Surprise: New garage door tops list of high-impact, affordable home improvements

(BPT) - Youve finally scraped together some money to improve the looks of your house.

Problem: Every project costs too much or produces a minor improvement.

Solution: A stunning new garage door. A front-facing garage door packs a big punch and dramatically improves the curb appeal of the entire home.

Thats one of the big revelations from the 2012-2013 Cost vs. Value Report by Remodeling Magazine. In the report, a garage door replacement again ranked in the top three in cost recouped on a list of 35 common home remodeling projects.

Siding replacement and a deck addition also ranked at the top, but they can cost $10,000 to $15,000. An upscale garage door often costs less than $3,000.

The project that pays for itself

No other exterior home project transforms such a large space at such minimal cost and time, says Tom Wadsworth, long-time editor of a garage door trade magazine. Since a homes garage doors can take up more than a third of the front elevation of the home, a new garage door can make a big difference.

And a stylish new garage door can actually pay for itself, according to a Stratamark Research survey. When nationwide real estate agents were shown before and after photos of houses with new upscale garage doors, they increased the list price of the home anywhere from 1 to 4 percent. That means a $2,000 garage door investment could increase the sale value of your home by as much as $8,000 if youre selling a $200,000 home.

Making a difference

Brad and Jenny Considine recently moved from the Midwest to a nice home outside Baltimore. They had a budget for making improvements, but they had a tough time prioritizing which job should come first. They were glad they chose the garage doors because the change was dramatic, says Brad.

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Surprise: New garage door tops list of high-impact, affordable home improvements