Will insulation pay for itself in 5 years???

Hello,

I recently bought and am renovating a 1968 ranch bungalow in Atlanta, GA. Through out the construction process, I have discovered that there is not insulation in the walls and a very thin layer in the attic (maybe R-15). I bought this house as an investment property and only plan on living there less than 5 years. Will I get my money back within

5 years or should I spend the money on other more noticeable things. Is this something people ask about when buying a house? This is my first home.

Details - Moist crawl space (already addressing), 4 sided brick, fairly new roof.

Thanks in advance for suggestions....

Reply to
johnnymo
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insulate, you may not move in 5 years, plans change, and besides energy efficency is a top priority today what with increasing costs

Reply to
hallerb

I didn't think anyone would even ask that question today considering hte cost of heating and cooling. . You will have better re-sale value if insulated. With the price of energy, the payback will be faster than in

1968 and even greater into 2011 if you do move. If a home inspection reveals no insulation, it can be a deal killer.
Reply to
Edwin Pawlowski

It is not possible to say exactly. Your individual situation can be far different than your neighbors. However remember that in five years you will still have the insulation and even if you sell, it will increase the selling price. It will also increase the overall comfort.

Reply to
Joseph Meehan

According to johnnymo :

Think of it this way: 5 years down the road, you try to sell it. The buyer will almost definately discover that it's not insulated, and almost certainly realize that they _want_ it insulated.

How much would it cost the buyer to insulate it 5 years down the road? 10K? 15K? More? Full teardown? Mess? Bother?

They're going to want to get that money back, up front, by lowering their offer price. You want that big a chunk taken off?

If you have the walls stripped already, a few thousand dollars at most _now_ (materials and install labor, you've already got the walls off, so it's easy), will probably increase the ultimate selling price by at _least_ $10K, possibly quite a lot more.

And that's not factoring in heating cost savings at all.

Where I live (the great white north ;-), the payback period, (assuming a $1-3K expense for upgrading _no_ insulation to "standard" insulation) is probably well _under_ 3 years. In many cases less than _one_ year.

It won't be as dramatic in Atlanta as here, but it'll still be pretty quick.

Reply to
Chris Lewis

Wow...didn't expect so many responses and all for getting the insulation.

So, my estimate was only about $1500, which included spray-in insulation on the outer walls (1000 sq. ft home) and more insulation in the roof including above the "converted" car port area. I was going to put in insulation on the walls myselft on the ones I opened up, but didn't want to tear down any more sheetrock then I had too.

I guess when the time becomes a little closer I might have to look into the pros and cons a little more, but so far there are no cons, except for the $1500 up front.

Thanks.

Reply to
johnnymo

It it's $1500 for what you're doing, consider it a bargain. Especially if it's the right amount of insulation.

johnnymo wrote:

Reply to
Hey, It's Me!

According to Hey, It's Me! :

A _real_ bargain. These days you seldom get this big a potential profit versus cost ratio. In other words, the OP will probably yield more profit off this relatively inexpensive improvement than _anything_ else he could possibly do. Probably more than 8:1. Most other things are MUCH less than 2:1 or 3:1.

Reply to
Chris Lewis

Sheetrock is cheap and easy to replace, don't let it deter you from insulating. Also document the insulation installation by photographing it before it is covered, so you can show, and leave prints with new buyers. Also fix any wiring deficiencies, shortfalls and additional outlets, pot lights and kitchen needs.

Reply to
EXT

My guess is that you will get your money back. Add a programmable thermostat too!

Reply to
Phisherman

I disagree with this view. My 1950's era sheetrock is better than available today. It's not cheap, and not easy to replace. If you have the same issue, then the spray in foam type is probably the best way to go, and you can do it yourself (see tiger.com and other places for on-line prices and instructions). The attic insulations in batts is also easy to install. Just put on long sleeve shirt and a filter mask.

So, the issue is not so much a matter of whether or not to insulate, but how. Research and choose your materials carefully. The best are likely to be a DIY project. I know the pros will probably reply in anger, but hiring a company to do the insulation is asking for trouble with either the wrong material or damage to the exterior siding (law prevents them from spraying the wrong stuff from inside the house). Don't do the Home Depot blow in method, unless you don't plan on visiting your attic again ever. While you are insulating the attic, might as well wrap the heater ducts with bubble wrap radiant foil, and put the same across the rafters to reflect that Georgia heat back out before it reaches the insulation. I've had good results of some 10% reduction with radiant foil. Your next buyer will really like that.

Reply to
Alan

According to Alan :

You do realize that tiger.com redirects to tigerdirect.com?

They don't do foam. Unless you count the packaging for their computer parts ;-)

Reply to
Chris Lewis

You probably wont get payback in energy savings in 5 years. You might get an ROI when you sell in 5 years but this could be tough. As others have said your biggest benefit, in your situation, is that your house is more marketable with insulation that without.

If you were buying a house to live in (not an investment property) two identical houses, one insulated, the other not. Which would you buy? How much more would you pay for the identical houses, one insulated, the other not?

If it were me, as sale time, I would probably price these two fictitious houses the SAME AMOUNT. This would bring the buyer to me and not the guy down the street. Remember, time is money in real estate investing. When you go to sell you want to do it quickly to avoid carrying costs.

Reply to
No

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