Adding a laundry room to your home can make your living space more practical and keep laundry contained in a designated area. However, many homeowners want to know whether creating a laundry room will impact their home's resale value.

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Will adding a laundry room increase your home’s value? Find out below.

How Much Value Does a Laundry Room Add to a House?

According to The Spruce, adding a laundry room could potentially increase the resale value of your home.

However, how much a laundry room increases home value depends on various factors, including how recently you remodeled, how popular laundry rooms are with potential buyers in your area, the size of the space and the quality of your laundry room. For example, a recently refurbished laundry room with a sink and ample storage space will add more value than a laundry room that hasn't been recently updated and only has enough space for a washer and dryer.

How Important Is a Laundry Room for Resale?

A laundry room can make your property significantly more attractive to potential buyers and could make it much easier to sell. According to a recent survey by the National Association of Home Builders, 87% of respondents said a separate laundry room would be ideal.

In fact, out of more than 200 features, a laundry room was the joint most-popular home feature — alongside exterior light fixtures — among survey respondents. Furthermore, 47% of respondents said that a separate laundry room was essential and that they would discount any homes without one.

The study also provides insight into the type of laundry room additions most appealing to potential buyers. Around 67% of respondents prefer first-floor laundry facilities. Your property might be easier to sell if the laundry room is far enough away from the main living areas to reduce noise disturbance from the washer and dryer. Extra features like a sink and storage space to keep an ironing board and other cleaning equipment can also make your laundry room more attractive to buyers.

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Return on Investment for Adding or Remodeling a Laundry Room

Potential returns on investment for a new or remodeled laundry room are highly variable. For example, you'll typically achieve the highest return on investment for an upscale laundry room outfitted with premium appliances, high-grade cabinets, a dedicated folding area and other extras. This type of upgrade may cost up to $15,000 (CAD 20,500), according to The Spruce.

Conversely, a low-end laundry room addition with low-capacity appliances and minimal storage, may only cost about $2,000 (CAD 2,700), but it adds little to no value to a home. Laundry rooms that have been remodeled recently typically have a higher ROI than those remodeled several years before putting a home on the market.

It's also worth considering whether adding a laundry room is the best use of your available space. For example, the location of your laundry room and the layout of the rest of your house will affect the impact of adding a laundry room on your home's value. In some cases, remodeling the space as an extra bedroom or bathroom or putting the money into a kitchen remodel may yield a higher return on investment.

Homeowners who opt for energy-efficient appliances may also recoup some or all of their investment through energy savings. Replacing an old washer with a new EnergyStar unit can help homeowners save as much as $35 (CAD 47) annually on energy and utility bills. These appliances may also qualify for tax credits or rebates.

Estimating your potential return on investment can be difficult because it depends on the housing market in your local area and your home's overall condition. You can get an idea of how much a laundry room will add value to your home by comparing the selling prices of similar properties nearby with and without separate laundry facilities.

All CAD conversions are based on the exchange rate on the date of publication.