Maintaining your home and making necessary upgrades is a critical part of being a homeowner. Failure to update things like your roof, heating and cooling systems, and plumbing can lead to major issues down the road and loss of property value. At the same time, renovations like redoing your bathroom or overhauling your kitchen can make your home more functional and appealing to future buyers.

But what improvements actually retain their value?

Looking at data from the 2023 Cost vs. Value report by Remodeling by JLC, here are the top five home improvements you can make to help increase your property value. The report analyzed the average costs for 23 major home improvement projects in the 150 largest markets in the U.S. and calculated a projected return on investment (ROI).

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HVAC systems can be very costly to install or upgrade. Heating and cooling are also major components in a home that directly impacts the monthly utility bill. According to the JLC report, the average job cost is $17,747. While that may create sticker shock, it had an average resale value of $18,366, or a 103% ROI.

"Many buyers are looking at the cosmetic upgrades, but are ultimately leaning towards houses that have the four main systems upgraded including HVAC," says Charles Fischer, real estate investor, broker and CEO of Fischer Group at eXp Realty on Florida's Space Coast. "People are........

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