Like if I add granite tops vs. quartz, nope
luxury vinyl plank flooring vs. laminate, nope
custom made cabinets vs. pre-built, nope
porch vs. patio... and so on. maybe
There is no "book" on such and it all relates to an overall view of the quality. granite countertops in a starter home....well, that is an over improvement and invisible in the market, for example.
The individual customer, when allowed inputs, often have a lot of wants that may not be what others want. But if you keep the home true to its overall quality, then you get the most bang for your construction buck. And putting in some cost cutting feature that is out of place? Well, that likely isn't well received by the market but the appraiser might have a problem trying to adjust for same. I recall a house from a local builder where he had nicely done stained oak trim and solid wood doors. In the large living room was a nice brick fireplace. But 2 features stood out as really horrible. First, they built book shelves around the fireplace, about 5' on each side...painted white, not even matching the wall white color? Why would you not build them with that same stained oak? The second was in the middle of the den. A wood stove flue...??? The metal flue outside was at least 12' tall to be higher than the house roof, looked awful both in and out. Those will slow the sale of a house.
Luxury items belong in luxury homes.
Good custom items belong in good custom homes
Commodity grade items belong in the traditional "starter" home
Personally as an old geologist myself, I don't trust "granite" to be granite really, much of it is diorite or something else, and some of the composites look as good and are cheaper.
As for prebuilt cabinets, we have a lot of cabinet builders around here, and I'd pick a good quality one, and get some woman to tell you what the latest in style is. I cannot keep up with it. Women have a lot better eye for that than I.
As a buyer, I am more interested in a durable floor covering. I recently appraised a house built into a shop building, and the flooring was concrete that looked so much like wood, I had to do a double take at first. That's what I want and it looked really great. But wood seems a good choice in higher end homes. Crown molding is also good but don't get carried away with it.
The guy who built my home (may he rest in peace - committed suicide when the bust left him broke) used to say that a house needs a "special" feature that makes it stand out. He recommended a wood ("car siding") living room ceiling and matching mantle board for my fireplace.
Another item that seems to be a loser, but if a buyer, I would want, is energy efficiency. Encapsulated crawl space, super insulation, and geothermal heat pump. But the market here (NW Arkansas) seems reluctant to endorse these items even though they clearly pay off in the long run, and if energy cost spikes like it did in the 1970s, would be a godsend. However, passive solar designs and similar items are relatively cheap, low maintenance, and a good selling point. Super insulate with solid cellulose (foam in walls is OK but if you have a leak in roof, you might not find it for a long time.) Insulated the foundation, Marathon water heater, etc. are cheaper items to consider.
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