Sorry, bud. Yes.

Absolutely I say yes. And concrete would increase the value more than blacktop.

I don't drive my car on gravel. ;-)

Men need to stick together most of the time but ... i cant with this one. Yes.

A finished driveway always looks better. Definite yes.

Absolutely.

Your wife is right.

And when in doubt, always refer to jaimeeap's answer. It will serve you well. ;-)

What is the setting of your house? How long is the driveway? Is there another house within a mile or less of your house? Unless you are in the Idaho mountains, Louisiana swamps or Oklahoma farm, not only will a paved drive (concrete or even well-done asphalt) add value, it will help you resale your house a lot faster. Ask a realtor! Ask jannicone--she wouldn't even use your gravel driveway! Time to bite the bullet.

Personally, I would prefer a paved driveway and it might make me more likely to buy the property. But..... paving doesn't necessarily increase property value. It depends on your home's appraised value compared to the comps. If your home is already at the top end $, then it might just be throwing money away. Also, in some counties (like mine,) it increases taxes. (My assessed value went up after paving. Boo. :))

So there you have it. Now, take your wife out to a show and dinner. No more arguing!

I don't know if it increases the value, but it can make it easier to sell, so that has value.

I built and sold a number of in-fill $1 million+ plus homes in the late '80s (when that was a lot of money) with gravel driveways, leaving it to the buyers to put in the driveways of their choice. Since then, it has become de rigeur to include a fully-finished driveway. I personally prefer gravel for the low upkeep vs. anything else. (Maybe some of my country roads childhood!)

You have a short driveway? Pave it. Either asphalt or concrete - use whatever is the standard where you are.

For me, I'm building a long driveway in rural New England - many aren't paved in my town. Due to the length, and my area, it would not be cost effective for me to pave.

I have about 1300 ft to pave.... yay me!

If the main street isn't paved, then paving it won't add to the value. If it's paved, then yes it likely would.

As rare as it is that women are right about anything :) this time she's right.

gregbradley, in your house, who's right most of the time? I'm guessing it's not you. ;)

I detest blacktop (cement is okay) and love a well-done, well-maintained gravel driveway in the country. In town, gravel sticks out like a sore thumb.

Also some buyers are like me and think about gravel dust on a newly detailed car. I'm an odd woman in that I am very into cars and the driveway and garage are very important to me. I need a place to run the hose and not make a mess.

I grew up in a rural area & had a gravel driveway. When we bought our last house it also had a gravel driveway. I live in the Northeast & the driveways always took a beating from plows & snow blowers and needed to be repaired every spring. We paved our last driveway and really appreciated how it improved our life!

Asphalt millings for long driveways, IMO.

Jannicone, I'm more apt to get a ding from a rock on a paved highway going at the speed limit, than in my own unpaved driveway, where I am going considerably slower.

Artemis - I get it - but I can't avoid paved roads. I can, however, avoid gravel drives. it's also not comfy to walk on with bare feet and it's terrible to try to wash a car on....

If you live on a gravel road, it makes no sense to pave the driveway. In our neck of the woods, paved driveways are only expected if you live in town or have a very short driveway in a lake resort area. However, in some of our lake areas in MN, there are big restrictions on how much impermeable surface can be on a lot - and driveways/parking can take up quite a bit of the lot.

Regarding washing cars, being from the farm, we always washed cars on the grass! Car gets cleaned, grass gets watered, no puddles in the driveway. No storm sewers in the countryside!

Kevin, it is best to see how driveways are done in your specific area. Personally, the gravel is easier to upkeep than asphalt. Concrete always cracks around here.