The kitchen is like the Grand Central Station of your home. And there’s always a reason to improve it over time. Whether it’s functionality or preparing your house for resale, here’s how to plan for a kitchen reno and other kitchen renovation planning tips.
Budget
Before you start knocking down walls, you need to prepare the funds to pay for your new kitchen. Remember that you can’t do everything yourself unless you’re a licensed contractor. For a quality kitchen, it’s best to leave it to the pros.
Financial Cushion
On average, the cost to renovate your kitchen can range from about $10 000 to $50 000! Depending on your current funds, you know how much you can earmark for the project. It’s also a good idea to have a financial cushion of about 10-20% of your budget just in case. You won’t have to worry about running out of money and ending up with a half-finished kitchen.
Hidden Costs
Be aware of any hidden costs or places you can save some dollars. This includes taxes, delivery fees, product sources like retail or independent sellers, and anything that you can do yourself. Every dollar counts!
Research
Now that you have your budget in mind, you can browse for kitchen ideas that fit it.
Showrooms
Visit kitchen showrooms for inspiration and to take notes on what’s trending. A trendy and functional kitchen can help with your resale value if you expect to move.
Friends
If you know of any friends that renovated their kitchen, go and take a peek of what they did and how they did it. Learn from any “oopsie” moments or missed opportunities they may have had for your kitchen.
Quality
No Sacrificing Quality
Quality is absolutely everything. This includes the contractor that does the job. Make sure that you have carefully reviewed any online reviews and recommendations from people that you know. You don’t want to choose just any contractor you find in the Yellow Pages (if that still exists). Ask for three references from your contractor options so you can check out their work and ask about their professionalism.
Quality also is important to the materials and appliances. It’s tempting to cut some costs by choosing bargain items, but the goals of a new kitchen are durability, functionality, and efficiency, which demands the best of the best especially if you’re planning to resell your house that could get you a return of about 87% to 125%!
Space
Now that all of that is settled, it’s time to start the planning the lay-out of the kitchen space!
Classic Work Triangle
This triangle focuses on the sink, the fridge, and the stove and the efficiency to access them all easily.
An Island
You can also consider adding an island to your kitchen for more counter space to prepare your meals or to act as the morning breakfast table.
And always plan for adequate space for counters, appliances, and a pathway.
Just remember to get ahead of the game and plan appropriately for the kitchen of, or close to, your dreams!
