The Outdated Ceiling Feature HGTV's Erin Napier Warns Against

While skylights might sound like fun ideas, especially if you're seeking more natural light in your home, they've become outdated and can even be impractical. So it would be best if you thought twice before installing a skylight in your home, as getting one on impulse will likely lead to regret. Even if your home already has a skylight, you may want to consider getting rid of it, as HGTV host and designer Erin Napier does not recommend keeping the outdated feature.

On the Season 8 premiere of her show "Home Town," Napier said, "We never see a skylight on a house anymore. People stopped doing it because they get very leaky." Instead, she suggests removing it and re-roofing the house altogether, remarking, "A new roof really makes a house feel completely new."

If you want to remove your skylight, expect to pay between $125 and $250 to take the skylight out and another $350 to $1,000 to replace the roofing in that spot. Of course, re-roofing the house altogether will cost significantly more. Doing so will typically contribute to your house's resale value, helping your home appear more modern.

If you want to do something different with your roof, consider metal roofing instead of a skylight, as Erin Napier opted for metal roofing when renovating a farmhouse in Season 2. "Erin Napier calls in an expert — Mr. Reed — to talk through the design aspects for the metal roof they're installing on the dilapidated farmhouse they're renovating... Mr. Reed explains the updated benefits of metal roofing nowadays — acrylic coating that prevents rust — and also helps Erin choose the style, profile and color of the roof," Mariah Bowers with HGTV said, per The Daily Leader.

As Napier knows, metal roofing can be a helpful upgrade for your house. But before you commit to the idea of buying a metal roof, you should know that it's not cheap. If you get a metal roof, you'll likely have to pay anywhere between $8,000 and $20,000, depending on the metal type and how large the roof is. So metal roofs are significantly more contemporary and sleek than skylights, but they'll cost you thousands of dollars. Still, if you have the money to spend, the upgrade could be worth it for your home's value. 

Not keen to re-roof your home? Another skylight alternative is a vaulted ceiling, which can give your home a more unique, open, and cozy look. In Season 7, Episode 13, Erin Napier worked on a tiny cottage space that she renovated with a vaulted ceiling. "The vaulted ceiling, it did a lot more than just give you head height," she said when the ceiling was up. "It feels like we're in a totally different building than what it was."

Similarly to any other ceiling change, you should check if you can realistically afford a vaulted ceiling before deciding that you want to go for it. And like metal roofing, vaulted ceiling prices have quite the range, as you can end up paying anywhere between $4,800 and $38,000, but the overall average is $19,900, so you could very likely be spending around $20,000 on the home upgrade. Therefore, you should talk to an expert to get a more specific idea of how much you'll have to pay based on your home.