I have been lurking on the forums for quite some time and getting geared up to start my a Basement conversion to HT. My question is has anyone on this forum sold their house after building a HT? Did the HT help or hinder the sales process? Did you leave the equipment intact( i guess this is to the discretion of the buyer)? Should plans be made to easily convert it to an office or extra bedroom if needed?

Thanks for your replies in advance.

It all depends. Finished square footage is more valuable than an HT. Let say you spent $10,000 for the HT. It doesn't mean you'll get $20.000. You'll only get credit for the finished space. On the other hand, if a specific buyer wants your HT, then you can ask for more and make a deal on the gear if you chose to sell them.

Tim:

Welcome to AVS. THere are two pretty big threads discussing this topic that should come up in the search engine.

Ron

Here are some threads, though there are others

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=827833

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=821885

Here's one that delves into the topic later in the thread

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=663175&highlight=estate

I'm a lurker as well, and have been tossing this very question around with my folks. I'm 21, in college, living in a house my family purchased as an investment property near campus (the house payments, utilities, and everything costs less than room and board on campus for myself, and my brother is also attending school and living here as well, and in the end, we have a house to sell to boot!). The priorities of 19 and 21 year old brothers going to college are different from that of a family.

The house is 780sq. ft, and we converted the living room and dining room into a "theater" which, I will admit is very low-end, but its getting there, and its been a blast with friends!

That said, we're looking at possibly purchasing a larger home just down the street (1700sq. ft.) and in the process of that, we had the Realtor just give his honest opinion about this property regarding resale value, and one concern is the fact that this area isn't a college town area, but rather a low-to-moderate income area primarily occupied by families, and the theater wouldn't really help, especially since we eliminated a dining room to create it. Fortunately, nothing is permanent and will be converted when back when this house goes on the market (notice my hopeful optimism of "when" not "if").

Basically, I think it boils down to several different factors. In reading some of those other threads, discussing it with different Realtors and consulting my folks, finding the right buyer is key. This area definitely does not bring in the caliber of buyers who would be willing to pay extra for a dedicated home theater setup all decked out. But, take that same theater and throw it in a house not too far from where my folks live, and it may not necessarily increase resale value, but it might help the home sell faster (which, in today's market, is a real bonus). Taking that further, if done properly, in the right neighborhood, it might drive the value up - especially with the right buyer.

Another thing to consider is what was sacrificed to create the theater. In our case, we ditched the dining room and living room (now, its one giant living room). But, if the basement weren't a typical "Michigan Basement," we'd have converted that and finished the basement - it could have added up to an additional 500sq. ft. to the size of the house (which, on a 780 sq. ft. house would be significant). Again, were it completely decked out in serious AVS forum style, in this area, that wouldn't have the same impact. But if it was finished fairly generically it would be additional finished usable space that would definitely add to the value of the house.

So, in the end its a crap shoot, but one quote that stuck out to me in the other threads - thinking of your home theater as an investment isn't the best way to go about it. Rather, look at it as a hobby. It can be an investment, but fretting too much about resale value can make the hobby less enjoyable.

I've blabbered on quite enough now :p

Mine made the sale of the first and second house that we sold. We made sure to keep the room investment in line with the home. On the first home it was a starter home and our total DIY investment was about 8k, the second was a high end home and we put around 13.5k in.

Just make sure you showcase the theater when you sell... put a family friendly movie in (we had Monster's Inc) and get the lighting just right and it'll sell the house.

I too just sold my home (back in Feb) with my entire HT and all the equipment and furnishings in it. It cost me $11,313 in building materials to finish my basement and I estimate I had ~15K in equipment and furnishings (including my Berklines). I made just over $140K on my home in under 4 years and sold it in 9 days for more than any home had sold for in my neighborhood. It was not the only reason for the quick sale, but it was definitely a major selling point. For me it was a great investment.

I am working on #2 now and am hoping for a similar result although I am building my HT mostly for ME. I only use the investment talk to help with the WAF. I believe once your home has the basics covered for your area (#bedrooms, baths, garage etc) adding a HT can be a good investment.

I have been lurking on the forums for quite some time and getting geared up to start my a Basement conversion to HT. My question is has anyone on this forum sold their house after building a HT? Did the HT help or hinder the sales process? Did you leave the equipment intact( i guess this is to the discretion of the buyer)? Should plans be made to easily convert it to an office or extra bedroom if needed?

I'm a Realtor. I work for a builder and I advise him to finish his basements with theaters. I think they're great investments and selling features IF THEY'RE IN BASEMENTS. I don't think that's the case if they're a prominent room on the main level or in a garage. But if they're well done in a basement and turn key - meaning the projector, a/v receiver and speakers are included, someone will have to have that house. They see themselves watching movies and having Superbowl parties, etc.

It is going to depend heavily on the buyer of the home. I know that several years (more like a decade!) ago my family were on the prowl looking for a new home. We found a home with a home theater setup... it was a MAJOR selling point for us... however, the home was smallish and they wanted something a little bigger. If the sq footage of the home was correct, I gurantee you that would have been the reason it sold.

I think it's going to boil down on the income per capita in the area, size of home (smaller homes + families often can't sacrafice space for such a venture), and quality of build (if the build is top notch, you can even convince the avid home theater builders to rather buy your home. In all likelyness, I think you would end up having to sell most of your equipment with the home in order to seal the deal. I think it can be a major selling point if the theater didn't occupy livable sq footage space (aka a basement would be perfect). Consuming a bedroom, living room, or dining room would be more likley to destroy your resale value or at least prolong your sale as those are critical components of a home.

One thing to note, basement development hardly ever pays itself off, so keep that in mind that you will not be able to recover everything (I think traditionally it's been shown to add $10k to your home value for a fully devoloped basement.. anything you spend over that is considered a loss and should be expected so). Something like a well laid out basement with a home theatre is sure to recover that construction costs when the right buyer is introduced.

Mine made the sale of the first and second house that we sold. We made sure to keep the room investment in line with the home. On the first home it was a starter home and our total DIY investment was about 8k, the second was a high end home and we put around 13.5k in.

Just make sure you showcase the theater when you sell... put a family friendly movie in (we had Monster's Inc) and get the lighting just right and it'll sell the house.


I would agree to this. Also, kids sell homes...even if the mom doesn't like the kitchen sink. When a kid starts begging, you just opened up your own can of lobbyists to convince them of a quick sale :)