Boston suburbs doing a lot of home improvement, but is it the right kind?

Greater Boston’s red hot real estate market is sparking a surge in spending on home remodeling and improvement projects, new stats show.

Kitchen remodeling is not on the list of projects that let homeowners recoup the most value. Paul Carter/AP

August 14, 2015

2 minutes to read

Greater Boston’s red hot real estate market is sparking a surge in spending on home remodeling and improvement projects, new stats show.

Middlesex County, which includes a broad swath of the western and northern suburbs, came in No. 6 in the country in loan renovation applications, according to Bankrate, citing federal stats.

Overall spending on home improvements, from new kitchens and bathrooms to new siding, is expected to rise by a solid 4 percent over the next several months, reports Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies.

“Rising home prices means rising home equity, which should encourage improvement spending by a growing number of owners,’’ said Abbe Will, a research analyst in the Remodeling Futures Program at the Joint Center, in a press release.

But not all home improvement projects are created equal.

Remodeling Magazine puts out an annual list of the most popular renovation projects, ranked by rate of return and region.

It also looks at mid-range and high-end projects.

For your average Boston-area homeowner, the best payback can be found in remodeling the attic and putting on new decks or new doors.

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Here are the best bets, according to Remodeling:

New steel entry door: At a cost of just under $1,400, this could be one of the best moves you will ever make, with a resale value of nearly 120 percent, meaning you’ll cover the cost and make another 20 percent on that when you sell.

New deck: You can put on a deck for roughly $12,608 and expect to recoup 99 percent of the cost.

Attic remodel: Turning that attic into a new bedroom or play area could cost you more than $65,000, but you can expect to earn back 88 percent of that.

New windows: Vinyl windows will put you out $12,154, but along with better curbside appeal and lower heating bills, you’ll also get back 85 percent when it comes time to sell. Wood-framed windows cost more than $13,000 and return a little less, 84 percent.

Adding a second story: That will put you out more than $195,000, with a 76 percent return.

Worst bets?

Home office: Forget about renovating your home office, or at least spending any serious cash on it. You’ll get just 62 percent back after spending $35,000 to spruce it up.

Building sunroom: And putting on a sunroom is even worse. It will put you out nearly $90,000, and you can expect to get back just 54 percent when you sell.