Which improvements add the most value?

Numerous makeover and housebuying TV shows have prompted a rash of DIY activity as homeowners dust off the toolbox and embark on some 'home improvements'.

But this can be expensive and before homeowners start knocking down walls they need to consider the real value the work would add to their property.

Kitchen is top of the pops

The independent network of estate agents Spicerhaart's latest survey, which identifies the real value of DIY projects on house prices and saleability, reveals:

A new kitchen tips the scale as most worthwhile home improvement

Parking and garage space are buyers top requests

A swimming pool will sink your profits

Garden makeover and expensive internal home d�cor are top of the poll of least worthwhile home improvements

Extra space equals extra cash

Bolster the saleability of your home

A new kitchen tops the poll as the most remunerative home improvement, with 71% of the agents voting it as one of the three most worthwhile additions to a home. This is followed by a new bathroom (53%) and a conservatory (46%). Other popular home improvements include, double-glazing, central heating, garage & parking space and loft conversion.

Room for improvement - increase your profit margins

The survey clearly shows that creating extra space is the most effective way to increase the value of a home.

As the results revealed, an extra bedroom, loft conversion or extra living space would increase the value of a typical house* the most by £13,996, £12,688 and £10,000 respectively.

Weigh it all up

Other improvements that would substantially bolster the price of a property include a garage, conservatory or new kitchen.

Before undertaking the expenditure and the chaos you have to live through while an extension is built or a loft converted you need to decide whether it will be real value for money in the long term.

Money down the drain?

Not surprisingly with the British weather, a swimming pool was conclusively voted as the least popular and least profitable addition to a home, with most of the respondents saying it would not add to, and may even decrease, the value of the home.

Other home improvements that would not add value include transforming rooms into a gym or a nursery.

Worthless home improvements

1. Swimming pool
2. Garden makeover, decking
3. Internal d�cor
4. Bad loft conversions
5. Porch

Russell Jervis, managing director of Spicerhaart comments: "Buyers like to make their own mark on a home and personalise it to their own taste. Expensive internal d�cor and a complete garden makeover can be costly and vendors often will not see their investment returned. Having said this, these improvements may bolster the saleability of a home which is becoming increasingly important in today's market."

Buyers' top 10 requests

1 Parking / Garage
2 Kitchen/ dining space
3 Central heating
4 Garden
5 Double glazing
6 Size
7 Number of rooms
8 Enough living space
9 Original features
10 Ensuite bedroom

With more households than ever owning one or more car, parking space or garage is the most popular request.

Property Developer?

Russell Jervis, managing director of haart estate agents comments: "In this current market, sellers need to pull out all stops to get the highest price for their property and increase their chances to make a successful sale."

An experienced property developer will always have at their forefront of their mind what type of feature will appeal to the mass market and consequently add the most value to their home. The results from this survey should be a useful guide for homeowners to cash in as much as possible from their renovations.

"However the old adage, 'if a jobs worth doing it's worth doing properly', really does apply here. A botch D.I.Y. job will not help improve the saleability of a home and could even devalue it."

* the example in the survey was a three bedroom semi-detached valued at around �250,000 in Warwick