10 Ways People Destroy the Value of Their Homes, According to Real Estate Agents

When you own a home, you have the power to treat it however you'd like. There's no landlord checking up on things. The freedom to renovate and care for your home can be an amazing feeling. But not every 'improvement' will increase a home's value. In fact, the wrong choices could actually destroy the value of your home.

Protecting your home's value and preparing for unexpected repairs are smart homeowner moves. This guide explores some of the biggest ways people damage their homes' value, according to real estate agents who've seen it all.

Unpermitted renovations

Skipping the permitting process might seem faster and easier, but it could create problems when you sell.

"If you've added a bath, converted a basement, or built a deck and failed to get a permit for it, your buyers will eventually discover this, and then you will be left either remedying the situation before you close, or drastically reducing your price to accommodate the problem," says Steve Jolly, real estate broker and founder of NashvilleRealEstateNow.com.

Converting the garage into living space

Many homeowners opt to convert their garage into a living space, like an extra bedroom. While that change might make your home more livable for your household, it could hurt your home's resale value.

"In this current market, a buyer expects and wants a garage, and as soon as you've eliminated yours, you will remove yourself from many shopping lists without even realizing that you have," says Jolly.

Lingering smoke and pet odors

Bad odors can be difficult to clear up. If you have strong smoking or pet odors in your home, that's an easy way to destroy its value.

"As a seller, you most often will be the last to realize what your odor actually is like," says Jolly.

DIY projects gone wrong

If you're great at DIY projects, that's one thing. But if your DIY projects often go sideways, that could end up hurting your home's value.

"Crooked tiles, cabinets that stick and don't seal properly, or electrical fixtures that aren't installed plumb and flush can signal to the buyer that if THIS is what's visible to the eye, who knows what is behind the walls," says Jolly.

Putting off essential maintenance

Although it's tempting to put off maintenance until later, it's important to do it before it damages your home. For example, keeping up with regular roof maintenance could save you thousands of dollars in water damage.

"Ignoring minor damages to the roof and plumbing can turn into major headaches," says Ryan Dossey, co-founder at SoldFast.

Solar panels

To some, solar panels seem like an obvious way to improve a home's value. But sometimes solar panels can negatively impact your home's value, according to Jeff Lichtenstein, CEO and broker at Echo Fine Properties in South Florida.

"Depending on politics and the region of the country, this can be a hard sell," says Lichtenstein. "The most difficult part is that is virtually an impossible sell to people who not only don't believe in it but have trouble understanding future savings."

Overly personal design choices

As a homeowner, you can make customizations to your space. But if you take the personalization too far, it can hurt your home's value.

For example, murals are "way too personal," says Lichtenstein.

Urinals are another iffy choice. "I've had two homes over the years," says Lichtenstein, "Nobody wants to look at that. They both sat - which is what people want to see and do when they go to the bathroom in their own home!"

Landscaping that blocks light or views

You may want to create a private space. But putting up too many dense bushes can actually make your property feel smaller than it actually is, which is a turn-off for buyers, especially if all that landscaping is blocking a nice view.

"People who put up a wall of landscaping blocking their view make the house not only feel smaller inside but lose the enjoyment of the view that a person buying it wants as a premium," says Lichtenstein, "I had one that I took over that had been sitting for 365 days in which got 2 full price offers on when I put back on the market when we scalped the hedges."

Odd paint colors

As the homeowner, you get to choose any wall color you like. But if you want to protect the home's value, it's best to stick to colors most people will like.

"Right now, it's really trendy for off-color paint, but it only appeals to a certain amount of people," says Ryan Smith, founder of Cinch Homebuyers, a real estate investment company in North Carolina. "Things like painting a house black can reduce the value because a lot of buyers want 'normal'."

Ignoring signs of pest damage

Homeownership comes with lots of chores, and one of those is keeping up with any pests that find their way inside. That's especially true in the case of termites, which can cause thousands of dollars worth of damage.

Recently, Smith experienced this firsthand when touring a property that looked great on the outside. "But then I had one of my contractors go underneath the house, and it was bad. They found termite damage, and our repair estimate of $20,000 ballooned all the way to $70,000," says Smith.

If the homeowner had kept up with regular termite treatments, they might have walked away with a much larger check.

Bottom line

Of course, you want to use your home in a way that works best for your household. But it's a good idea to keep these common mistakes in mind to avoid accidentally destroying your home's value.

This isn't just important if you plan to sell your home. It's also helpful to protect your home's value if you plan to tap into your home's equity anytime soon.

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