19 Purchases Homeowners Made In 2024 That Were Worth Every Single Penny

Owning a home might mean making some pricey purchases, and sometimes, they end up being completely worth it. Over the past year, homeowners of the BuzzFeed Community came forward and told us the things they splurged on for their homes that were totally worth the money. So, as 2024 wraps up, here are the home projects, renovations, and purchases that homeowners definitely didn't regret taking on this year:

1."We upgraded to hurricane shutters that stay on the house year-round. I can open, close, and lock them from inside the house. No more climbing on the roof and carrying metal sheets around to hang up! I can board up the entire two-story house by myself in less than an hour."

2."A two-bay detached garage with enough depth for a workshop, cars, and power equipment."

—Steven, 60, New York

3."Heated floors in the bathrooms. I know it sounds ridiculous — I scoffed at the very idea — but as my house was being built, it was an inexpensive add-on, so I decided to one-up my friends. Holy moly — it is nice stepping out of the shower onto warm tiles."

4."A large walk-in shower with a rain head and frameless glass door. It seems frivolous to some, but we use it every single day, and it is 1,000% worth every penny! We had it built after we closed on the house and before we moved in, which was also the best decision!"

—katieo423fbee2e

5."We live in California and have droughts often, so we try to save water when possible. We installed a hot water recycling pump, and not only are we saving water by not having to wait for the water to heat up, but getting instant hot water is great. The $200 investment was well worth it."

6."A bidet. I got strange looks from my family after I installed it, but now there's a line to use the bathroom with the bidet every morning because nobody wants to use the other bathroom. 10/10 would recommend."

—Jon, 39, Utah

7."A corner sofa. It was about $1,200, but I absolutely love it. It's now in my new home with my girlfriend, and we still love it. Also, the couch has a fold-out bed, which is so useful for any friends staying over."

8."A dog door that was cut through our dining room wall leading out to an enclosed dog run. It cost us about $600, and it is a GAME-CHANGER. The dogs can come and go as they need, and the area is enclosed, so we don't have to worry."

—rachadach23

9."Getting an epoxy garage floor coating. With Wisconsin winters, our garage floor was deteriorating. We contracted a floor sealing company, and it stopped the deterioration. Now, I can pressure wash the floor every spring, and it looks like new every time. Oil spills, road salt, snow, and anything spilled on the garage floor clean up quickly and easily, too!"

10."If you're replacing carpet, a nice carpet pad is absolutely worth it. It makes even cheaper carpets feel more luxurious and can help hide wear and tear over the years. I replaced mine eight years ago, and it still looks practically new."

—Anonymous

11."We bought a hot tub for our retirement home. We got a very well-insulated one that keeps heating costs down. I didn't realize when we bought it how much it would relieve my chronic leg and back pain. I've used it four to five nights a week! Knowing pain relief is just a few steps out on the patio has been life-changing for me!"

12."A 15-foot-long wall between our house and the neighbors. The bottom half of the wall is made up of a cylinder block, and the top is wrought iron. It cost several thousand. It keeps their two pit bulls safely away from us so that we can just enjoy the backyard. So worth it."

—Joe, 48, California

13."Our new back deck. It is a composite, so there's never scraping, sanding, or painting! We had a wood deck for 30 years prior, and they were such a pain. We moved to Kentucky six years ago and splurged on our deck. The layout was slightly reconfigured, so the steps going down were in the middle. It had a picture frame design, with darker pieces on the outside and lighter ones on the inside. We put lights on all the caps and the wide steps. It's so nice; we love it!"

14."When I bought my house, the patio doors opened to a ground-level old and cracked concrete patio. So, I had a floor-level covered deck (portico style) built right over the cracks, where I could easily step right out onto the deck, sit, and enjoy my private tree-surrounded backyard. I love it. Yeah, it was pricey, but it was worth every penny."

—alvenaferreira

15."The best thing we did when we built our house was put in a gas fireplace. We have the fake logs and vermiculite that looks like embers. I can turn it on, put the flame down low, and just know the chill out of the room. I don't have to clean out the ashes or anything. I've had people say that they like the ambiance of a wood fire, and that's fine! But while you're on your hands and knees shoveling out ashes and making a mess, I can just sit and enjoy the warmth."

16."Hybrid hot water heater — it's electric and has a heat pump! This was a project because the builder originally installed the water heater upstairs directly above the house's electrical panel! So we also had to get a new pressure tank and have new wiring run. All told, it was about $5k, but our electric bill has gone down, and we get hot water way faster!"

—redgem40

17."I guess it's not so much of a fun splurge, but it's definitely an uncommon thing to do where I'm from: wall insulation. Homes in LA definitely don't need it for the cold, so most homes (at least older ones) don't have insulation in the walls. Summers can be pretty brutal, especially now with climate change, so having insulation blown into my exterior walls was huge for me. I don't need to run my AC nearly as often, so I'm saving a lot of money on energy bills, and, as a bonus, I don't hear nearly as much noise from the street."

18."My husband installed motion sensor end lights in all the rooms of our house. They go on when you walk in and turn off automatically as well. At night, it auto-sets not to use the motion sensor, so the lights don't come on whenever you move around in bed! Also, we installed automatic blind closers. They auto-close every night at sunset and open at sunrise! No more reminding my son to open and close the blinds!"

—Sara, 47, Arizona

19.Lastly: "A solar water heater. We got the biggest one we could find, and we love it! We've saved thousands of dollars on our gas bill because of it. We still have a gas water heater, but it stays off for most of the year, as we only turn it on when we've had continuous cloudy days. We've installed a solar water heater in every house we've lived in, and it's very low-maintenance."

OK, fine, I'm sold on the heated floors. If you're a homeowner, what splurges did you make that were worth every single penny? Let us know in the comments, or you can anonymously submit your story using this form!

Note: Some submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.