- Troy Stowe -

	MIDRANGE			UPSCALE
Market	Job Cost	Resale Value	Cost Recouped	Job Cost	Resale Value	Cost Recouped
National Average	$43,213	$28,760	67%	$70,368	$56,137	80%
Atlanta	41,201	36,220	88	68,181	66,818	98
Boston	45,931	43,292	94	73,075	84,676	116
Buffalo, N.Y.	42,398	21,258	50	69,449	43,420	63
Chicago	47,348	40,486	86	74,443	58,501	79
Cincinnati	42,505	23,867	56	69,701	44,960	65
Cleveland	44,546	30,418	68	71,715	45,840	64
Columbus, Ohio	42,364	16,618	39	69,675	38,218	55
Dallas	40,472	21,250	53	67,696	49,250	73
Denver	40,943	19,157	47	67,904	41,893	62
Detroit	44,499	22,938	52	71,837	42,633	59
Houston	41,547	26,800	65	68,722	46,000	67
Indianapolis	42,564	18,000	42	69,760	42,000	60
Kansas City, Mo.	42,528	22,250	52	69,629	40,413	58
Los Angeles area	45,746	45,903	100	73,157	86,348	118
Los Angeles	46,175	60,109	130	73,402	120,876	165
Orange County, Calif.	45,317	31,696	70	72,911	51,820	71
Miami	40,261	23,815	59	67,467	47,500	70
Milwaukee	44,516	30,484	68	71,618	55,638	78
Minneapolis	47,561	36,083	76	74,705	62,550	84
New Orleans	39,609	27,315	69	66,660	45,749	69
New York area	45,105	40,345	89	72,179	68,549	95
Passaic, N.J.	46,250	31,450	68	73,207	51,500	70
Nassau-Suffolk, N.Y.	45,785	38,657	84	72,736	69,647	96
Fairfield-New Haven, Conn.	43,280	50,928	118	70,593	84,500	120
Norfolk, Va.	38,008	22,200	58	65,082	45,000	69
Orlando, Fla.	39,907	16,364	41	67,001	43,645	65
Philadelphia	45,111	41,022	91	72,272	69,454	96
Phoenix	41,715	18,500	44	68,692	38,000	55
Pittsburgh	43,594	23,700	54	70,707	47,500	67
Portland, Ore.	43,237	27,667	64	69,954	48,333	69
Providence, R.I.	43,759	24,400	56	71,154	47,700	67
Sacramento, Calif.	45,625	24,200	53	73,340	62,000	85
Salt Lake City	39,930	18,100	45	67,160	33,600	50
St. Louis	44,338	28,916	65	71,468	50,042	70
San Antonio	40,366	18,300	45	67,687	50,551	75
San Diego	44,971	31,250	69	72,333	60,750	84
San Francisco area	48,495	46,806	97	75,856	91,174	120
San Francisco	48,495	44,600	92	75,856	91,400	120
Oakland, Calif.	48,495	49,012	101	75,856	90,948	120
Seattle	45,445	34,600	76	72,693	68,585	94
Tampa, Fla.	38,794	23,400	60	66,222	47,000	71
Washington, D.C., area	40,415	26,692	66	67,503	57,574	85
Washington, D.C.	42,118	46,667	111	69,139	93,333	135
Baltimore	40,374	17,408	43	67,569	44,640	66
Richmond, Va.	38,754	16,000	41	65,800	34,750	53

Remodeling
Cost vs. Value Report

Basement Remodel
Most clients want their basements finished for two reasons: They need space, and a basement remodel is usually about a third of the cost of an addition. Mechanicals, foundation, and outside walls are already in place, and no re-landscaping is required.
HomeTech puts the national average cost of remodeling a basement at $43,112. Salespeople and appraisers interviewed for the study predict an average return of $33,911, or 79 percent.
Finished basements are a regional improvement. In areas of the South—Texas and Florida in particular—basements are a rarity.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION
Finish the lower level of a house to create a 20-by-30-foot entertainment area with wet bar, a 5-by-8-foot full bath, and a 12-by-12 foot auxiliary room. Walls and ceilings are painted drywall throughout; exterior walls are insulated; painted trim throughout. Include five six-panel, primed hardboard doors. Main room includes 15 recessed ceiling light fixtures, three surface-mounted light fixtures, and a snap-together laminate flooring system. Bathroom includes a standard white toilet, vanity with cultured marble top, resilient vinyl flooring, two-piece fiberglass shower unit, light-fan combination, vanity light fixture, and recessed medicine cabinet. The bar area includes 10 linear feet of raised panel oak cabinets with laminate countertops, stainless steel bar sink, single-lever bar faucet, under-counter refrigerator, and vinyl floor tile.

Market	Job Cost	Resale Value	Cost Recouped
National Average	$43,112	$33,911	79%
Atlanta	39,690	30,000	76
Boston	49,383	43,802	89
Buffalo, N.Y.	41,854	14,100	34
Chicago	49,071	45,427	93
Cincinnati	42,147	30,450	72
Cleveland	45,720	24,372	53
Columbus, Ohio	41,527	9,076	22
Dallas	N/A	N/A	N/A*
Denver	39,627	22,407	57
Detroit	44,276	24,897	56
Houston	N/A	N/A	N/A*
Indianapolis	41,902	22,000	53
Kansas City, Mo.	41,688	21,250	51
Los Angeles area	47,834	62,084	130
Los Angeles	48,136	83,835	174
Orange County, Calif.	47,532	40,333	85
Miami	N/A	N/A	N/A*
Milwaukee	44,786	28,883	64
Minneapolis	48,103	34,083	71
New Orleans	36,893	30,790	83
New York	46,483	42,426	91
Passaic, N.J.	47,808	35,500	74
Nassau-Suffolk, N.Y.	48,666	35,333	73
Fairfield-New Haven, Conn.	42,975	56,446	131
Norfolk, Va.	33,619	27,750	83
Orlando, Fla.	36,845	26,182	71
Philadelphia	45,593	34,795	76
Phoenix	39,855	25,833	65
Pittsburgh	43,433	33,250	77
Portland, Ore.	44,072	32,667	74
Providence, R.I.	43,529	25,200	58
Sacramento, Calif.	45,967	35,000	76
Salt Lake City	37,298	26,300	71
St. Louis	45,291	27,167	60
San Antonio	37,937	34,032	90
San Diego	45,809	41,250	90
San Francisco area	51,428	68,659	134
San Francisco	51,428	67,100	130
Oakland, Calif.	51,428	70,217	137
Seattle	45,981	36,317	79
Tampa, Fla.	35,141	20,750	59
Washington, D.C., area	37,743	30,606	81
Washington, D.C.	40,133	47,666	119
Baltimore	38,046	19,276	51
Richmond, Va.	35,050	24,875	71

MIDRANGE

UPSCALE