How Much Does It Cost to Renovate a House? [2024 Data]
Normal range: $19,514 - $87,474
Renovating a house costs an average of $51,772, and homeowners can expect to spend between $19,514 and $87,474.
If you’ve finally found the perfect fixer-upper home, you’ll need to prepare to refresh it inside and out, from updating the kitchen and bathrooms to sprucing up the siding and front porch. Renovating a house that’s 1,250- to 1,600-square-feet costs an average of $51,772. However, if the house has good bones, you may pay as low as $3,000, or it can cost $185,000 or more in the same small house for a complete renovation. Since renovating an entire home is a huge project, it’s important to prepare your budget accordingly, which you can do using this guide.
- Average
- $51,772
- Low end
- $3,000
- high end
- $185,000
Full Home Renovation Cost Factors
Major home renovation cost factors include home size and age, geographic location, floor plan changes, and more.
Home Size
House renovation costs about $15 to $60 per square foot on average, but that range can get even wider depending on the quality of the materials you use. If you want custom paints, high-end flooring, or other premium finishes, you might end up spending upwards of $150 per square foot.
Even with standard finishes, though, the square footage of your home will be a major player in determining renovation cost.
| House Square Feet | Average Cost Range |
|---|---|
| 1,250 | $18,750–$75,000 |
| 1,600 | $24,000–$96,000 |
| 2,000 | $30,00–$120,000 |
| 2,500 | $37,500–$150,000 |
| 3,500 | $52,500–$210,000 |
Home Age
Older home renovations start around $100,000 and can increase from there. These renovations are usually more expensive than renovating a newer home since you’ll likely need to update plumbing, electrical, and HVAC systems. Plus, older homes may reveal hidden problems during the renovation process, such as termite damage costs or water damage in the basement.
Permits
Building permits cost about $500 to $2,500 for major home renovations. Small updates, like painting a room, don’t often require permits. Check your local rules and regulations or ask your contractor.
Alternate Living Expenses
The timeline for a home renovation is two to eight months, on average. For minor or “contained” renovations, like redoing one of several bathrooms or a single bedroom, you and your family can live in your home while your contractors work. For larger projects, like gut renovations or second-story dormers, you’ll need to pay for alternative living space, like a mobile home on your property or an extended stay hotel. These can cost anywhere from $2,000 to $10,000 or more, depending on how long you need the arrangements.
Geographic Location
Your home's physical location can affect the cost of renovations. Fluctuations in regional and local labor and prices have a large impact because of the labor-heavy nature of home improvement projects. Labor charges in metropolitan areas tend to be higher than in rural locations. Regional material price can also have an effect, but typically to a lesser extent than labor.
The table below includes some average home renovation prices in major cities across the U.S.
| City | Average Home Renovation Cost |
|---|---|
| Austin | $39,400 |
| Chicago | $44,700 |
| Dallas | $42,000 |
| Houston | $45,400 |
| Los Angeles | $47,200 |
| New York | $50,100 |
| Philadelphia | $40,000 |
| Phoenix | $39,500 |
| San Antonio | $35,900 |
| San Francisco | $56,500 |
| Seattle | $52,600 |
Floor Plan Changes
Changing the floor plan of a room or area may cost about $350 to $500 for minor changes or over $10,000 for major changes. These changes may involve knocking down or building new walls or rerouting the electrical work or plumbing, so you’ll need to hire a structural engineer and other certified professionals to ensure the changes are safe to implement.
Major floor plan changes—like removing a load-bearing wall and installing a steel I-beam in its place—will fetch the highest prices when it comes to floor plan alteration.
Updating Appliances
While you’re installing new kitchen cabinets or a custom laundry storage system, you may be considering upgrades to the fridge or washer and dryer. New appliances may cost $200 to $10,000 each, depending on the appliance type and quality. For example, Energy Star-rated appliances typically cost $200 to $3,500, and custom built-in appliances will likely cost $1,000 to $10,000.
Mold or Asbestos Remediation
Mold remediation costs $2,230 on average, and asbestos removal costs about $1,200 to $3,100, depending on the extent of the damage. Mold and asbestos remediation need professional attention, or these problems can put your family’s health at risk. If you discover either of these issues during a DIY renovation, stop the process and bring in a professional to address it immediately.
Keep in mind that you might need alternative housing during the renovation if mold or asbestos could become airborne during the process, and potentially put your family at risk. As such, these issues can contribute to higher costs overall.
Foundation Repairs
Foundation repairs cost between $2,200 to $7,700 in most cases and might be essential to keeping the home structurally sound and safe. Again, you will likely need to work with a structural engineer to ensure the foundation is repaired and maintained properly. You’ll likely need to repair the foundation before you can get started on any other renovations.
Plumbing
Installing or replacing plumbing costs $350 to $2,000 on average. If you need to make a few updates to a room or fix some leaky pipes, plumbing repairs cost about $330. However, you’ll need to budget for labor costs, about $180 to $500 per hour on the cost to hire a plumber. More extensive plumbing work—including roughing in the plumbing in a new home addition—will push you toward or above the $2,000 mark.
Electrical
Rewiring a house costs $1,500 for a small rewiring project to $10,000 or more to rewire the entire house. Installing new outlets costs about $75 to $490 per outlet, while upgrading an electrical panel costs about $1,250. No matter what type of electrical work you need, you can expect electricians to charge about $50 to $100 per hour.
Once again, more extensive renovations, like gut renovations or installing a dormer or home addition, will drive up the price for electrical work.
HVAC
While you’re updating the rooms in your home, you may also want to ensure they stay cozy and comfortable year-round with a repaired or new HVAC system. HVAC repairs cost an average of $350, while installing new heating or cooling systems costs around $5,000 to $12,500. You may need to upgrade to a new system if you’re adding a significant amount of square footage to your home, and the space requires heating and cooling.
Labor
You’ll spend between $20 and $150 per hour for labor costs, depending on the professional you need for each portion of the work, and there will likely be several pros you’ll need to hire for a home renovation. Rewiring a room or adding more outlets to charge all of your devices will require an electrician’s expertise, or you might hire an interior designer to create a cohesive look across multiple rooms.
Overall, your labor costs will account for between 50% and 60% of your total renovation costs. You may also spend about 10% to 20% more to hire a general contractor or construction manager to oversee the work.
| Professional Contractor | Average Cost per Hour |
|---|---|
| Architect or designer | $150–$230 |
| Carpenter | $50–$80 |
| Drywall installer | $40–$60 |
| Electrician | $70–$130 |
| HVAC installer | $80–$130 |
| Painter | $40–$60 |
| Plumber | $90–$130 |
| Roofer | $60–$80 |
Home Renovation Cost by Room Type
When renovating the house, you may decide to overhaul all the rooms at once or take it one room at a time. Keep in mind that wet rooms (those that require running water) cost more to renovate than dry rooms. Here are some common costs to expect to renovate each room, with prices ranging from $1,500 to more than $50,000 per room.
Living Room
Remodeling the living room will cost about $5,000 to $10,000, depending on the changes you’d like to make. Easier projects like adding a fresh coat of paint, new baseboards, and swapping out light fixtures will fall on the lower end of the price range, while adding new outlets or rewiring the room, installing new windows, replacing flooring, and other major upgrades can cost over $60 per square foot.
Bedroom
Bedroom renovations are one of the most affordable changes you can make in a home, costing about $1,500 to $5,500 per bedroom. Bedroom upgrades may include a fresh coat of paint, new storage shelves, a closet organization system, or new furniture.
Custom materials and finishes will increase the cost. Additionally, converting another type of room, like an attic or garage, into a bedroom will increase renovation prices significantly, up to $40,000.
Kitchen
Kitchen renovations cost about $14,550 to $40,400. You can make minor upgrades, like adding a kitchen backsplash and upgrading your countertop and lighting, for less than $20,000. A major overhaul with new flooring, custom cabinets, smart appliances, and luxury materials may cost over $70,000.
Bathroom Renovation
Remodeling a bathroom costs about $11,250 on average.. Small bathrooms will cost less, around $6,600, but adding premium finishes like marble flooring or rainfall showerheads will increase the cost up to $28,000 or more. A big part of where in this range your total falls is the type of bathroom you’re renovating.
Powder room: $1,500 to $10,000
Half bathroom: $3,000 to $15,000
Full bathroom: $5,000 to $20,000
Master suite bathroom: $7,000 to $30,000+
Bathroom remodels are one of the top remodeling projects that homeowners take on, and you can reduce costs by installing budget-friendly features and fixtures.
Basement Renovation
A basement remodel costs an average of $21,700. Basement remodels have a high upfront cost but a generous return on investment (ROI). The average basement remodel costs about $30 to $75 per square foot, so the bigger the basement, the higher the price tag. Transforming the basement into a cozy home theater costs about $12,000, and creating a basement gym ranges from $300 to $15,000.
Attic
Finishing or renovating an attic costs about $4,600 to $16,400. If you haven’t been up in the attic recently, you may need to pay to remove pests, repair water damage, or install new insulation before moving onto the fun aspects, like choosing paint colors or flooring types. Extensive attic remodeling or conversion typically costs about $200 per square foot.
Garage Renovation
With so many different ways to upgrade a garage, garage remodels cost anywhere from $1,500 to $50,000. You can spend as low as $2 to $5 per square foot to seal the concrete floors, repaint the walls, or install storage shelves on your own, while converting a garage into a living space costs over $86 per square foot.
Home Renovation Costs by Scope
Renovating an entire home will be more expensive than renovating only a few rooms. In addition, gutting a house to its framework or restoring a historic home can have high upfront costs.
| Project Size | Average Cost |
|---|---|
| Whole house | $10–$60 per square foot |
| Gut and remodel | $60–$150 per square foot |
| Historic home | $100–$200 per square foot |
| Home rehab | $10–$60 per square foot |
| Home addition | $4,000–$250,000 |
The Importance of Setting a Budget
Whole-House Renovation: Prices will be higher if you have a large home or are incorporating custom designs and luxury materials.
Gut and Remodel: Gutting a house to the studs and remodeling the remaining framework into a livable space costs about $100,000 to $650,000.
Historic Home: Restoring a historic home requires a lot of planning and cost more than remodeling a modern home because you need special permits and materials to adhere to local regulations. For example, homes built in the 1930s or earlier may have outdated electrical wiring or plumbing that you’ll need to update to meet today’s safety codes. However, if you remodel a home in the National Register of Historic Places, you may qualify for state or federal grants to help offset the construction costs.
Rehabbing a Home: Rehabbing or “flipping” a house for profit costs $10 to $60 per square foot. Prices increase if you use high-end materials, like luxury hardwood floors or customized paint, tile, and wallpaper.
Home Addition: Home additions costs depend on what type of addition you build, but most options create more living space in your home. They may require that you add foundation, frame the walls, add new siding, install drywall and insulation, and finish the interiors.
| Addition Type | Average Cost Range |
|---|---|
| Bathroom | $5,000–$35,000 |
| Bump-out | $4,000–$30,000 |
| Mudroom | $4,000–$18,000 |
| Sunroom | $20,000–$72,000 |
| In-Law suite | $8,600–$100,000 |
| Second-story dormer | $80,000–$250,000 |
Cost to Renovate a Home Yourself
Since labor costs account for around 50% to 60% of the total home renovation cost, you could save an average of $25,000 to $30,000 by doing the work yourself. However, most home renovation projects are massive undertakings that may involve handling electrical wires, plumbing pipes, and structural systems.
You risk damaging your home and injury from electrocution or other accidents. It’s best to turn to the expertise of architects, structural engineers, demolition crews, electricians, plumbers, and local home renovation companies for home renovations.
But some of the smaller tasks, like hanging drywall and painting, are DIY-friendly and could save you between $5,000 and $10,000 if you do it on your own.
Ways to Save Money on Home Renovation Costs
Renovating a house costs a lot of money upfront, but there are ways to save while achieving the home of your dreams.
Budget-Friendly Materials: Mid-range options are more durable and last longer than the least expensive materials on the market while offering a similar look at a lower cost than high-end alternatives.
Do Safe DIY: You can’t complete an entire home renovation on your own, but you can take on some smaller, easier tasks to save money on labor costs. Many homeowners can handle painting rooms, tearing out old carpets, or installing shelves themselves to save on individual project costs.
Consider Short- and Long-Term Savings: While you may be tempted to buy the least expensive flooring option or windows on the market, keep in mind that you often get what you pay for. While you could save upfront on low-cost materials, you may spend more on maintaining, repairing, or replacing these materials down the road.
Maximize Space: House renovation costs heavily depend on the size of the house or each room, so you can save by sticking to smaller square footage while making the most of the existing space.
Multiple Quotes: Before signing any home renovation contracts, get at least three quotes for each professional service you plan to hire. Compare what each price includes to get the best value for each part of the renovation process.
How Angi Gets Its Cost 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 with their next project, Angi provides readers with the most accurate cost data and upholds strict editorial standards. We’ve surveyed over 10,000 real Angi customers about their project costs to develop the pricing data you see, so you can make the best decisions for you and your home. We pair this data with research from reputable sources, including the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, academic journals, market studies, and interviews with industry experts—all to ensure our prices reflect real-world projects.
Want to help us improve our cost data? Send us a recent project quote to costquotes@angi.com. Quotes and personal information will not be shared publicly.
Frequently Asked Questions
Renovating or remodeling an existing structure is usually less expensive than the cost to build a new house. That’s because you can save on the costs of new building materials, laying a foundation, framing the entire building, and installing new materials and utilities throughout the house. However, if a home is in very poor condition or is incredibly old, you could spend more on upgrades and restoration compared to building from scratch.
Most home insurance policies will cover a rebuild or renovation in the event of a disaster, such as a fire or extensive storm damage. Check with your agent about coverage for home renovations, and review your policy with your agent before and after renovations because extensive upgrades could leave you underinsured. For example, if you increase the size of your home with additions, your policy may no longer cover the higher-value home, and you’ll need to update your policy.
Replacing garage doors, roofs, windows, or siding tend to have the highest return on investment (ROI) of up to 99%. Before you invest in a home renovation, you might be wondering if spending thousands of dollars will be worth it in the long run. Luckily, many renovation projects have an ROI of 85% or more.