REMODEL CALCULATOR

Remodel vs. Move Calculator

Would staying and remodeling or selling and moving cost less, net of transaction costs?

Compare Net Cost →

Compare Staying vs. Moving

Results update as you change any input.

Staying & Remodeling

Pre-filled from your Home Addition ROI results if you arrived from that page — feel free to adjust.

Selling & Moving

Estimates are for educational purposes only · Not financial advice

Net Cost Comparison

Staying and remodeling appears to cost approximately $219,500 less than moving

Based on the transaction and project costs entered — before accounting for any existing mortgage payoff, moving costs, temporary housing, or non-financial factors like schools, commute or attachment to your current home.

Net Cost to Stay & Remodel
$58,000
Remodel cost: $180,000
− Estimated value added: $122,000
Where the $180,000 Project Cost Goes
Value Recovered$122,000 (68%)
Unrecovered Cost$58,000 (32%)
Net Cost to Sell & Move
$277,500
New home + buying costs: $875,500
− Sale proceeds after selling costs: $598,000
Where the Cash for Moving Goes
New Home Price$850,000 (92%)
Buying Costs$25,500 (3%)
Selling Costs$52,000 (6%)

Each bar totals its own scenario's gross cost components — staying's bar sums to your remodel cost, moving's bar sums to the new home price plus buying and selling costs. Sale proceeds from your current home then offset the moving total to produce the net cost above.

Educational Use Only: Reaixo provides estimates for informational and educational purposes. Reaixo is not an appraiser, contractor, real-estate broker, financial advisor, tax advisor, or investment advisor. Project costs, property-value changes, buyer preferences and cost recovery vary significantly by property, location, project scope, workmanship and market conditions. Obtain project-specific estimates and professional advice before making renovation or financial decisions.

The Formula This Calculator Uses

Your Two Scenarios
Remodel cost & value added, plus move-up price & rates
Net Cost Formulas
Subtract what each option gives back from what it costs
Cheaper Option
Whichever net cost is lower, and by how much
  • Net Cost to Stay = Remodel Cost − Estimated Value Added
  • Net Cost to Move = (Move-Up Price + Buying Costs) − (Current Value − Selling Costs)
Worked Example

$650,000 current home, $180,000 remodel with $122,000 value added, $850,000 move-up home (8% selling costs, 3% buying costs):
Net cost to stay = $180,000 − $122,000 = $58,000
Net cost to move = ($850,000 + $25,500) − ($650,000 − $52,000) = $277,500
Staying is cheaper by $219,500 in this example.

Why Moving Usually Costs More Than It Looks Like

Staying and remodeling only has one real drag on its net cost: whatever portion of your project spending doesn't come back as added home value. Moving carries that same kind of drag twice — selling costs (agent commission and other costs to sell your current home) reduce what you walk away with, and buying costs (closing costs on the new place) get added on top of the move-up home's price. In the worked example above, those two transaction costs alone total $77,500 — well over the $58,000 unrecovered cost of the remodel — which is a big part of why staying comes out ahead even though the remodel itself is a large project.

The two breakdown bars above the summary cards make this concrete: the staying bar is almost entirely "value recovered," while the moving bar is dominated by the new home's price with buying and selling costs stacked on top. Try raising the selling or buying cost percentage — the gap will widen quickly, since both apply to large home values rather than the smaller remodel budget.

How Much Does It Cost to Remodel a House? →

Frequently Asked Questions

What does this calculator ignore?

It does not account for paying off an existing mortgage on your current home, moving costs, temporary housing, financing costs on a new home, or non-financial factors like schools, commute or attachment to your current home and neighborhood.

Why might remodeling show a lower net cost than moving?

Remodeling avoids selling costs (agent commission, seller closing costs) and buying costs (buyer closing costs) on a new home entirely — only the unrecovered portion of your project cost counts against you. Moving involves both sets of transaction costs.

Why might moving show a lower net cost than remodeling?

If your addition or remodel has a low estimated cost recovery, or if a comparable larger home isn't priced much higher than your current home's value, moving can come out ahead even after transaction costs.

Is this the same as the Home Addition ROI Calculator?

No. That calculator estimates cost recovery for a specific project. This one takes those results and compares them against the net cost of selling your current home and buying a comparable larger one.

Related Tools

Evaluating a Specific Property?

This estimate is generic. For a full picture of a specific property, analyze it with Reaixo.

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Educational Use Only: Reaixo provides estimates for informational and educational purposes. Reaixo is not an appraiser, contractor, real-estate broker, financial advisor, tax advisor, or investment advisor. Project costs, property-value changes, buyer preferences and cost recovery vary significantly by property, location, project scope, workmanship and market conditions. Obtain project-specific estimates and professional advice before making renovation or financial decisions.