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Use The Right Materials to Increase Value in a Bathroom Remodel

The 2018 Cost vs. Value Report came loaded with good news for homeowners dreaming of a beautiful bathroom remodel. If you balance your costs correctly, a mid-range renovation can deliver 70% ROI in terms of home value.

However, you need to ensure you are planning properly and selecting the right materials in order to generate a high return. Think like a homebuyer when designing to create a functional, visually appealing space that will generate return on your initial investment.

The first step to making your bathroom remodel a reality is choosing the right materials. There are many nuances and decisions to make, but here are a few tips to help with your selection process.

1. Materials for Bathroom Flooring

We’ve discussed bathroom flooring in the past. This post breaks down the various materials you could choose for your remodel—vinyl, ceramic tile, cork, porcelain tile, and natural stone.

While all of these are potential options, not all of them will help you maximize ROI.
If you’re looking for a closer balance between home value and aesthetics, porcelain tile and natural stone are the two options you may want to consider. You’ll pay a higher premium for natural stone and it doesn’t come in as many different styles as porcelain tile. However, natural stone will offer easier installation and a timeless beauty that’s unmatched by most materials.

It’s best to work closely with your designer and contractor to decide which material is best for your needs and your budget.

2. Materials for Bathroom Countertops

If you’ve ever thought about remodeling your kitchen, you might already be familiar with countertop materials.

Just like in the kitchen, granite and quartz (engineered stone) dominate in terms of home value and aesthetics (and for the bathroom, you can add marble to the list as well).

While laminate has been the economical, go-to option for bathroom vanities for years, it doesn’t exactly make the same statement to homebuyers as granite, marble, and quartz.

All three of these preferred options come at a similar price (for the most part), so choosing is a matter of style. Granite has the most options of grades and patterns but with a little research, you can find marble and quartz in a style that will work for you as well.

3. Choosing Fixtures for the Bathroom

Generally, fixtures and finishes come down to personal taste. However, you may be able to boost home value by opting for stainless steel base materials rather than plastics or lesser-grade metals.

More important is choosing toilets, sinks, showers, and tubs that make an impression with buyers.

While higher-end shower heads and sprayers may feel like luxuries that won’t fit your budget, you may be surprised. Splurging on fixtures could make a major difference in the first impression a homebuyer has when looking at your bathroom.

4. Materials for Bathroom Storage

Not every bathroom can accommodate a large storage closet. Sometimes you have to get creative with cabinets to make the room as usable as possible.

As you start to spend your budget, be careful not to be tempted by low-end bathroom cabinets. These options will be made of the same particleboard that you’d want avoid in a kitchen remodel. But avoiding particleboard is even more important in the bathroom. Not only is it a lower quality material, but it’s also prone to water damage.

In a continuously humid bathroom environment, particleboard just won’t hold up. Upgrade to plywood-based cabinets to maintain value and increase longevity.

Balancing Style and Value

It’s difficult to offer definitive answers about what your bathroom should look like and be made of. Spend some time looking through bathroom remodel portfolios and you’ll find there are countless options to increase your aesthetics and home resale value.

Rather than stressing about the individual components, work with a bathroom remodeling contractor you trust to guide you through the process and come up with a design that works for you and your home.