Most homeowners know that not all home improvements have the same return on investment. Have you dreamed of backyard barbecues, grilling for friends, beers in hand, cooling off in a new pool? Be careful if you can only afford an above-ground version. If you plan on selling your home in the near future, that improvement may actually hurt the value of your home.

Similarly, that costly $80,000 family room addition may only add $20,000 to the resale of your humble abode. There are several factors that determine which improvements will yield financial value. The following improvements, as a rule, have a proven track record of being worth the risk.

Kitchen Updates

Rookie and veteran homebuyers often overestimate the cost to update a kitchen. Installing new countertops and appliances does not need to reach the $50,000 mark. Take a note from flippers and do not go with the most expensive granite countertops — unless your home is in a luxury market. A majority of buyers see the kitchen as the heart of the home, meaning they have a specific vision for the color of countertops and cabinets they want.

If you want your kitchen to look updated — no tile countertops, but not overdone — think marble countertops. If you have high-quality cabinets but they are dated — think oak — simply sand and paint them to give your entire kitchen a modern feel with a minimal investment. You can spruce your kitchen up without knocking down walls and simultaneously keep the budget below $20,000. The ROI of a minor kitchen remodel is 83.1%.

Entry Door

While the brave fixer upper hunters love the sight of an ugly home brimming with possibility, the majority recoil when they hit that stereotypical ’70s door with the three diagonally cascading rectangles. Fortunately, we live in a time where nostalgic and retro designs are celebrated.

This is perhaps one of the cheapest improvements because you do not have to necessarily replace the door. Simply giving the door a fresh coat of paint in a modern color can transform the outside appearance of your home and lure project-averse buyers in. If you have the money to update the door entirely, you are likely to recoup about 91% of your investment.

Bathroom Remodel

The bathroom is another room that can scare away potential buyers who overestimate its cost. A tired bathroom can also overshadow an entire home and give it a dirty or old feel. Update the toilet, bathtub and vanity to suit modern tastes.

Subway tile is a classic and popular update for your bathroom walls that will appeal to most buyers. When re-designing with the aim to sell, keep it clean, classic and simple. Bathroom remodels on average return only 65% of the costs but are an integral component of the final sale. Even for the handy buyer, being without a bathroom during a renovation is a major inconvenience.

Attic Insulation: Fiberglass

This may be arguably the least sexy option on the list, but the improvement to rule them all is: Fiberglass attic insulation on average returns 107% of your investment and generally costs under $1,400. Glass is a poor conductor of heat so the insulation helps cool your home in the summer and keeps it warm in winter. Lower heating and cooling costs are an attractive attribute to help market your home.

While you can use this list as a guide, please keep in mind that much of this advice relies heavily on your market. The type of market your home is in dictates a lot of what can be recuperated. If you live in an up-and-coming neighborhood where the average home value is $150,000 then a luxury master suite addition that costs $100,000 is very unlikely to add $100,000 of value to your home.

Common sense is practical with home improvement. Visit open houses, talk to buyers in your house’s price range and chat with reputable realtors in your area to see what buyers are craving. While a gourmet kitchen may not be a priority for buyers in a major metropolitan area with various take-out options, it can be a major wow factor in an affluent suburban where growing families dream of a hub to share meals.

In reality, the improvements you make to your home may help you forget why you ever wanted to sell in the first place, or they may just help you get top dollar for your property.