{"id":22495,"date":"2025-12-08T07:05:06","date_gmt":"2025-12-08T07:05:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/budgetadirect.com\/?p=22495"},"modified":"2025-12-08T07:05:08","modified_gmt":"2025-12-08T07:05:08","slug":"renovate-or-relocate-the-expensive-question-facing-homeowners","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/budgetadirect.com\/?p=22495","title":{"rendered":"Renovate Or Relocate? The Expensive Question Facing Homeowners"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Jeremy Nunes calls it the \u201cmoney pit.\u201d<\/p>\n

The three-bedroom, ranch-style home in central Illinois looked like a dream when Nunes and his wife purchased it in 2017, needing what appeared to be little more than a $10,000 bathroom remodel to be perfect.<\/p>\n

\n
<\/figure>\n
\n

Then came the unexpected. A cascade of problems gobbled up their savings after the first year. Nunes spent $7,500 to waterproof the basement, $5,000 for gas line upgrades, $2,500 to repair the basement walls and $15,000 to fix his sewer line \u2014 an expense that forced them to borrow from family members.<\/p>\n

And he\u2019s not done. The comedian and humor author estimates he\u2019ll soon need up to $20,000 to replace his aging roof. How will he pay for it? \u201cSadly, I don\u2019t know,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Many homeowners find themselves in a similar predicament: pay for renovation costs that are near record highs or start another home search at a time when home prices have passed them by. As a result, homeowners in many corners of the country have been forced to temper their expectations of a perfect home and find new ways to adapt.<\/p>\n

That has meant learning how to fix what they can on their own, digging deeper into their finances than expected and, in some cases, redefining what a home is for their family.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s how four homeowners are navigating the decision to stay put and what they\u2019re learning along the way.<\/p>\n

Sweat equity, strategy and savings\u00a0<\/h2>\n

In 2021, when Billy Heany and his wife bought their 1,700-square-foot home in Federal Way, Washington, it felt just right, although it needed some updates. However, since welcoming two daughters, the house has grown tighter.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n
\n

Instead of selling, the wedding DJ focused on repairing and renovating to make the home work better for their growing family. With a 2.6% mortgage rate and a $2,600 monthly mortgage payment (including taxes and insurance), he says moving isn\u2019t exactly an option for them.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe really like our house, and we think we\u2019re lucky with what we have,\u201d Heany says. \u201cBut I don\u2019t think we really have another choice. I was comparing it to a friend who\u2019s looking to rent in the area. He\u2019s like, \u2018We can\u2019t find anything decent for less than $3,000 a month and your mortgage is less than that.\u2019<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Heany knew he couldn\u2019t afford the estimated $120,000 it would have cost to renovate the kitchen, update the electrical and plumbing, and repair rodent damage in the attic and crawl space. So he turned to his family and friends.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI became the project manager,\u201d Heany says. \u201cI would have teams of friends and family show up to, like, help do certain things. In today\u2019s market, maintaining a home, not even renovating, is incredibly expensive unless you do a lot yourself.\u201d<\/p>\n

For some families, financing home improvements with a home equity loan, HELOC, renovation loan, credit cards or personal loan is the only way to afford it. But Heany knew he didn\u2019t want to go that route because of the cost. \u201cMany large companies offer financing, but often at really inflated rates ranging between 12% and 30%,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Nevertheless, Heany says that his choices aren\u2019t just about money. \u201cIt\u2019s useful knowing what things add value to the home, but it\u2019s more important to treat your house like a home rather than an asset. Assets don\u2019t raise a family or bring joy, homes do!\u201d<\/p>\n

Delayed renovations and the challenge of older homes\u00a0<\/h2>\n

For homeowners, buying an older house can quickly turn into a expensive reality. Jamie Mazur of Lyle, Illinois, knows this all too well.<\/p>\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n
\n

She and her husband bought a 1939 home in 2019 only to discover that updating it would cost far more than they imagined. A kitchen remodel was quoted at $120,000, way outside their budget. Fixing the leveling in their basement? Another $50,000. An air conditioning system? Another $20,000. Six years later, the travel and lifestyle writer and her husband still can\u2019t afford to pay for any of it.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

For now, they have updated all the kitchen appliances and will paint the cabinets when their budget allows. \u201cWe haven\u2019t considered taking out additional loans simply because both my husband and I are averse to taking on debt when we\u2019ve already got a home loan and a car loan.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

However, as Rachel Drew, director of the Remodeling Futures Program at the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University, explains, delaying much-needed housing repairs comes with its own problems for homeowners.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne is the likelihood that the costs to do the work will go up in the future and be more expensive later on,\u201d she says. \u201cAnother is that older systems may not work as well as newer ones, costing homeowners more in the interim in higher operating costs. In delaying the work, the homeowner risks facing a bigger maintenance issue, such as a leak from an aging roof or worn-out plumbing, that results in both greater expense and disruption to them in the long run.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mazur says it\u2019s mostly an ego blow not to be able to make these updates.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s just easier to accept the realization that it will be about another three to four years until we can get this renovation,\u201d she says. \u201cI would really rather take the devil I know versus the devil I don\u2019t, and that\u2019s why we\u2019re sticking around.\u201d<\/p>\n

Renovations as a wealth-building tool\u00a0\u00a0<\/h2>\n

When Zanade Mann and her husband bought their 1910 Staten Island home in 2020, she fulfilled a lifelong dream. \u201cMy grandparents had an apartment for many years and never owned a home,\u201d she says. \u201cAlways, this has been a lifelong, generational wealth type of dream for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

They purchased the home using a VA loan, with her husband serving full-time in the Army National Guard. They also locked in an incredible 2.75% interest rate. But a decision that once felt like winning the lottery now seems more complicated.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

If they were to look for another house, \u201cthere\u2019s no way we\u2019re getting a comparable interest rate, and there\u2019s no way we\u2019re getting another home for the same cost of the home that we have,\u201d she says.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Soon after moving in, Mann and her husband were hit with a $10,000 bill for a new furnace for their century-old home. That essential repair, along with a $7,000 bill for a water filtration system, wiped out their reserves and forced them to tap their emergency savings. There was also a $20,000 estimate to repair the aging electrical system in their 115-year-old house, though fortunately, she says those repairs aren\u2019t needed right now.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Mann recalls thinking, \u201c\u2018What is wrong with you, Z? I don\u2019t even have the money to really pour into the house.\u2019\u201d Now, the marketing and public relations leader can look back with a bit more perspective. She knows the role homeownership has played in helping Black families build wealth. Living through those unexpected expenses reinforced her belief that the home is one of many ways she will pass on generational wealth for her three girls.<\/p>\n

\u201cI see this home being the house that Mommy really wanted,\u201d Mann says. \u201cShe got it, she fixed it up, she left us with something that we can make some money off of [renting it out]. The other side is maybe they all want to live here and be an intergenerational family in this home, as they are raising their own children, if they have any.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

A decision with no easy answer\u00a0<\/h2>\n

For millions of homeowners, the choice between renovating and relocating isn\u2019t really a choice at all; it\u2019s a calculation shaped by interest rates, repair bills, incomes and the kinds of homes available in their communities.<\/p>\n

Some homeowners stay because they love their homes. Others stay because they simply can\u2019t afford to leave. And many stay because the cost of moving outweighs the cost of making do.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Aniket Mehrotra, policy coordinator with the Housing Finance Policy Center at the Urban Institute, sums it up. \u201cThe choices might seem impossible at the moment, but all hope is not lost. It might be that homeowners need to stay put for a little bit.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n Did you find this page helpful?<\/p>\n
\n
\n

\n Why we ask for feedback<\/strong>
\n Your feedback helps us improve our content and services. It takes less than a minute to
\n complete.\n <\/p>\n

Your responses are anonymous and will only be used for improving our website.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

Help us improve our content<\/p>\n

\n