You see it all the time on TV. People spend outrageous amounts of money to buy new kitchens. You can get a new kitchen for a lot less money than your television would lead you to believe.
I once owned a beautiful house on Cape Cod with an 1980s-style melamine and oak-slat kitchen. When we decided to sell to start a new business, every potential buyer hated that kitchen. We did not receive a single offer. We had no choice but to take the house off the market and fix up the kitchen. If you think you might need to resell an attractive kitchen, it’s important. But more importantly, it’s nice for any homeowner to have a kitchen they love.
We asked the professionals how much it would cost to remodel our kitchen. They estimated it would cost between $20,000 and $30,000. And hiring “professionals” is not without its risks. They may or may not do a proper job. We made our first attempts at DIY due to bad experiences with “experts” who didn’t deliver.
So we decided to do it ourselves… again.
We did it for $1,200.
Yes, we save at least $18,800, maybe more.
You can do it too. That is how.
Do it one step at a time.
1. Your first step is to make decisions about the design of your kitchen. If reasonably functional, keep sinks and appliances in their current positions. We didn’t move anything in our kitchen and saved a lot of money.
2. Next, keep the boxes in your cabinet if possible. This is a “green” issue, as well as a pricing issue. Cabinets cost a lot of money and should never end up in a landfill. If you don’t plan on reusing your cabinets, at least donate them to a local charity like Habitat for Humanity or Good Will.
3. Browse home goods stores for good cabinet buys or rejects from makers and cabinet makers.
4. You can keep the boxes and get new doors for a new look at no cost. I had a cabinetmaker make me doors out of MDF panels and he spray painted them cream. They did wonders for my kitchen and made my house sellable at the same time.
5. Make sure the style of your kitchen matches the exterior style of your house. This is important. My house didn’t sell because the house was very traditional and the kitchen was 80’s modern. People who liked the house hated that kitchen. That’s why the house didn’t sell.
6. Take a look at braces that have a few teeth or are rarely used. You can find good and useful things if you can’t buy new and perfect things. Also look for in-stock appliances that are on sale. Stores that keep inventory sometimes have sales. Paying in cash could also give you an advantage in negotiating better prices. Sometimes the only barrier between you and a better price is simply asking. Have the nerve to ask.
7. Consider using lower cost options for countertops and flooring. Butcher block or bamboo is much cheaper than granite and is both beautiful and functional. Ceramic tiles are both functional and attractive, and are also good value for money. I’m going to go with a solid surface with recycled glass for my next trick.
8. Look for used furniture that can be incorporated into your kitchen. An old buffet could make a great island. An old closet could be a pantry. Be creative. You can get a really unique furniture style kitchen for a lot less money.
9. Don’t destroy the old until you have the new on the site. Your work will go much faster. Keep your old kitchen until you have everything you need to make the new one. We installed our brand new kitchen in a weekend (2 days).
10. Meet the code. Building codes exist to make buildings safe. You can download this data from your local government.
All our work paid off. When we put our house up for sale again, we advertised it in the local newspaper one weekend. It was sold to first comers for the asking price and without an estate agent.
We are making plans to put a “new” kitchen in our current house, reusing existing cabinets, replacing worn-out appliances, and moving the kitchen to another part of the house. It won’t cost a lot of money. I’m too cheap to pay professionals and I’m not going to change.
