To elevate or not to elevate?: This question has been ingrained in the minds of home improvers around the nation for years. The National Association of Home Builders analyzed single-family homes built in 2024, and they found that 61.8% of them included patios, a decrease from 2023’s 63.7%.
Decks however, remained at a lower percentage, with 17% of newly-built single-family homes featuring a deck. So, why do over 80% of homes feature one or the other? High ROI, streamlined build process, and the ease of creating a welcoming social area are a few of the reasons why they have become a popular pick for home improvement.
The Numbers
- The most important factor in the deck/patio building journey is definitely the price point. Decks are almost exclusively built from wood, and they’re always elevated from the ground. A deck costs an average of about $35 per square foot. This price can be give or take when considering the type of wood used in the build process. Lower quality pressure treated wood used for decks can run as low as $6 per square foot. Patios however, run far cheaper, and they use concrete almost exclusively. A standard 10x10 concrete patio will cost around $2,500, accounting for both build materials and labor costs.
- Considering all of these numbers, these builds have very good return on investment. The Journal of Light Construction, a magazine that primarily focuses on smaller build projects, reported that a wood deck has a 95% ROI as of 2025. This number increased from the figures they reported in 2024. Patios tend to have lower figures in both good and bad. They cost less and generally have a lower ROI, but the figures are still very respectable, often increasing a home’s value by 8-12%. The higher build quality, especially when using paving companies, can help boost these numbers, but cost will rise as the project becomes more elaborate.
Use cases
- Putting in a deck or patio enhances the experience of a backyard extensively. Adding home improvement extremities is the core appeal of a patio or deck. A nice place to start decorating is a fire pit, setting a communal tone in your backyard. Fire pits come in a variety of different styles and timeless aesthetics to choose from, so depending on what type of environment you want to create, you have the freedom of a vast array of choices. Then, a natural next step is to put some seating around the pit. Outdoor furniture has extensive seasonal clearance sales at many large retailers like Lowes and Home Depot.
- Fostering a welcoming environment is key to getting everything out of your patio or deck. Some other things you can include with these home add-ons could be a nice picnic table for summer barbecues and family meals, subtle yet finer outdoor string-lights that make for a nice mood setter, or even a DIY pergola project.
The Bottom Line
- Decks and patios respectively have varying but similarly beneficial effects to a house. They’re both easy ways to add value to your home, being a stable asset with little to no maintenance costs annually. It only takes one step to start looking for homes with these wonderful features. Reach out to a Ruoff loan officer to see your options!