Does Repiping a House Add Value?

Before you list your home for sale, you’ll probably want to tackle a few projects that drive up the value of your home. But you only have so much time and money to pour into your home, so prioritizing projects with the highest return on investment (ROI) is important. So does repiping a house add value? Yes and no.

If your current pipes are at the end of their life—with cracks, leaks, discolored water, and poor water pressure—you’ll have trouble selling your home, as buyers may be easily turned off. In fact, your house may not even pass inspection, so repiping your house before selling may be mandatory.

However, homeowners are not likely to offer more money just because the house has been repiped. Operational pipes are an expectation of any house, not a selling point. So do you need to repipe your house before you sell? Yes, if they’re not likely to pass inspection or if the older pipes will scare away potential buyers. But will doing so drive up the asking price of your home? Probably not.

Why You Should Repipe Your House Before Selling

Repiping a house does not increase its value in the same sense that a kitchen renovation or fresh paint might. It’s not an upgrade that is going to start a bidding war or incentivize buyers to offer above asking. Instead, plumbing upgrades are considered “invisible improvements” that potential buyers don’t really think about.

However, it may be absolutely necessary to repipe your house before selling for two key reasons:

• Buyers may be less likely to make an offer if your home’s plumbing is old and likely to need replacement soon. This means you may get lowballed, or your home may sit longer.

• Older pipes may not pass a plumbing inspection, which means buyers might not be able to get approved by a lender to purchase your home without repiping.

So even though you might not increase your home’s value by repiping it, you can improve your chances of selling your home—and faster.

Some plumbing upgrades, like installing high-efficiency fixtures or a water filtration system, on the other hand, can increase the value of your home.

Benefits of Repiping Your House

Even if you don’t plan to sell your home soon, there are benefits to repiping it now. Here are some of the reasons homeowners may want to install all new plumbing in their homes:

• Fewer plumbing emergencies: If you have older pipes, they’re more susceptible to leaks, which can be expensive to repair. For instance, if you have a frozen pipe burst, you’ll potentially need to call in an emergency plumber to resolve the issue—and emergency plumbers cost up to three times as much as a plumber during normal hours.

• Better water pressure: Older pipes may be clogged with sediment and debris, which can reduce your water pressure. All-new pipes, on the other hand, should lead to great water pressure throughout your home. PEX pipes, which resist chlorine, are ideal for avoiding water pressure issues.

• Cleaner water: Old pipes rust over time, and that rust gets into your drinking supply. When repiping, consider choosing copper pipes, which can last for 50 years or more and are resistant to corrosion. 

Cost to Repipe Your House

The cost to repipe a house ranges from $1,500 to $15,000, though the typical homeowner spends $7,500 to replace their home’s plumbing. The main factors impacting the cost of a whole house repipe include:

• The size of your home

• The number of plumbing fixtures in your home

• The type of plumbing material you choose, such as PVC, PEX, or copper pipes

• The hourly rate plumbers near you charge for repiping

• The diameter of the piping

• Accessibility

• Permits

Is Repiping Your House Worth the Investment?

Photo: ungvar / Adobe Stock

Repiping your house may not yield a major ROI when you sell—buyers expect functional plumbing—but it can still be worth it, whether you’re staying put in your home right now or trying to sell as soon as possible.

• Repiping a home is worth it if you’re staying in your house: If you’re regularly dealing with pipe leaks and expensive plumbing repairs, you might save money in the long run by repiping your home. On average, pipe leak repair costs $500, and water damage restoration costs between $1,350 and $6,225; by these estimates, repiping could be worth the investment if it saves just one or two bad pipe bursts. Plus, repiping your home leads to cleaner water and better water pressure.

• Repiping a home is worth it before you sell: Although you shouldn’t expect higher bids when you repipe, you can hope to sell your home faster than if you left your old pipes untouched. If you have old pipes, buyers may decide not to put in an offer, or they may lower their bid because they’re already budgeting for the plumbing work when they move in. In some cases, old pipes may not pass a plumbing inspection, meaning you could have trouble selling the house at all.

How Angi Gets Its ROI Data

Home is the most important place on earth, which is why Angi has helped more than 150 million homeowners transform their houses into homes they adore. To help homeowners maximize the value of their investments, we gather ROI data from reputable sources, including industry reports, real estate studies, and interviews with market experts. We calculate the average resale value for projects by multiplying the ROI against the project’s average cost according to our cost data, which is sourced from thousands of real Angi customers. 

Want to help us improve our data? Send us a recent project quote or home appraisal value to costquotes@angi.com. Quotes and personal information will not be shared publicly.