Kitchen Remodel. Was it worth it/ how did you pay?

[wealthviahealth]

Bought a home that we truly love last year and it was fully move in ready.
The kitchen is likely the reason we won the bid, if it were updated there would have been an absurd amount of offers on it. The kitchen has that outdated, tacky look and feel is truly the only sore spot of the house.That said, it is fully functional and requires no immediate repairs or work.

Due to its smaller size, it can never be one of those show stoppers, where everyone hangs out around the kitchen, but the smaller size also means it should be cheaper to fully renovate with the exact design we would like.

Outside of re-sale value, I am curious as to how “worth it” full kitchen remodels have felt to folks.
What has the impact been and were you glad the money was spent there vs appreciating assets?
Did you save up and cash flow the remodel or take out a loan?

[2sk22]

We did a complete gut-and-rebuild remodel of our kitchen back in 2014. The kitchen had already been previously remodeled some time in the 1980s and the quality of the workmanship was truly horrible. Also, the appliances were all dying and needed replacing in any case.

The whole project cost about $75k (we live in NJ) and it has been completely worth it for us. We cook pretty much every meal and hardly ever go out to eat so a fully operational kitchen is an absolute necessity. We paid for this project out of our savings and did not need to take out a loan.

[BikeFanatic]

Back in 2016 I did IKEA kitchen redo, we went cheap on the counters and ended up redo it with cheaper granite. It was a gut job and around 20 k total. We sold the old appliances toofor some money.
It looked great and we got many compliments.

[SailingOnASmallSailboat]

We did a full kitchen reno after 10 years of owning the house and living with the kitchen as is. We'd done a "lipstick on a pig" kind of thing (paint cabinets, new stove and new microwave) 2 years after moving in. The big one was much more involved. Knocked down walls to open up space, switched from electric to propane (no city gas, so a tank in the yard), moved a door. We did the design ourselves, based on what we liked and a lot of research. It was a magical change in the house that we enjoyed for the next 10 years. DH did all the electrical and plumbing work himself; we did all the painting ourselves. We had one contractor. Did semi-custom cabinets (KitchenMaid). We spent about $50k including all new appliances and some furniture (dining room set, living room furniture). Paid for it out of cashflow (no loan) as the costs were not huge sums in a heap but spread out over time.

Everyone who came in commented on how great the kitchen was. We learned a lot and will incorporate some of the ideas when we build our tiny house down the road.

[Sibley]

I had to gut the kitchen in parent's new house last summer. It was original 1960s with 80s appliances and not in good shape. Small galley kitchen. I think total was around $10k. Cabinets from Menards, all new appliances (no choice), mom chose a sheet vinyl floor which was installed professionally. I was the project manager and we primarily used a contractor that I've used on my house - one man, cash only, pretty good. Called my electrician for the electric work. My friend (a licensed plumber) did the plumbing. Everyone got paid without quibble but I'm sure we got the friend discount. I did the demo and painting.

Material choice matters, a lot.

OP, your kitchen is functional just dated. Live with it for a while. There's supply and material issues, labor issues, if you don't have to do a big reno just wait. My mom couldn't get the stove she wanted because of supply issues. She's happy with the replacement but it was an extra stress.

[Cranky]

We gutted our last kitchen after we’d lived in the house for 20 years. I did not replaced the floor (terracotta tile) or the appliances.

So all new cabinets (natural hickory), lighting, copper sink, granite counters, and labor - $17k. We used a local independent guy who also had done a bathroom for us.

It was gorgeous, and now my daughter has it because we decided to move out of state.

Honestly, there is no remodel that gets you your money back when you sell, so be clear in your mind that you are doing it for your own personal enjoyment and go from there.

(We paid cash.)

[uniwelder]

I’ve done 3 kitchens so far. Almost all the work between myself and wife.

1) prior home in 2015 we totally gutted. Kitchen cost was about $4,000. $1,200 fancy tile countertops, $300 used cabinets, $2,200 stainless steel appliances, $300 miscellaneous.

2) current home in 2020.  $8,000 total.  $4,000 wood cabinets with plywood carcasses RTA type purchase, $1,800 stainless steel appliances, $1,200 granite countertops, $300 tile backsplash and brick arch over stove.

3) rental house in 2021. $1,000 total. Free granite countertops from someone else’s kitchen renovation, free cabinets from our house, floor tile from Craigslist, backsplash tile from habitat for humanity, kept the same appliances.

edited to add--- The remodels were totally worth it in our case, though the financial aspect is likely the exception here.  I suppose in the olden MMM days, we'd be more common, reusing other people's discarded things and DIY.  Everything was paid with cash and raised the value of the house more than what we spent, not including labor.

[Rosy]

Functional is relative and living with an irritation or something that turns your daily cooking experience to a pain in the rear is not my idea of living well.
Our kitchen was "functional" if you are at least 6ft tall and I'm 5'1. I couldn't even see out of the window unless I stood on the tip of my toes.

The cabinets were plentiful and custom-made by an experienced carpenter except they were plywood with faux plastic wood on the cabinet doors - yuck!
There were hugely deep drawers, for what - G only knows, and only one regular 'silverware' drawer. One of the bottom cabinets had just a shelf in the center which meant practically crawling into it if you have short arms and want to reach a pot in the back. I got lots of exercise on my knees trying to reach the back on the lower shelf.

I couldn't even open the cabinet doors because the knob was in the center and out of my reach. I had to squish my fingers underneath the cabinet doors to open them except that wasn't possible with the cabinet above the fridge.
Oh, and the pantry was slimmer and cavernously deep - you'd need a search party to discover whatever might be lurking in the dark, no doubt long since expired.

I was afraid of radiation poisoning every time I walked by the microwave behemoth.
The lighting overhead was dim, just perfect for a bat or a Vampire.

It was an easy fix since the bones were all good. I've designed kitchens before and knew what I wanted.
The window was replaced with a larger one - a difference of day and night - now a kitchen with a pretty garden view.

The cabinets were solid, a huge plus. A fresh coat of paint made all the difference. The position of the knobs was easily changed to the bottom of the cabinets where I could easily reach them and the hardware itself was replaced to create the look I was going for.
The top cabinets got glass doors and interior cabinet lighting and the large end cabinet facing the bar/counter was also given a glass insert to display all the glasses.
Practical and thoughtful organization was key. The pantry got pull-out shelves, the kind you attach to the cabinet shelf.
That "crawl" space cabinet also got pull-out shelves for pots and pans.
Those huge drawers were turned into two or three drawers, like a slim one just for spices (Ikea has inserts). All in all I gained five new drawers and kept only one of those deep drawers.
   
Since I cook every day and am kind of fond of daylight and good kitchen organization and design - it was an easy decision.
A new granite countertop that we extended at the bar counter to a rounded 'table' and up the wall beneath the kitchen window to become a window sill, plus an all around 4-inch backsplash made it all look more posh and expensive than it was.
A new light, double sink and all new appliances to replace a non-working DW, old stove and too small refrigerator.

I designed it all and came in just barely under budget at $10K, we paid cash from savings. I loved the whole process, it was fun to get what I wanted and I didn't mind researching and spending time finding good deals and good solutions. Mr. R. hated the ripped-up kitchen and general disruption.
The carpentry renovation was all done by a cousin, another cousin did the glasswork and installed the new window. They are all in trade. A friend did the plumbing for the new sink installation.

Everyone thought we'd replaced the cabinets, the glass door inserts, lighting and just one decorative finish up top worked magic. We got lots of compliments too - so yes, it was a successful and cheap re-do, well worth doing.
Our kitchen faces a dining nook and the bar counter works great for buffets - we've had plenty of parties there.
From irritation to pleasure ...

[Fishindude]

Your kitchen is the most used room in your home.  If you plan on staying there 5-10 years or more, it will be well worth the inconvenience and cost.

[Plina]

I have also a functional kitchen but it is lower then modern kitchen and without a dishwasher. I think the cupboards are from 1960s while the doors are from 1990s. I don’t plan to stay her more then 2 years so the question I am currently asking myself is it worth the 10000 dollars and hassle of dealing with the renovation people instead of maybe 1000 dollars to paint the cupboards and walls, get the doors professionally painted and change the tiles. I am learning towards the cheaper version especially as I have found some problems with the bathroom and a new bathroom would probably cost me 15000 dollars.

As I am starting my own company now, I am probably not that credit worthy, so I will finance it from savings. The interesting thing is that I am not worried about the cost of either a bathroom or a kitchen. I find the thought of dealing with the renovation people more annoying or tiring.

[travel2020]

We did our kitchen remodel in a couple of “stages”. When we moved in, the appliances were in pretty bad shape so we replaced those just to have something functional. A few years later we replaced the old cabinets and counter top. We did consider just resurfacing the cabinets but decided there was better s peace utilization possible with new cabinets.

To save on costs, we did some of the demolition work. We did get bids for the full remodeling but ended up using different contractors for the cabinets, tiling, electrical etc., rather than handling it all off to one person, and that seemed to work fine for us as each aspect was fairly independent.

Overall, as others have said, one of the better investments when it comes to home improvements. Kitchen is where generally everyone hangs out in our house, even when we have people over. And it seems one of the areas where you not only get to enjoy it but also recoup some of the investment when it is time to sell.

[SwordGuy]

We bought a 1961 house in 2001 and the kitchen hadn't been updated.   It was awkward to work in it.   It had an electric split oven/ stove top arrangement.  Counters were in all the wrong places and so were the electrical outlets.

We spent less than $3000 and were very happy with the results.

We replaced the stovetop/oven units with a single gas unit.  We paid the plumber to add the gas line.
Replaced the fridge, it was old and nearing its end of life.
We had the electricians put in a couple of new outlets over the counter tops.

My wife sat down and measured all the cabinetry and then figured out what could be moved where.    I ended up making a few cabinet parts to stitch them together properly.   I put in new formica countertops that looked great. 

Removed the faux early Americanish cabinet knobs and handles and replaced them with custom, hand-made wooden fittings.  Painted the cabinets a bright, sunny color. 

Ripped up the worn vinyl flooring and replaced it with vinyl floor tiles.   

Fixed the wonky pantry folding doors, painted them, and put some textured wallpaper center panels on them, which my wife then over-painted to make them look spiffy.   Used the same technique to make a faux backsplash above the actual formica backsplash.

The kitchen now looked way better, it was way more efficient to work in, and it didn't cost a fortune   We could cash flow the entire thing.

Now, it wouldn't be winning any awards from Architectural Digest either.   But the $50-70k we didn't spend went into investments that have done well over the last two decades.  And because of that, we now live in an awesome home that's fully paid for and could get some design kudos.

[cheaplynn]

Bought a condo in a 1920 building. It had been a rental up until the person I bought it from, and the whole kitchen was very builder grade.
I spent 15k: 5k on appliances, 5k on cabinets and installation, and 5k on a nice countertop and installation. I paid in cash -- it what was left over from an inheritance that paid for my condo's down payment. All of it was worth every penny.

My budget dictated my choices, but 10 years in, I'm still happy with everything. Ikea cabinets, and they're still holding up great. The stone countertop was a splurge, but it made the otherwise budget fixtures look beautiful. I paid a little extra to add more counter space, and THAT was what made it all worth it. I do a lot of cooking, and being able to spread out in the kitchen and enjoy the space is so so soooo worth it.

[Silrossi46]

I did a complete gut of my kitchen in 2019.  Got it done just before the pandemic hit.  Opened up walls and actually added on to the house to increase the floor plan of the kitchen living and dining room.  I spent 100k paid through money I saved to do the work.  I did alot of the gutting prepping and grunt work myself.  I am in nj (insane pricing on everything) and considering that I think I did well.  Love the space and with the recent real estate madness my house is worth 650-700 conservatively.  I would echo the same as the others if you plan to stay in the home and have the means to do it then do it. 

I did go with Holiday kitchen cabinets which are a bit pricier than a Home Depot type line but the result is amazing. The cabinets alone were 28k. 

[Telecaster]

Your kitchen is the most used room in your home.  If you plan on staying there 5-10 years or more, it will be well worth the inconvenience and cost.

Co-signed.   I resisted re-doing our 1940s vintage galley kitchen forever because of the high cost.  My wife finally put her foot down and we did it.  Now it is done I don't know how I lived with the old crappy kitchen.   

[charis]

We had a terrible but functional 70s kitchen with no counters and one double cabinet and ancient appliances and no dishwasher. Lived just fine with it for a decade. Did a total gut remodel of kitchen and small pantry room two years ago, but no walls knocked down or anything. Quartz countertops, mid line custom cabinets, all new everything and used a contractor.

Came to almost 35k, zero regrets. Saved up cash.

[joe189man]

PTF and add that my research points to ~$250 per sf of kitchen for a total gut remodel

[englishteacheralex]

People. If you post a detailed explanation of an amazing reno and then don't include some pictures...come on! I'm dying to see some of these descriptions.

[dadbod]

Like you, we bought a house that we couldn't have afforded had it not needed work.  We remodeled the kitchen (gut job) six years ago and spent probably 75k.  We love the new kitchen and it has completely changed the way we use the space - it went from small and dark to open and welcoming.  Pre-covid we had people over all the time as a result.  I've told my partner, though, that if we move in the future we should buy a house that doesn't need a new kitchen.  The inconvenience, stress, cost, and issues with mission creep are significant.  We paid cash from a previous house sale.  Refinanced post-remodel and the appraisal came back with an increase in property value more than we put in (granted that was a combination of the work and the general increase over time since we initially purchased, and is likely an over-estimate).  Good luck!

[Khaetra]

People. If you post a detailed explanation of an amazing reno and then don't include some pictures...come on! I'm dying to see some of these descriptions.

This is mine.  Total cost after finishing everything was just shy of $12K.  I didn't tear down any walls and did all of the work myself with help from friends.

http://makeitnewer.blogspot.com/

[uniwelder]

People. If you post a detailed explanation of an amazing reno and then don't include some pictures...come on! I'm dying to see some of these descriptions.

I’ve done 3 kitchens so far. Almost all the work between myself and wife.

1) prior home in 2015 we totally gutted. Kitchen cost was about $4,000. $1,200 fancy tile countertops, $300 used cabinets, $2,200 stainless steel appliances, $300 miscellaneous.

2) current home in 2020.  $8,000 total.  $4,000 wood cabinets with plywood carcasses RTA type purchase, $1,800 stainless steel appliances, $1,200 granite countertops, $300 tile backsplash and brick arch over stove.

3) rental house in 2021. $1,000 total. Free granite countertops from someone else’s kitchen renovation, free cabinets from our house, floor tile from Craigslist, backsplash tile from habitat for humanity, kept the same appliances.

edited to add--- The remodels were totally worth it in our case, though the financial aspect is likely the exception here.  I suppose in the olden MMM days, we'd be more common, reusing other people's discarded things and DIY.  Everything was paid with cash and raised the value of the house more than what we spent, not including labor.

Pictures attached of kitchens 1+2.  I didn't realize there was a 4 pic limit per post.  Will add kitchen #3 pics

[uniwelder]

I’ve done 3 kitchens so far. Almost all the work between myself and wife.

1) prior home in 2015 we totally gutted. Kitchen cost was about $4,000. $1,200 fancy tile countertops, $300 used cabinets, $2,200 stainless steel appliances, $300 miscellaneous.

2) current home in 2020.  $8,000 total.  $4,000 wood cabinets with plywood carcasses RTA type purchase, $1,800 stainless steel appliances, $1,200 granite countertops, $300 tile backsplash and brick arch over stove.

3) rental house in 2021. $1,000 total. Free granite countertops from someone else’s kitchen renovation, free cabinets from our house, floor tile from Craigslist, backsplash tile from habitat for humanity, kept the same appliances the microwave is new not totally new microwave, it was $50 from habitat for humanity.

edited to add--- The remodels were totally worth it in our case, though the financial aspect is likely the exception here.  I suppose in the olden MMM days, we'd be more common, reusing other people's discarded things and DIY.  Everything was paid with cash and raised the value of the house more than what we spent, not including labor.

kitchen #3.  The stove will be replaced whenever we or the tenants find something we/they like. 

[SailingOnASmallSailboat]

I realized we've done 3 kitchens. 2 in houses, 1 where we removed walls and ripped flooring down to joists and moved a door; 1 where we opened up a wall to install a sliding glass door. And 1 in a boat, where we shifted counters and changed out where the fridge was.

Here's the first one:

[Holocene]

I'm kind of surprised by the number of pricy remodels on here.  $75-100k sounds insane for just a kitchen.  A lot of you must live in much fancier houses than I do.

My kitchen remodel was under $2k around 5 years ago.  Caveats: My kitchen isn't huge. I don't entertain. I never eat out so I'm using my kitchen everyday, but I don't cook elaborate meals either.  My existing appliances were fine so no replacements.  No major plumbing, electrical, or structural changes.  The changes were mostly aesthetic to update it from a late 70s style kitchen.

I replaced all my cabinet doors/drawers with new walnut shaker style ones from Horizon Cabinet Doors.  I finished them myself with tung oil.  This was the biggest expense ($850).  Luckily this matched well with the existing cabinet finish.  I thought I might have to veneer some of the edges but I never did and think it looks fine with the new doors.  I replaced the white laminate countertop with a birch butcher block from Menards ($310) finished with mineral oil then butcher block conditioner.  The main functional change was replacing the crappy double sink with a nice large single sink that I can actually fit stuff in, and replacing the faucet with a nicer one that pulls out.  I added a small cart and pot rack for some extra storage.  I thought about doing a backsplash but just painted initially and it's been fine.

Definitely worth it.  I'm glad I went with the cheap DIY option.  Used credit cards paid in full by due date.  I had considered taking down a wall to do the open concept thing and getting all new cabinets and granite or similar countertops.  I figured I'd start with this and I could always do a bigger remodel in the future.  I've found this works just fine for me and I'm quite happy with it.  It's also quite satisfying to have done all the work myself (with a little help from family).  Something to consider before jumping to the expensive full gut/custom cabinets route.  This is the MMM forum after all...

[charis]

Very few 75-100k remodels on this thread as far as I see. I can't speak for everyone, but we didn't jump into anything. We had a functionally terrible kitchen, literally no counters, one cabinet, and 30 year old appliances for over a decade. We also had a 60% SR when we remodeled. It was a no brainer (for us).

[iris lily]

I bought a 100 year old condo that will act as our city place when we move to the country. The unit was exactly the one I wanted and in exactly the condition I wanted I mean it could not have been more perfect. The bathroom is fabulous with its original floor tile, Vitrolite wall tile, and 1920’s bathtub. The kitchen was hideous, new about 25 years ago and cheap.That means that I got to put my own stamp on the kitchen.

It is tiny at 8‘ x 8 1/2‘, a galley kitchen. We are fat FIRE and have plenty of money, so cost wasn’t really an issue. I thought I would treat myself to  one of those high-end kitchen designers and in my initial consultation, after talking to her about what I wanted (High end cabinets, high end countertop, low end appliances) she said this could cost you as much as $30,000 and $40,000.

Yowza.

I’m not spending that kind of money, so DH who did this stuff for a living, agreed to be my kitchen contractor.

We had Amish guys build our cabinets at about $8000. I’m putting in marble countertop, that’s $4,000. Marble backsplash is $1000. A new floor was $1000. Then, unfortunately, I went higher end than planned because I want a certain kind of stove  and that was $5000. I wasn’t picky about the refrigerator other than I wanted an apartment size one, but those are pricey, I think it was about $2000 but it might have been less. I wanted an apartment size dishwasher that had a cabinet panel,  so that was $2000.

Grand total with no labor for this little kitchen: $23,000. Oh there were some initial plumbing that had to be done by a professional due to the condo rules, so that was another $1500.  This tiny kitchen project is coming in at $25,000 in materials only, all the labor is free.

DH did tons of work, I mean weeks of it to prepare the space because the plaster walls needed redone the old floor had to be pryed up and taken down to the original. He installed the cabinets. He will install the tile backsplash. He finished the new floir.

Sorry for writing a novel, but I’ve been involved in this kitchen and our country house kitchen for months now.

TLDR: designer said tiny kitchen could cost $30,000 to 40,000 with some high-end cabinets and countertop. Actual cost was $25,000 with DH doing all labor except installation of marble countertop and new floor.

[uniwelder]

Very few 75-100k remodels on this thread as far as I see. I can't speak for everyone, but we didn't jump into anything. We had a functionally terrible kitchen, literally no counters, one cabinet, and 30 year old appliances for over a decade. We also had a 60% SR when we remodeled. It was a no brainer (for us).

The statement made was two different sentences, so I'm not interpreting it the same way.
"I'm kind of surprised by the number of pricy remodels on here.  $75-100k sounds insane for just a kitchen."

Out of about 15 people giving their costs, 4 were 50k and above.  1 of 4 people spending 50k or more is kinda shocking on a site where frugality a main theme.

[SailingOnASmallSailboat]

As the "$50 k" person here (who felt we were being frugal and it was before we even found this site), a couple of things to consider.

1) This cost involved major construction. Removing a wall, moving a door, taking floor all the way down to joists to rebuild it level, new flooring. Moving a bathroom too, so that plumbing work and all new bathroom stuff. Switching from electric to gas. Lots of electrical work and lighting. New windows and sliding glass door. New cabinets and counters.
2) This price tag also included all new appliances (sourced mostly scratch and dent or sales). New furniture for kitchen (easy chairs), dining room, and living room.

Most work was DIY. We had only one contractor; he'd come into work in the morning wondering what had been done since he left the day before. Most purchases were made on sale or second hand. We knew what we wanted but also were aware of money and spent a LOT of time researching the best places to buy items.

It was a lot of money. We enjoyed it tremendously for 10 years. It paid off in spades when we sold the house in a day, at just about our asking price, even though it needed new siding and a new roof.

[charis]

Yeah, we had a bunch of plumbing and electrical work done in our remodel (35k) as well. But no new furniture or missing walls. We did move a couple of doors. Including adding an outside entrance. We did very little labor. But with two full time jobs and two little kids we were only out of a functional kitchen for about two weeks. So the time/headache saver for us was worth WELL beyond what we paid for it, in my opinion. My spouse DIYs every other house project, so we knew he was capable of doing most of the kitchen, but we opted against it.

[charis]

Very few 75-100k remodels on this thread as far as I see. I can't speak for everyone, but we didn't jump into anything. We had a functionally terrible kitchen, literally no counters, one cabinet, and 30 year old appliances for over a decade. We also had a 60% SR when we remodeled. It was a no brainer (for us).

The statement made was two different sentences, so I'm not interpreting it the same way.
"I'm kind of surprised by the number of pricy remodels on here.  $75-100k sounds insane for just a kitchen."

Out of about 15 people giving their costs, 4 were 50k and above.  1 of 4 people spending 50k or more is kinda shocking on a site where frugality a main theme.

That really depends though. If the 50K+ was spent on luxury facelift, then yes, over $50k is kind of ridiculous. But it sounds like those projects involved major construction work and not just a small kitchen renovation.

[sonofsven]

I build expensive kitchens but in my own house I have original laminate countertops, mis-matched appliances I got for a good deal, worn original vinyl floor with a few dropped knife scars , a fridge with no handle (just pull the edge of the door, lol). I cook a lot, so functional wins.
It is fun building fancy kitchens, but I much prefer spending other people's money. I just spent over 20 grand on cabinets (for a job) and they're the "silver" line, not the more expensive "gold" line.
Just representing the cheap asses here.

[Cranky]

My house was not worth $100k, so it would have been  pretty silly to put in a 100k kitchen. lol

[Nangirl17]

We renovated our small-ish 70s-era kitchen 10 years ago. We took out a wall and the bit above the cabinets (for us 6+foot people, that was usable space!), went down to the studs, and put in new everything except stove. We didn't do the work (I was pregnant and working full time at the time, and having someone else do it helped me cope). It cost around $30K, and WORTH EVERY PENNY.

The added light, increased storage space, huge sink, intentionally designed workflow, and dishwasher make it a place that I LOVE to be in. Even though it would be considered out of date now, I am still very happy with it and will only replace it when it actually wears out (or when we sell - won't likely be for another 30 years). $30k was a small price to pay to make the kitchen a relaxed and happy place for me to be.

[affordablehousing]

Perhaps facepunch worthy but we spent a lot of money on a remodel, and the portion that went toward the kitchen was about $130K. Granted, we didn't just gut the kitchen we removed it, and dug a new foundation and put on a new roof. We used professional contractors with permits, licenses and insurance. Even at this level I don't feel like we "spent luxuriously" we put in what we wanted. I was comfortable putting in a $5K range because we really liked the way it functioned (flamethrower), but also ecstatic to find three matching perfect pendants for the island on the street for free. We forwent a pot filler as I don't like the way they look and we didn't heat the floors since I like wearing slippers. I've done two "light touch" paint the cabinets, new counters and floors, build an island kind of remodels for $3-$20K on prior homes and for this I wanted it to be really nice. Level 5 drywall everywhere, outlets where I want them, lighting tailored to how we enjoy the space. I think we built to near the top-end of kitchens in our area, and it reflected our personal taste. We are delighted at this new focal point for the family and proud of the execution.

Remodels, in general, are a waste of money but I do think in terms of budgeting that you can scale your project to your home value. Some scaling may happen naturally due to labor prices. The $20 an hour helpers I had on prior projects would be $60 in my current market. I think a good rule of thumb is to not spend more than 10% of your home value on a kitchen. If you do it, remember you are indulging yourself and you'll enjoy it. If you try to think of it as an investment, you'll wind up disappointed.

Also, if you have to borrow in any form to renovate, in my book, that's gratuitous and you should continue to save until you can pay for it in cash.

[iris lily]

I am relieved to be past a point where I need to think about “resale.”  I don’t have to care what other people think. It was hard enough to choose cabinet styles for both our places, let alone figure out something that will appeal to more people than me.

I let each building’s age guide my choices and ended up with traditional cabinetry because I have a 100 year old condo, and an 80 year old bungalow. Sleek modern stuff would not look right in either one, although I did toy with the condo kitchen in putting in glossy cabinets to suggest an art deco feel. It’s just that I couldn’t figure out how to get any curve into the tiny kitchen that would really seal the deal for art deco. This condo building was built at the height of art deco rage but does not have one iota of art deco in it anyway.

[bill1827]

Perhaps facepunch worthy but we spent a lot of money on a remodel, and the portion that went toward the kitchen was about $130K.

.............

 I don't feel like we "spent luxuriously" we put in what we wanted.

............

but also ecstatic to find three matching perfect pendants for the island on the street for free.

Cognitive dissonance or what?

2 $75k kitchen refits and a $130k kitchen refit. What's in the least bit mustachian about them? Nothing, I would venture to say.

FWIW about 4 years ago we redid the kitchen in our previous house (28 years after the previous kitchen). Dug up the floor, put in insulation and underfloor heating, Replaced a radiator with a "designer" radiator. Paid someone to lay ceramic tiles on the floor (not very well). Nearly all the base cabinets had drawers instead of shelves, expensive but much more usable. Quartz worktops, 2 ovens, induction hob, ceramic sink. This is a large (by UK standards) kitchen 18' x 14'. Total cost £13,500. If we'd forgone the quartz worktop for laminate and laid the tiles ourselves it would have been about £9,000.

The end result was a really good, luxurious, usable kitchen, a great improvement on the old kitchen and worth doing. Paid for in cash.

Unfortunately we've since moved and the new house has a much worse kitchen. It's usable but not well designed; it 'has bright red doors and work surface and has dirty brown coloured floor tiles. But I can't summon up the money or energy to redo it yet,especially as it still works, and I've changed the horrible dual fuel range cooker for a couple of (cheapish) induction hobs and a couple of (cheap) built in ovens.

[PMG]

Perhaps facepunch worthy but we spent a lot of money on a remodel, and the portion that went toward the kitchen was about $130K. Granted, we didn't just gut the kitchen we removed it, and dug a new foundation and put on a new roof. We used professional contractors with permits, licenses and insurance. Even at this level I don't feel like we "spent luxuriously" we put in what we wanted. I was comfortable putting in a $5K range because we really liked the way it functioned (flamethrower), but also ecstatic to find three matching perfect pendants for the island on the street for free. We forwent a pot filler as I don't like the way they look and we didn't heat the floors since I like wearing slippers. I've done two "light touch" paint the cabinets, new counters and floors, build an island kind of remodels for $3-$20K on prior homes and for this I wanted it to be really nice. Level 5 drywall everywhere, outlets where I want them, lighting tailored to how we enjoy the space. I think we built to near the top-end of kitchens in our area, and it reflected our personal taste. We are delighted at this new focal point for the family and proud of the execution.

Remodels, in general, are a waste of money but I do think in terms of budgeting that you can scale your project to your home value. Some scaling may happen naturally due to labor prices. The $20 an hour helpers I had on prior projects would be $60 in my current market. I think a good rule of thumb is to not spend more than 10% of your home value on a kitchen. If you do it, remember you are indulging yourself and you'll enjoy it. If you try to think of it as an investment, you'll wind up disappointed.

Also, if you have to borrow in any form to renovate, in my book, that's gratuitous and you should continue to save until you can pay for it in cash.

I really enjoy that your username is afforablehousing...

Poking fun aside, this is an interesting conversation. I have nothing of value to add to it, but I'm enjoying the vast variances and the photos. 

We bought a house just north of $50k.  Everything is builder grade but fairly new and we hella love it. Once in a while we get a little bit jealous of prettier and more dramatic homes, then we remind ourselves of how affordable our mortgage and taxes are, how flat our driveway is (in the mountains, lots of bad driveways and expensive retaining walls) and (knock on wood) how easy to maintain our home is, and how much we love our neighborhood and location and while everything in our house is simple it works and it is tasteful, and while it's not perfect or glamorous it is pretty dang nice.   

[affordablehousing]

Yeah, I'd been laughing at myself through the whole process with respect to my screen name. I spent a few years living in a city where the homes were $50K. I used to fantasize about buying a block, tearing all the houses down, and trucking the "old growth" wood from all the victorian mansions to my current neighborhood and sell it board by board. Oh what fun that would be. The translation extremes between different parts of the US are pretty incredible.

[SailingOnASmallSailboat]

People. If you post a detailed explanation of an amazing reno and then don't include some pictures...come on! I'm dying to see some of these descriptions.

I keep trying to add photos of one of the kitchens we did and it keeps knocking me out and asking me to do a new topic. Any ideas?

[uniwelder]

People. If you post a detailed explanation of an amazing reno and then don't include some pictures...come on! I'm dying to see some of these descriptions.

I keep trying to add photos of one of the kitchens we did and it keeps knocking me out and asking me to do a new topic. Any ideas?

Max of 4 pics and max 4 mb total. Could be the issue

[SailingOnASmallSailboat]

Thanks @uniwelder - it looks like that might be the issue. I appreciate you pointing that out!

>$2000 remodel of a 1890s kitchen that was last done in the 1950s. Most of the budget went to the sliding glass door and new appliances, with the rest going to wood for wall work and the "cabinets"

[jrhampt]

We have a tiny kitchen in a tiny house and remodeled it when we moved in full-time at a cost of around $10k.  We knocked out a half wall, exchanged the peninsula for an island and new sink/cabinets with nice quartz countertops.  The main reason we did this was so both of us could be in the kitchen at the same time (previously it was too cramped), so the island could double as workspace when both of us are WFH, and most importantly, so we could add a dishwasher.  Since the house is so small, we had to make the stove a bit smaller so we had room to put in a smaller dishwasher.  We used the opportunity to install energy efficient new appliances and we LOVE our little, quiet Bosch dishwasher.  Later on we changed out the lighting too and put in another electrical outlet.  Totally worth it, made it way more functional and especially during the winter and covid waves we use the hell out of it.

[MayDay]

We have a galley kitchen that was original to the 1953 house.

It was fine but not super functional for various reasons-
-large pantry that resulted in even less counter space
-tiny 1950's wall oven that couldn't fit large items
-terrible painted countertops

We spent 12k having one side of the cabinets replaced and all the counters replaced. That addressed all the issues. It was well worth it and I am happy every time I am in the kitchen.

Similar to you this kitchen will never WOW a buyer unless someone does an addition to open it up larger than a galley kitchen. So a mid range update made sense for us.

[iris lily]

We have a galley kitchen that was original to the 1953 house.

It was fine but not super functional for various reasons-
-large pantry that resulted in even less counter space
-tiny 1950's wall oven that couldn't fit large items
-terrible painted countertops

We spent 12k having one side of the cabinets replaced and all the counters replaced. That addressed all the issues. It was well worth it and I am happy every time I am in the kitchen.

Similar to you this kitchen will never WOW a buyer unless someone does an addition to open it up larger than a galley kitchen. So a mid range update made sense for us.

I LIKE galley kitchens! My tiny condo has a tiny galley kitchen where the back door of this condo (yes, there is a back soor—1920’s architecture) opens and those smart people of yore put in a lockable 3/4 slat door over the regular door so that cooking odors could waift out into the service hall.

Really smart.

So, my condo of 530 sq feet has a front door into the nice public hall for front door people, and it has a back door into the service hall for back door people. Must maintain  those class distinctions, doncha know. Haha.

[index]

Our kitchen remodel was $24k with all diy with the exception of plumbing.

Before:



After:

[Hadilly]

I am contemplating a kitchen update, rather than a remodel. Does anyone here have experience with refinishing cabinets? I really like the look of wood, but our current cabinets are very dark. I would prefer not to paint them. I am currently thinking about refinishing with a lighter wood veneer and new doors. I would love to hear anyone’s experience.

[PoutineLover]

I did a partial remodel on my kitchen because the floors were rotten under multiple layers of linoleum. We had them removed professionally since there was asbestos, but we redid them ourselves and installed LVP. We didn't refinish the cabinets yet, although we are still considering it. We painted the walls and installed a tile backsplash, under cabinet lighting, a ceiling fan, and new cabinet pulls. The total cost was somewhere around 5k, mostly because of the asbestos removal. We did the rest of the labour ourselves. It makes a world of difference, and the floors were a health hazard, so it was definitely worth it.

[iris lily]

Index, nice cabinets. They go to the ceiling and that’s always good looking. I like the way they go with the style of your house.

[index]

Index, nice cabinets. They go to the ceiling and that’s always good looking. I like the way they go with the style of your house.

Thanks!  They are Ikea boxes with custom doors. Boxes were about 3.5K and 38 doors and several cover panels were about 2.5K.

It was a solid 2 60+ hour weeks for myself and cousin to demo, frame, install floors, electric, drywall, and cabinet boxes. I subbed out the counter tops, plumbing, and drywall finishing. The goal was to have a sink and range in two weeks. The finishing work including installing the backsplash, cabinet doors, and trim took another 4 months of nights and weekends. 





The project also included adding a powder room off the kitchen.



No telling what the final bill would have been to hire a GC. Several of our friends have spend around 45k for similar sized kitchens without the structural work or adding a bathroom.

[Hadilly]

PL: very nice!