Brand New Bathroom: Worth the Cost?

 

GABRIELA: Yeah, it’s nice to talk to you. I like your show a lot.

 

LESLIE: Thank you.

 

TOM: Thank you.

 

GABRIELA: We’re saving up to do our bathroom in a couple of months; to start, hopefully. And what I’m wondering is – you know, we go into the stores – The Home Depot, the Lowe’s, the Expos – and I see that it’s beautiful sinks and the tubs that have the jets and what an investment it is, you know, to get it started.

 

TOM: Right.

 

GABRIELA: But in the end – like, you know, maybe down the line; I don’t know, 10 or 12, 15 years from now – I don’t know, is it worth the – do you get kind of your money back? Does it add that much value to your home to splurge?

 

TOM: Sure. There are certain home improvements that will give you a great return on investment and others that won’t and improving your bathroom or your kitchen really consistently, over the years, have given you the best ROI. So you’re going to get two benefits: first of all, you’re going to get an improved or maintained home value; and secondly, you’re going to have the sidekick benefit of being able to use that for the next decade or so. So I think that it’s wise to spend a bit of money on a bathroom or a kitchen upgrade. You don’t necessarily have to go luxury. You can go mid-grade and do just fine.

 

GABRIELA: OK. Alright.

 

LESLIE: I mean it really depends on your preference; what do you like. I mean when it comes down to it, it’s what do you like and the durability is really going to work itself out in the end.

 

GABRIELA: OK, yeah. I mean I do want something nice – you know, that’s comfortable; that’ll last a while – but in conversation with my husband, he’s like, “Well, a sink is a sink and the water will come out and it’ll drain and …” (chuckles) You know? And I see his point but the look and the appeal of it is that …

 

TOM: (overlapping voices) Well, you know what? Sure. You want to invest in good-quality products. They are going to give you a good return on investment. You know, a sink – yes, all sinks hold water. Some look a little more stylish than others, some wear better than others and especially the plumbing fixtures themselves. You know, there’s a big difference between a good-quality faucet from Moen and one that perhaps is from some lesser manufacturer. They look good and they last for a long time. There’s nothing like having ceramic valves, for example, that are not going to leak.

 

GABRIELA: Right.

 

TOM: Alright, good luck with that project. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT.