A new garage door costs about $4,672 nationally and an upscale primary suite addition about $351,613, and the share of that cost that real estate agents estimate comes back at sale runs from 268 percent for the first to 18 percent for the second, according to the most recent Cost vs. Value report from the Journal of Light Construction.

The 2025 edition, dated September 18, 2025, is the current one; the report's own site lists no 2026 edition. It compares the average cost of 28 defined remodeling projects with the value agents estimate each one adds at resale, across 119 U.S. markets.

How the numbers are made

Job costs start from a national baseline built with price indexes from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Bureau of Economic Analysis, including federal data on installer wages, running from 2019 to the present. Local costs come from Verisk's XactRemodel estimating software. Resale value comes from an online survey of more than 6,000 Realtors, run by Zonda with the National Association of Realtors' Realtors Property Resource. Respondents saw each project's description, photos, construction cost and the local median home price, and estimated what each project would add to a home's sale price.

That design shapes what the figures mean. Resale value is an estimate from agents, not a measured sale price or an appraisal, and each project is a fixed specification in a typical house. A real job differs in size, materials, the house's condition and local labor, and the report does not measure energy savings, lower maintenance or what a project is worth to the people living with it.

The smaller exterior projects lead the list

Five projects carry estimated resale values above their national average cost. Garage door replacement: $4,672 cost, $12,507 estimated resale value, 268 percent recouped. Steel entry door replacement: $2,435 cost, $5,270 value, 216 percent. Manufactured stone veneer: $11,702 cost, $24,328 value, 208 percent. Fiber-cement siding replacement: $21,485 cost, $24,420 value, 114 percent. A midrange minor kitchen remodel: $28,458 cost, $32,141 value, 113 percent.

Several larger projects land between roughly two thirds and all of their cost. Vinyl siding replacement: $17,950 cost, 97 percent. A backup power generator: $13,534, 95 percent. A wood deck addition: $18,263, 95 percent. A composite deck: $25,096, 89 percent. Vinyl window replacement: $22,073, 76 percent. An HVAC conversion to all-electric heat and cooling: $19,484, 72 percent. A basement remodel: $52,012, 71 percent. An asphalt shingle roof replacement: $31,871, 68 percent.

Additions and upscale work recoup the least

At the other end are the projects that add space or use upscale finishes. A midrange major kitchen remodel costs $82,793 nationally and recoups 51 percent; its upscale version costs $164,104 and recoups 36 percent. An accessory dwelling unit costs $166,406 and recoups 41 percent. A midrange primary suite addition costs $170,517 and recoups 32 percent. A solar power installation costs $55,937 and recoups 30 percent. The upscale primary suite addition, the most expensive project in the report, recoups 18 percent.

Where the house is changes the math

The report breaks each project down for the nine census divisions and for individual cities. In New England, a midrange minor kitchen remodel costs $28,936, close to the national figure, but agents there estimate $38,865 in added value, or 134 percent recouped, against 113 percent nationally. A midrange major kitchen remodel in New England costs $84,000 and recoups 50 percent, in line with the nation.

An asphalt shingle roof replacement, specified as 30 squares (about 3,000 square feet) torn off to the sheathing and replaced with fiberglass asphalt shingles rated at a minimum of 235 pounds with at least a 25-year warranty, ranges from $27,116 in the West South Central division (Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Texas) to $35,701 in New England and $36,391 in the Pacific division (Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon and Washington). The share recouped in those divisions runs from 63 percent in New England to 76 percent in the Pacific.

Costs move with local labor rates, material prices, permit fees and the condition of what is being replaced. The report's specifications describe a typical job, so rot behind siding, a second layer of old roofing or wiring that has to be brought up to code adds to a real bid.

Finding a local figure

The full report lists every project for each of its 119 markets, with the specification used for each, which makes it a reference for comparing written bids line by line. Most of the projects on the list, from roofs and siding to kitchens and additions, require a building permit in many jurisdictions, and the local building department sets which ones.

This article reports rules, data and expert guidance. It is not legal, tax, insurance or financial advice. Talk to a licensed pro, your tax advisor or your insurer before you act on it.

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