By improvements, I meant things like finishing out a basement (thus adding more usable sq footage), kitchen/bath remodels, decks etc. Maintenance, at least in

By improvements, I meant things like finishing out a basement (thus adding more usable sq footage), kitchen/bath remodels, decks etc. Maintenance, at least in my area isn't a large cost over the life of a house. In the last year we've replaced a roof ($8K), furnace/AC ($9K), and the water heater ($800). The water heater we've had to replace twice before, so in total we've had roughly $20K in maintenance costs since we purchased the house. We're getting to a point where we need to repaint both inside and out, and replace some carpet. Probably around another $10K for that. So $30k in maintenance over 18 years is pretty small potatoes. I don't know that construction costs have gone up much more than the inflation rate; I do know that material costs have gone up in the last 18 months, but that should drop back down to "normal" in another year or so.