K+ I'll pocket the difference. You clearly haven't been involved in real estate transactions recently not educated yourself about trends in the real estate market.
That's almost exactly what I paid for my kitchen back in 2020. The house was built in 1996 and the kitchen was largely untouched...so yes, I absolutely added more than the roughly $20k that I spent in value to the house by ushering a 25 year old kitchen into this decade. I did it for us to enjoy, with the side benefit of adding equity.