New siding worth it in this case?

[Noah Kellar]

Is it worth spending 16k on new LP smartside siding prior to an appraisal for a refi or heloc? Old home built in 1920 with original painted wood siding covered by aluminum (which seems to be costly these days). Roughly 1,600 sq ft. 2 stories.

The alternative is to repair, pressure wash & paint the property costing roughly 4k-6k due to the amount of labor. Aluminum has dent & holes in areas that will need to be addressed before painting.

I do not plan on selling for at least 5 years. The goal is to rent & refi. I would like to make sure the siding is presentable before paying for an appraisal. Thanks for any insight.

[Bruce Woodruff]

Quote from @Ed Daniels:

@Noah Kellar tough to advise without a photo, but I think the consideration about how it would turn out to repair and paint, remove siding to paint wood, or re-side is easy to me as an investor... whatever looks the best for minimum cost.  All about curb appeal!

I agree with Ed...unless the siding is in sketchy shape. You mentioned dents and those are hard to hammer out or fill. Nothing looks worse than siding like that, it might weaken your appraisal. What does the wood look like under the aluminum? Some people back in the day used to put aluminum over decent wood siding because it was considered cool and groovy when it came out. Might be a possibility to pull off the aluminum siding and repaint? 

Just an idea.....