The following post is from our guest author, Phil Taylor from a blog we admire, PT Money.

Are you considering a home improvement project? Maybe you are trying to spend some of your tax return money and figure you’d invest in your home. Maybe you are looking to sell your home soon and want to put your best foot forward. If so, you definitely want your additions to add to the value of your home. The people at Remodeling Magazine release an annual study that sheds light on the cost vs value of common home improvements. Here are some of the results of their latest study.

Top Improvements

The top improvements for 2009-2010 according to cost recoup percentage:

• An entry door replacement tops the list. This quick fix will set you back $1,172 and will provide a resale value of $1,470. That’s 128.9% of your costs recouped. This was the only positive cost recoup in the study.
• An upscale siding replacement is another good improvement. This will cost you around $13,287 and you’ll be able to recoup $11,112 (83.6%) when you sell it.
• An attic bedroom is a more expensive improvement with a cost of $49,346, but it will recoup $40,992 (83.1%) upon resale.
• A deck addition can be added for an average cost of $10,634, and you can recoup 80.6% or $8,573 of those costs.
• Finally, a minor kitchen remodel will cost you $21,411 and you’ll be able to recoup 78.3% or $16,773 of the costs.

Other top improvements include window replacements (77.3%), a basement remodel (75.4%), and a bathroom remodel (71%)

Not-So-Hot Improvements

The improvements with the lowest recoup percentage included:

• A home office remodel, which would only recoup 48.1% of your average cost of $28,375.
• A sunroom addition, which would only recoup 50.7% of your average cost of $73,167.

Others poor improvements include bathroom addition (59.5%), garage addition (62.2%), and master suite addition (65.2%).

Small Improvements for a Quick Return

In addition to the most common major improvements listed in the study results above, there are several little things you can do to increase the resale value of your home. If you are currently trying to sell your home, consider these improvements: painting, replacing fixtures, landscaping, cleaning or replacing carpets, or replacing the flooring yourself (i.e. installing hardwoord flooring). Read more frugal ideas to help you sell your home.

Instant Tax Savings for Home Improvements

No need to wait until you sell to see a return on your home improvement money. The federal government is currently offering a tax credit of up to 30% of the price of your energy efficient home improvements. This includes things like insulation, windows, doors, heaters, stoves, and solar panels. The credit is maxed out at $1,500 and can be claimed on your 2010 return. Read more about the 2010 energy efficient tax credits.

Good luck in your home improvement efforts!

What do you think of the survey results? What, in your opinion, brings the best return for your home improvement dollar?