Home Upgrades that

Yield Top Returns

The 2015 Remodeling Cost vs. Value

Report for this year is out. So if you’re

trying to prioritize this year’s home

improvement projects and figure out

which ones will yield the best returns,

take a look at the report.

According to the annual report

(http://www.remodeling.hw.net/bench

marks/cost-vs-value/the-2015-cost-vs-

value-report_o), done by Remodeling

magazine in cooperation with

REALTOR® Magazine, looks at how

much of your investment you can

expect to recoup on renovation

projects when you sell.

As in previous years, the data are sliced

in various ways.

For instance, you can get a big picture

by looking at national data. You also

can see the data broken down by

geographic area or look at midrange

and upscale projects’ standings

nationally and by geographic area.

Here are some key results from the

study.

Top 5 Midrange Projects (national

averages in terms of cost recouped)

1. Entry door replacement (101.8%)

2. Manufactured stone veneer

(92.2%)

3. Garage door replacement

(88.4%)

4. Siding replacement, vinyl (80.7%)

5. Deck (wood) addition (80.5%)

Top 5 Upscale Projects (national

averages in terms of costs recouped)

1. Siding (fiber-cement)

replacement (84.3%)

2. Garage door replacement

(82.5%)

3. Siding (foam-backed vinyl

replacement) (77.6%)

4. Window (vinyl) replacement

(74.9%)

5. Window (wood) replacement

(71.9%)

Natalie Davis Real Estate Consumer Newsletter –February 2015 By Elyse Umlauf-Garneau

www.NatalieDavisRealEstate.com

www.sres.org

Women and Retirement

One of the biggest issues facing women

around the globe is a shortfall in

retirement savings. That’s according to

a new study by from Transamerica

Center for Retirement Studies® in

collaboration with Aegon.

The Changing Face of Retirement

Women: balancing family, career &

financial security

(http://www.transamericacenter.org/do

cs/default-source/global-survey-

2014/tcrs2014_sr_global_women_report.

pdf) looks at women’s retirement

prospects across the globe and gauges

how women feel about their retirement

readiness.

Despite the fact that today’s women

are more educated and have greater

career options than previous

generations did, they still face

obstacles, including lower pay and time

off for caregiving, that affect their ability

to save for a comfortable retirement.

Gender gap

Women are still less prepared for

retirement than men are. For example,

only one-fifth (20%) of women overall

feel they’re on track to achieve the

income in retirement they anticipate

they’ll need. Twice this amount (40%)

simply don’t know whether they are on

course or not.

But in some parts of the world, women

do feel confident about retirement,

particularly those living in emerging

economies, including China, India, and

Brazil.

Though some view their retirement

preparedness positively, there’s also

widespread angst about the topic.

When asked what words they associate

most with retirement, optimistic

respondents used positive words most

often, and those include “leisure” (45%)

and “freedom” (39%).

But nearly one-quarter (24%) of women

associated retirement with “insecurity”

and almost a fifth (18%) with “poverty”.

In some countries -- Poland, Hungary

and Japan -- negative associations with

retirement were quite pronounced. The

word “insecurity” was most frequently

cited by women in Hungary, for

example.

Women who are most positive-minded

are from China (84%), Canada (78%),

and Sweden (77%).

Here are some study highlights from the

Transamerica study specific to

American women:

38% 22%

Overall, now confident are you that you will be

able to fully retire with a lifestyle you consider

comfortable?

Not confident Very/Extremely confident

15% 22%

Thinking about how much you are putting aside

to fund your retirement, are you saving enough?

Already saving enough Hardly saving at all

46%

16%

15%

15%

8%

Which of the following best explains your

approach to saving for retirement?

Always make sure to save Only save occasionally

Not saving, but intend to Not saving, but have in the past

Never saved and don’t intend to

The study makes some

recommendations both to women and

to policymakers and employers about

improving women’s retirement security.

To women, the report says, “Taking

ownership of retirement through

planning is one of the most important

factors in improving confidence about

achieving retirement goals. Half of

women whose retirement plans are

‘very developed’ are confident they

are on track to achieve their desired

retirement income.”

Employers can implement automatic

enrollment features in workplace

retirement plans, give part-time workers

access to retirement savings vehicles,

provide help and information about

caregiving services, and offer phased

retirement plans to allow workers to

remain in the workforce longer.

Real Estate Matters

News & Issues for the Mature Market