Not every renovation adds value in proportion to what it costs. Before deciding how to fund a project — with a HELOC, a personal loan, or savings — it's worth stepping back and asking whether the project is worth financing at all. Some upgrades pay for themselves, or come close to it, at resale. Others are purely lifestyle spending that happen to involve a contractor. Both can be reasonable choices, but they call for different funding decisions.
Projects that improve function, efficiency, and curb appeal (roofing, siding, garage doors, minor kitchen updates) tend to recoup a higher share of their cost at resale than large, highly personalized projects (pools, high-end primary suite additions, luxury kitchen overhauls).
Typical cost ranges by project
Actual costs vary significantly by region, home size, and finish level, but the ranges below reflect what's commonly reported for mid-range projects across the US. Use them as a starting point for your own budgeting, not a quote.
| Project | Typical cost range | Value recovery at resale |
|---|---|---|
| Minor kitchen remodel | $15,000 – $30,000 | Typically high |
| Full kitchen remodel | $30,000 – $75,000+ | Moderate |
| Bathroom remodel | $10,000 – $25,000 | Typically high |
| Roof replacement | $9,000 – $20,000 | Typically high |
| HVAC replacement | $6,000 – $15,000 | Typically high |
| Primary suite addition | $50,000 – $150,000+ | Typically low-moderate |
| Deck or patio | $8,000 – $25,000 | Typically high |
| Swimming pool | $40,000 – $90,000+ | Typically low |
| Solar panel installation | $15,000 – $30,000 | Moderate, market-dependent |
Figures are general US mid-range estimates for planning purposes only and will vary by location, materials, and labor costs. Get itemized quotes from licensed local contractors before budgeting a project.
If you plan to stay in your home long-term, a project's day-to-day value to your household — comfort, safety, energy savings, or simply enjoying the space — can matter more than resale recovery. The cost-vs-value framing is most useful if a sale is realistically on the horizon.
Why this matters for how you fund the project
Once you've weighed a project's cost against its likely value, the funding decision tends to fall into one of a few patterns:
- High-value, essential projects (roof, HVAC, siding) are strong candidates for HELOC financing, since they protect or increase your home's value and often need to happen on a timeline outside your control.
- Phased or multi-room renovations — say, a kitchen this year and bathrooms next — suit a HELOC particularly well, because you can draw only what each phase needs rather than borrowing the full projected cost up front.
- Large lifestyle projects with lower resale recovery (pools, luxury additions) are still reasonable to finance if they genuinely improve your quality of life, but it's worth being more conservative about how much you borrow and over what term, since you're less likely to recover the cost if you sell soon after.
A home equity loan or personal loan gives you a fixed lump sum on day one, whether or not you need it all immediately. A HELOC's draw period lets you borrow in stages as each phase of a multi-project renovation gets underway — so you're not paying interest on funds sitting unused while you wait for the next contractor.
Working out what you can afford to finance
Before committing to a project list, it helps to see two numbers side by side: how much equity you could realistically draw against, and what the monthly payment would look like once the draw period ends and repayment begins. Our Borrowing Power Calculator estimates your available credit line based on your home value and existing mortgage balance, and our HELOC Payment Calculator breaks down draw-period and repayment-period payments so there are no surprises later. If you're tracking value growth over several years of ownership, the Home Equity Tracker shows how your available equity may change over time.