Buying Or Selling a Cedar Home? Protect Your Investment

15 Apr 2024

The benefits of Cedar maintenance fall into two main categories: beautification and protection.

Beautification means making your Cedar look beautiful all year round. If sun exposed areas are left without replenishing the oils, the Cedar can start to look worn and tired. By adding oil back into Cedar, you are protecting it from the harsh New Zealand sun and restoring the natural vibrance of the timber.

Protection means maintaining the integrity of the timber, so you don’t have to replace the Cedar in the future. Protection can also mean protecting your investment, both to maintain the value of what you just bought, or to improve the asking price if you are about to sell.

In this article, we are looking at how to protect the value of your Cedar home – often your biggest asset – especially when the market is so volatile and uncertain.

For some additional insight into the housing market, we are joined by Rachel Readhead from Barfoot & Thompson.

Why Protect Your Cedar

People often think that if their Cedar looks tired, it needs to be maintained or restored, but that is not necessarily true. Cedar is a very resilient timber.

If not maintained in the short term, sun exposed areas will get damaged by the harsh UV rays and end up looking rather shabby. Not ideal, but not the end of the world either.

If not maintained in the long term – we are talking 20+ years here – the Cedar may cup or warp, no longer protecting the outside of the house. The ultimate cost will be to replace the Cedar cladding on sun exposed faces, which is considerably more expensive than regular maintenance.

“If the Cedar has started to warp or crack, it will raise red flags when the property report gets done. When doing a CMA [comparative market analysis] on the property, everything is taken into account,” said Rachel.

Return on Investment

When considering the cost of Cedar maintenance or restoration, there are two questions you need to consider.

What do I have to spend so that I never have to replace my Cedar?
Do I also want the Cedar to look beautiful all year round?

The average restoration price for a 3-bedroom home is $6.5k. After the initial restoration, sun exposed areas need recoating every 2-3 summers. The cost of regular maintenance comes down to around $2.5-5k, depending on the house size and build.

If your Cedar is already in good condition and you want to maintain the value over the long term, you will need to recoat sun exposed areas every 2-3 summers.

If your Cedar hasn’t been maintained in some time and you want to restore the timber before you sell the house, you will be looking at anywhere between $6.5-15k.

On houses we have worked on in the past, the valuations were around 6 times higher after we did the work. So, for an investment of $4.5k (the average price of a restoration in the past) the valuation was $24k higher.

Thinking of Selling?

If you are planning on selling your home soon, you can potentially increase the selling price by sprucing up the cladding.

At a minimum, you can stay firm on your asking price and stop people knocking you down on price due to additional work.

“First impressions count, and the condition of the cladding is usually the first thing people see when looking at a property. A lot of buyers will ask for a price reduction if there is work to be done on the exterior of a house,” said Rachel.

If you have been maintaining the Cedar regularly, you may not need to do any maintenance at all, or just some light maintenance to tidy up the sun exposed faces.

Stand Out in a Crowded Market

When the housing market slows down, buyers have more houses to choose from and have more room for negotiation.

Rachel says, “Houses are not moving as fast as in previous years, especially in the townhouse and apartment market. A good house in a good location always sells, but by keeping your house maintained you can stand out from other properties and get a better sale price – especially if it sells in auction.”

Having a record of maintenance also gives prospective buyers confidence that the timber has been looked after and won’t require work anytime soon.

Rachel added, “Many people still do not understand how affordable it is to look after a Cedar home and mistake it for painting, which can often be more expensive. Having documentation of previous work shows prospective buyers the cost of maintenance over the long term and helps to ease any concerns.”

Protect Your Biggest Asset

By investing in the maintenance of your Cedar, you are investing in the long-term value of your home.

And by regularly maintaining your home, you are spreading this cost out over many years, instead of getting lumped with a large bill when it comes time to sell. Regular maintenance also has the benefit of being able to enjoy the natural beauty of the Cedar while you are still living there!

Protecting your investment starts with a conversation. Our team can help to identify what your goals are, then put together a plan to protect your Cedar over the long term.

Rachel Readhead helps homeowners buy and sell homes throughout North Shore and Rodney. You can reach her on 027 333 4484.

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14 Mar 2023

Should Cedar be left to Silver Naturally?

Many Cedar homeowners fall in love with the Scandinavian silvered look – minimalist, clean, with a silver sheen that accentuates the beauty of the timber and the natural surroundings.

But when it comes to achieving this look, there is a common misconception that all you need to do is leave the Cedar and silvering will happen naturally.

Unfortunately, this is not true, at least in the New Zealand climate, and timber that is left to silver will eventually turn unsightly.

In this article we will cover what silvering is, how you can silver your Cedar safely while still protecting the timber, and some DIY tips for maintaining the silver look of your Cedar until you are ready to oil.

To find out more, read the full article, or watch the video below for a quick summary.

Is Silvering Bad for Cedar?

Without taking the location and climate into consideration, silvering itself is not bad for the timber. Silvering is caused by exposure to UV rays, which fray and loosen the top cells of the Cedar and cause the surface to become bleached.

In colder climates this isn’t a problem as the lower temperatures kill off the bacteria, retaining the beautiful, silvered look. But in a warm and wet climate such as ours, bacteria and mould will get caught in the roughened surface, and quickly turn the Cedar black.

Even if the mould and bacteria are removed, the natural silvering effect will often look patchy and uneven, detracting from the natural beauty of the timber.

Silvering Cedar the Right Way

So, is there any way to have the silver look you love, while still protecting your cladding? The answer is a resounding “Yes!”

Wood-X is a deep penetrating wood oil developed with Resene. It comes in a range of exciting colours – from rich reds and bush greens to a daring indigo blue – and a whole range of wood-protecting silvers. Applying a silver-tinted oil will protect your timber from the harsh UV rays, allow it to silver more quickly and give a more consistent silver look.

After applying the silver-tinted oil, you will need to follow a regular maintenance schedule to keep your Cedar looking its best. We recommend a soft wash every year, followed by recoating exposed areas every 2-3 summers.

DIY Silvering Maintenance

If you are not ready to oil your cladding quite just yet, a more affordable solution is to spray your house with a slow-acting mould and fungal killer such as Wet and Forget. This will remove the organic bacteria from the surface, but it will not replenish the natural oils of the Cedar or protect it against splitting and cupping in the future.

If you do not plan on oiling or staining your house, another option is to leave the silvering on as it provides natural protection to the layer below it. You can then use a slow-acting mould and fungal killer to keep it looking clean. The downside to this approach is that the timber will eventually look aged and tired.

Get Professional Advice You Can Trust

Ultimately, the best approach for protecting your cladding AND getting the silvered look is to oil your Cedar with a silver tinted oil. If you are unsure about the best approach and would like to talk with an expert, call us on 0800 298 298.

There is no obligation and our goal is always to look after the best interests of our customers over the lifecycle of their homes.

We love Cedar and are always happy to help!

15 Feb 2023

How Often Does Cedar Really Need to be Maintained?

The quick answer is: not as often as you might think. On a wall that is not in the intense sunshine, Cedar will practically last forever.

Apart from being stunning to look at, Cedar is extremely durable, a superior insulator and genius at taking up deep-penetrating oil. Cedar’s worst enemy is not rain, or wind, or city grime; it’s the harsh New Zealand sun.

Left unprotected, UV rays will eventually dry out the timber, leading to fine cracks and roughening of the surface. This creates a toehold for mould, mildew and lichen to get established and make the timber look unsightly.

Regular oiling will prolong the beautiful look and weather resistance of your Cedar by penetrating deeply through the Cedar’s open cellular structure and replacing the natural oils lost over time.

Keep reading to learn how often you need to maintain your Cedar, or watch the video below for a quick summary.

What Does Regular Maintenance Involve?

For most Cedar homes, regular maintenance will consist of a light rinse once per year at the end of winter, then a recoat of exposed areas every 2-3 summers.

Cladding only needs to be maintained on a face that is exposed to the UV rays. The remaining faces will also benefit from recoating, but this might only be 2 or 3 times over a 15-year period. The treatment that is required is very dependent on the level of UV exposure and other environmental factors.

Think of it like washing your car. If you don’t wash your car for 12 months, all the dust, debris and contaminants from the road will stick to the body. It’s the same for your house, but not as easy to spot as houses are usually flat colours compared to a shiny paint job.

How Much Will Regular Maintenance Cost?

It’s a misconception that owning a Cedar home means you will be burdened with expensive maintenance bills. Compared to houses that require regular painting, Cedar works out far more economical.

The cost will depend on the unique requirements of each house. The main factors will be the size of the house, how many stories it has and ease of access. A single-story bungalow with good access might cost $2-3k every 2-3 years. For a multi-level property with difficult access, you might be spending $8k on scaffolding before you even start looking at the timber.

Regardless of the cost, regularly maintaining your Cedar will always be cheaper over the long run than painting, or the worst-case scenario, having to reclad due to the timber cupping and splitting.

Having a regular maintenance plan can help to spread out the cost and give you peace of mind that your investment is protected – and will look beautiful for years to come.

New Builds vs Older Houses

Newly installed Cedar has a reservoir of natural oils and tannins, and it will take longer for the cellular structure to start to move. You may not have to do anything for 5 years, but eventually the Cedar will start to dry out and you will need to slow that process down with regular oiling.

New Cedar will most likely be pre-coated, or coated on-site before it gets installed. There will usually be a booklet that comes with the house telling you how the Cedar has been treated and what kind of maintenance it needs.

For a pre-existing Cedar home, the new homeowner will need to ask the previous owners what kind of maintenance plan they had in place, or what products they have used in the past. If the Cedar has been stained and the stain is in good condition, then it requires a light rinse every year and a recoat every 2-3 years, depending on the level of UV exposure.

If you are unsure about the status of your Cedar, one of our team can come around and advise you on what treatment it has received in the past, and what is required to maintain the Cedar over the lifetime of the house.

Make Your Cedar Look New Again

TimberTech are NZ’s #1 choice for Cedar protection, maintenance and restoration. Our unrivalled expertise and craftsmanship have been developed and proven over 20 years throughout New Zealand.

We will diagnose your Cedar and put together a 10-year maintenance plan, customised to your unique situation, with a maintenance schedule and a full breakdown of all the costs. There is no obligation and our goal is always to look after the best interests of our customers over the lifecycle of their homes.

To find out more, call us on 0800 298 298.

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Buying Or Selling a Cedar Home? Protect Your Investment