REAL ESTATE TRENDS

By Amy Hoak

Replacing windows with more efficient ones doesn’t provide an immediate payoff for homeowners, from an energy-cost standpoint. Yet, come resale time, updated windows can be a plus.

That’s why one reader recently sent an email, explaining his dilemma:

“New windows would make no sense from an energy-saving payback (30-year payback at best), but I am starting to come around to the view that there are fewer and fewer DIY types in the market and that ‘green’ is an increasingly pertinent selling catch phrase, regardless of costs. But, then, if I do take the plunge — is it stupid to install the new windows 10 years before I move?” he wrote.

The short answer: It’s not a stupid idea, according to the contractors, real-estate agents and energy-efficiency experts to whom I posed this question. Still, it pays to pinpoint why you’re doing it.

Comfort and aesthetics

“Most people buy windows because their old ones are shot and drafty, and they know they’re losing energy,” said Paul Vosen, president of Degenhardt Home Improvement in Madison, Wis.

Some also swap windows for those that are easier to maintain or clean. Vinyl windows, for example, need less maintenance, and some windows can be cleaned from inside the house, Vosen said. New windows can reduce the amount of noise that can enter the home, as well as lessen the amount of ultraviolet light that comes in — which will reduce fading on flooring and furnishings, said Kathy Ziprik, spokeswoman for Simonton Windows, a manufacturer of windows and doors.

It’s not out the question for windows to last 30 years, if they’re taken care of, Vosen said. Buy them about a decade before you move (as the reader contemplated doing), and you’ll both enjoy them while you live in the home and still have windows new enough to appeal to an eventual buyer.

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Resale appeal

On a national average, you can recover 78.7% of the price of a midcost vinyl-window replacement and 76.6% of a more expensive vinyl-window replacement at resale, according to Remodeling magazine’s 2014 Cost vs. Value Report.Meanwhile, you can recover 79.3% of the cost of a midcost wood-window replacement and 74% of an upscale wood-window replacement at resale.

That potential return on investment is one reason John C. Kmiecik, a Chicago-area real-estate agent, recently spent $18,000 on new windows for his 3,000-square-foot suburban Chicago home. “We are probably going to stay in the house about five to seven years, and, when we do sell, we’ll be able to market that property with newer windows,” he said.

Most buyers see new windows as a big perk. In fact, Kmiecik has seen some buyers decide against buying certain homes because the windows were old and needed to be replaced soon — an investment that would easily cost them in the five-figure range, he said. New windows also add curb appeal.