Why Starbucks Is The Best Way To Boost Your Home's Value

We're always hunting for ways to increase the value of our homes -- and interior revamps or full-on remodels may do the trick.

Or you could just move near a Starbucks.

Homes located near a Starbucks coffee shop appreciate (aka increase in value) at a far faster rate than homes not near a Starbucks, according to experts at real estate database Zillow. Since 1997, houses near a Starbucks appreciated 96 percent while homes farther away appreciated only 65 percent, Zillow explains in their new book Zillow Talk.

The reason? One theory is that house hunters may think a Starbucks means the neighborhood is gentrifying. Or maybe it signals that a neighborhood is getting safer... and a safer neighborhood is buyers' main reason for moving, according to a new survey from analysts at The Demand Institute. A simpler explanation? More than half of home buyers want restaurants and cafes within "a short drive" of their new home, so perhaps Starbucks fits that description.

Whatever the reason, the Zillow authors make two things clear: A neighborhood Starbucks isn't the result of higher home prices; it causes them. And the closer you live to one, the better. After Starbucks opened in a particular neighborhood, nearby homes not only rose in value, but they also appreciated faster the closer they were to the shop.

"Starbucks equates with venti-sized home-value appreciation," they write in a book excerpt on Quartz. "Moreover, Starbucks seems to be fueling -- not following -- these higher home values."

So the next time you've got an urge to reach for the hammer, just get a latte and house hunt instead. Your home's value will thank you.

(h/t Quartz)