You’re dreaming about a new kitchen and could use some help figuring out two things:
- How much it’ll cost
- How you’ll be able to stay on a budget
First and foremost, you need to set a realistic budget to match your project’s scope. If you want champagne, but have a beer budget, then you need to start with the basics.
You probably won’t ever come out and tell a kitchen designer how much money you have to spend, fearing she (or he) will spend it all. But at some point you’re going to have to share that information with someone, or you’ll waste a lot of time working on plans for a project that never has a chance to get off the ground.
Here are some numbers for you: a realistic mid range kitchen remodel will run about $25,000-$35,000, and that’s for demolition of your existing cabinets, purchase of new cabinets, installation, counter tops, flooring, a sink, faucets & plumbing supplies, flooring and a backsplash. Generally appliances are additional.Sure, there are ads aplenty for kitchens for $5995, and you need to be leery of those. That’s a whole other article.
So let’s assume for a moment that you’re good with the first budget amount and you are ready to start designing your kitchen. There are two ways to go about this: one is to start with everything you’d absolutely love to have, then work your way down and the other is to start at the bottom and work your way up. In my opinion, it’s a lot easier for your designer to start at the top then delete items until you get to where you want to be.
You don’t want to start any design process until you’ve decided what your maximum investment could be and more often than not, you can work it out so that by starting at the top you get most of what you’d love to have in your dream kitchen.
When coming up with a budget, you’re obviously the only one who knows what you’re comfortable with. However, one way to “guesstimate” what you could spend, as well as see a return on your investment, is to figure about 15% of the retail value of your home on your project in order to get about 90% of your investment back.
Another thing to do is decide what the most important item/function is for your kitchen. Is it a new commercial stove? Is it to have a counter where the family can gather? Is it to remove a wall to open up the room? Whatever your dream is, that’s where you need to plan to spend the most.
You also should make sure that all our concerns and questions are addressed during the design process so you can help eliminate any surprises. However, you do need to keep in mind that there are unforeseen circumstances where additional costs can be incurred, such as plumbing in a soffit that was coming down, or something that was previously worked on and covered up.
Remember, a good designer/remodeler can always help you make decisions about where to best spend your money. Is it the cabinet trim? Is it on electrical and new lighting? When you start thinking about a kitchen remodel, what is one of the biggest concerns you have? Let us know in the COMMENT box below! Aegean Designing Whims can walk you through the remodel process, so that you can get the dream kitchen you’ve always wanted!
