For a given house, it’s impossible to say definitely that fixing up the house results in a higher sales price that more than offsets the cost of the improvements. For that, you’d need two parallel universes where you do the improvements in one, and not in the other. That said, my gut feeling is that it often is worth putting some money into cosmetic things. Cracked floors or counters in the kitchen that might cost $4000 to fix might very well put a lot of buyers off even putting in an offer. Curiously, telling them that the roof is totally shot and might cost >10,000 doesn’t even phase them. I think it’s a case of things that are “in your face” have more of an emotional impact. So, I would take care of cosmetic stuff. That doesn’t mean do the best job possible. Perhaps nice, neutral linoleum and cheap cabinets? I was in your position and did the improvements, and while it’s hard to know, I really do think we more than recouped our money. I got to say though, I was sort of bummed when I heard the new owners were going to rip out the kitchen anyhow. Also, don’t forget the easy things: clean screens, remove overbearing plants (that you might love) and create space.
