It’s always important to consider resale value when you make home improvements, and you should strive to get as much “bang for your buck” as possible. You can usually recoup your investment in kitchen and bathroom upgrades, but they come with a hefty up-front price tag. On the other hand, you can also significantly improve your home’s resale value by replacing or upgrading your HVAC system. An upgraded heating and air conditioning system also offers increased comfort for you and your family and immediate energy savings. Here are a few affordable HVAC upgrades that can increase the resale value of your home.
Air Filtration System
Improving your home’s indoor air quality (IAQ) offers several important benefits. If you or anyone in your home suffers from asthma or other respiratory problems, you already understand the importance of filtering out pollen, allergens, pet dander, and other irritants from the air. Mold and mildew can also make healthy people just as sick.
An energy recovery ventilator (ERV) connects to your home ventilation system to pump out stale and stagnant air from inside the house and draw in clean air from outdoors. In addition to improving your air quality, an ERV can also improve heat retention during the winter months and reduce heat gain in the summer. Many modern HVAC systems have air filtration systems built-in, and you can also install a whole-home active air purifier as an additional layer of defense against allergens and bacteria.
Smart Thermostat
A programmable thermostat is a great way to manage your home energy costs by automatically raising or lowering your home temperature while you’re asleep or at work. Unfortunately, the earliest programmable thermostat models were difficult to program and adjust. But thermostats have come a long way over the years, and smart thermostats offer a lot more flexibility and a much more intuitive user interface these days. You can program global default settings into your thermostat and easily override those settings at any time. Most smart thermostats also include Bluetooth connectivity and app functionality so that you can make changes remotely and ensure that your home will be comfortable when you return.
The Mississippi Gulf Coast is well known for seasonal weather extremes, and a smart thermostat will help you manage your energy costs no matter what Mother Nature has in store for us. In addition to offering year-round energy savings, smart thermostats and smart appliances can also increase the resale value of your home.
New Insulation
Your home insulation needs to be replaced every 15 to 20 years, and you can easily recoup your investment when it comes time to sell your home. A well-insulated attic improves your home’s overall energy efficiency, and your HVAC system won’t have to work quite as hard to compensate for heat gain in poorly insulated rooms. Savvy home buyers are always interested in purchasing an energy-efficient home, and new insulation can be a great selling point. In fact, budget-conscious home buyers are often more amenable to homes that offer energy savings than to paying a higher price for a home featuring a remodeled kitchen and bathrooms.
Whole-Home Dehumidifier
During the summer months, excess humidity makes a home feel much hotter. Excess humidity can also create more dust and a fertile breeding ground for mold, mildew, and bacteria. A whole-home dehumidifier helps to lower your energy costs by decreasing the home’s relative humidity and making the residence feel more comfortable when the thermostat is set to higher temperatures. Whole-home dehumidifiers are much more efficient than portable stand-alone dehumidifiers, and they can improve your home’s resale value.
New Heat Pump or Furnace
Home furnaces have a life expectancy of 15 to 25 years, and HVAC systems have a life expectancy of 15 to 20 years. Homeowners who schedule annual preventive maintenance often manage to enjoy many years of service beyond the unit’s anticipated operational lifespan, but you don’t have to wait for your unit to break down before you replace it. An older unit will predictably begin to get less efficient, and it’s much more likely to malfunction.
Prospective buyers are always on the lookout for homes that are move-in ready, and they might be hesitant to make an offer on a home that will need expensive upgrades right away. A new high-efficiency system is a great way to increase your home’s resale value, and you’ll also enjoy immediate energy savings.
Zoning System
Multi-story homes can be particularly difficult to heat and cool, and some homes have layouts that create unique challenges for their comfort systems. If your home has a sunroom, basement, or bonus room over the garage, a conventional HVAC system will often struggle to maintain an even temperature throughout the various spaces. A zoned system or ductless mini-split system will help you heat and cool your home much more efficiently, and it also enables family members in different parts of the home to adjust the temperature to suit their individual preferences.
You can retrofit your existing system for zoned operation or invest in a mini-split system that includes an outdoor compressor/condenser and an indoor air-handling unit in each room. You won’t have to run or retrofit any ductwork to install a mini-split system because all of the room units will be connected to the condenser through a small conduit that houses copper tubing and a few cables. You have your choice of multiple types of air handlers for each room, and you can control the temperature in each room independently. You also won’t be paying to heat and cool unoccupied areas, which can help you lower your energy costs by up to 30%.
Should I Upgrade My Home HVAC System?
Even if you’re planning on selling your home in the immediate future, you owe it to yourself and your family to stay comfortable and breathe clean air. Kitchen and bathroom upgrades can directly impact your home’s resale value but perhaps not enough to recover your investment. Moreover, not making necessary upgrades to your home comfort system could cost you the sale. A finished basement is certainly an attractive upgrade that will appeal to prospective home buyers, but they’re just as likely to keep looking if they know that they’re going to have to replace or upgrade the HVAC system shortly after they move in. Improved comfort and air quality add value to a home, and your family will be able to enjoy the improvements until you list your home for sale with a realtor.
Contact J’s HVAC Unlimited in Mount Airy today if you need heating and air conditioning services or if you’re ready to schedule a free estimate for a new HVAC system anywhere in the Mobile vicinity.
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