5智能家居改进？再想一想！

Built-in aquariums: the amenity that quickly becomes an eyesore.

Of all the misfired home improvements that Daniel Fries has observed in his 30 years as a home appraiser, aquariums top his list of 2012 loss leaders—home improvements that offered little to no return on investment.

“这不是一个谨慎的投资,”扎薯条,who is based in Atlanta, GA. The tank’s glass fogs, while grimy filters emit an odor of rotting seaweed. Even worse—yes, it gets worse—some owners repurpose fish aquariums as reptile dwellings. And few things send a potential home buyer fleeing faster than the sight of a bull snake in the dining room.

Aquariums top our list of “improvements” with poor return on investment, but every project on that list has at least one thing in common: a profound mismatch between a homeowner’s intent and a neighborhood’s standards.

当地文化，偏好和市场状况决定了改进的回报。Sink your money into amenities that don’t reflect the norm for your immediate area and you won’t even gain a 5% premium over neighboring homes, regardless of what you spent, says Kevin Cross, owner of the Anchorage, AK-based real estate agency Cross & Associates.

Case in point:花岗岩台面实际上破坏了阿拉斯加的市场价值。极端温度变化力不变稳定和家庭基础重新调整，从而导致坚固的石头表面的翘曲和破裂。层压板足以使其成为首选的柜台材料。

“Understand that anyone looking for a house is going to stand in front of yours with their cell phone looking at all the estimated values of the houses all around yours,” he continues. “When a buyer looks at a house, they’re not looking for reasons to buy a house. They’re looking for reasons to not buy yours. Your job is to remove as many of those reasons ‘not to buy’. If it’s priced right, clean, staged and looks inviting, an older house will sell faster than a new house even with superior amenities.”

Buyers pick up on price discrepancies immediately and aren’t willing to pay for misguided improvements… like the rest of the items on our list of topdon’ts。

Loss leader #2: Built-in electronics
吹牛的权利距离最新电视和声音系统仅几个月。一旦下一个Gizmo在市场上的土地上，今天的闪亮玩具很快就会玷污。通过闪电图添加到直线独立式电子设备的增值可能是可辩护的，但至少您可以轻松地与您带齿轮。内置常常主导整个房间，他们的混响也可以侵蚀相邻房间的可用性。

The owner of a $3 million house bragged to Fries that his built-in sound system cost $650,000. That was overkill even for a mansion. “He could have spent $50,000 on the多媒体室and gotten just as much value from it,” says Fries. “You have to consider electronics as personal property, even if they are built in.”

Loss leader #3: Eliminating a third or fourth bedroom.
当然，一个步入式衣橱和扩展沐浴大师将是卖点 - 但只有那个空间没有从第三或第四卧室劫持。如果街区常规是三间卧室，两卧室房屋处于严重的劣势。卧室的数量应该与共同的生活空间平衡。卧室太多或太少的房子有一种不平衡的布局，对许多买家都没有用。还想要那位主人衣柜吗？如果您申请第二个基本的回报规则，您可能能够证明它(keep reading).

Loss leader #4: Overimproving the basement.
低于等级的改进从未支付过多的空间翻新或增加等级。小心地比较装修阁楼的成本，加入屋顶或甚至抬起屋顶，到高端地下室改造。对于中型房屋尤其如此。高端房屋可能能够保留完成地下室的值，而是仅当所有上述等级空间即可宜居。

损失领导者＃5：膨胀户外生活空间与气候有同步。
Outdoor kitchens with manly grills and wood counters can be used ten months a year in the South, so those projects retain value, says Fries. Not so much in the North, where a fireplace is a cozier investment. Cross reports that water features don’t sell Alaskan houses, considering that they are under four feet of snow for half the year. Especially if you are relocating, settle in to the local lifestyle before creating a sunroom, screened porch, elaborate deck oroutdoor kitchen。

这些恐怖的每个恐怖都是在宏伟的家庭改善的误解之中：如果你建造它，他们将支付。薯条解释说，如果改善将房屋的市场价值从其价值从其价值增加超过10％，则评估师的准则将迫使贷方挑战。随着您的项目预算范围，将总标签保持不超过您房屋当前价值的10％。只有在个人享受方面计算回报才能花费更多。

用作参考重塑杂志的年度成本与价值报告。区域突破绘制重塑成本，回报和差异。平均值对于基准测试估计非常有用，可以帮助您从一开始就预期。

它可以是一个平衡行动，以抛光到完美的回报点，特别是如果你期望很快出售房子。考虑放入一个适度的价格，可以让房间令人难忘。例如，厨房里的一刚内置特色电器可以是卖点。该器具可能是暖色抽屉，或葡萄酒冷却器，或带有扒炉的五燃烧器炉，而不是标准的四燃烧器炉。即便如此，就较短的卖空时间计算您的回报，而不是美元偿还。

有一个消耗的解毒剂。评估师称之为“治愈成本”，而且它是second cardinal rule of return。How much will it cost to rip out the offending amenity and make that part of the house look, well, normal?

治愈遗弃水族馆的成本仅为1000美元。将步入式衣柜恢复到卧室的费用可能只需500美元。但撕掉了藻类堵塞，摇摇欲坠的成本swimming pool可以跑十次。有疑问，获得两项估计：一个人进入改进，另一个估计，另一个避开它。

如果你必须拥有它，预算时间和金钱的“治愈”，并确保你的同时从该功能中挤压每一刻幸福。