How Can Stone Increase the Value of Your Home?

Whether or not you plan to move, the value of your home is often a very real concern. Today’s fluctuating economic climate has made consumers increasingly risk-averse and far more likely to take long-term considerations into account. For this reason, when refitting a kitchen or bathroom it makes sense to consider what level of value you are adding to your home.

Quality is key here, and the use of stone has many benefits that mean that a room design is more enduring both from a practical and an aesthetic perspective. When a home can be sold on a great kitchen, the trend towards using quality materials such as granite, marble and quartz is ever more relevant.

Where to use stone:

In the kitchen

The most common area to use stone in a kitchen is for a worktop and sink surround. Kitchen surfaces are often the first feature that a potential house buyer notices. However, you don’t have to be limited to surfaces. Consider using matching or contrasting stone for hob splashbacks or kitchen islands. When marble, granite and quartz are available in such a variety of tones, you can use combinations of stones within different aspects of your kitchen to create a great depth of texture.

In the bathroom

From high luxury marble bathtubs to vanity sink surrounds, stone can be employed to great effect within a bathroom. A prospective house buyer will certainly remember a bathroom which offers a haven of tranquility. This effect is achieved to spectacular effect using stone, with muted green hues of marble lifting a bathroom to spa territory!

What makes stone valuable?

It’s not just about making your home more attractive to a house buyer though. Yes, if you come to sell your property these rooms being attractive is an undeniable benefit. However, it is likely that the rooms will have undergone years of use before the value of your home is even assessed. This is where your choice of stone causes ripples of effect years into the future.

Durability

As natural stones such as granite or marble are incredibly durable, they can endure years of heavy use and still look great. Constant water contact in a bathroom will damage most materials, but stone can withstand this day to day pressure. Similarly, the kitchen is one of the most heavy duty spaces in a home. With constant water contact and extreme heat, stains and burn marks can litter a kitchen worktop. Not so for stone. Surfaces such as quartz are so hardy that they won’t show signs of use and will be as good as new for the next occupant to your home.

Timelessness

It’s not just about physical durability, though. Much of the appeal of stone lies in its classic and timeless aesthetic. When a kitchen is fitted with a granite or quartz worktop, the clean and classic style that it inspires will be attractive to a greater pool of potential buyers. Valuers and estate agents can see this and know that increased demand for a property will manifest itself in a higher value.

Flexibility

Of course, no kitchen design is right for everyone. However, people who buy a house wanting to change the kitchen or bathroom often reuse stone worktops or sink surrounds to complement a different style. Without changing the structure of the building, the configuration of a kitchen or bathroom is fairly limited. In this way, those wanting to ‘make their own mark’ on a kitchen or bathroom will often alter kitchen cabinets and utilities rather than a high-quality granite or marble worktop.

Busy modern lives mean that fewer and fewer prospective house buyers want a ‘project’. To ensure that your home remains an attractive proposition you can make your kitchen and bathroom a selling point. Choose durable and classic stone surfaces and you will find that your home remains attractive even if you don’t sell for many years to come.