Home kitchen remodeling-is it worth it?Kitchens are one of the most important parts of the home. It is where people spend the majority of the time in the home and it is where much of the prep work is done when cooking. The kitchen is one of the most expensive parts of the home because of the plumbing, appliances, sinks etc. Many experts tell you that you should spend money to update the kitchen first, as this will help increase the value of your home. This may be true, in part, but listen to me. Make sure the rest of your home is well maintained before you begin to update the kitchen and make sure that you have the money to finish what you've started. These two items are probably the biggest mistakes I see with home owners. Home owners will start the kitchen project, only to find out that they ran out of money and now they have a partially completed kitchen. Home owners will update the kitchen with high quality items and neglect the rest of their home. Both of these issues will result in decreased value or result in your home not selling, unless you discount your home significantly. Let's go through the best strategy for selling, buying, or refinancing. Selling a homeFirst, if you are selling, be sure the rest of your home is in at least average condition. I've seen several cases when the home owner will update the kitchen but the rest of the home is falling apart. Your buyer will see right past this. First, you'll want to fix any items in the home that clearly need work. Correct any safety hazards, install railing, mow the grass, plant flowers and water your lawn, just basic stuff to make your home look good. If the kitchen is in good condition, this is probably the best that you can do. You should not update your kitchen if you have a newer home and a newer kitchen just because you like different colors. This will do nothing to increase the value of your kitchen and it will do nothing to help sell your home faster or sell your home (unless, of course, you painted your home with some outrageous colors or something that the majority of the market will not like). If your home is an older home and the kitchen is dated and old, you may want to considered updating your kitchen. But before you do, look at the other listings and sold homes in your market and and see if it will make a significant difference. The kitchen will cost lots of money to update. You may be able to just reface your kitchen cabinets and get new counter tops and add new, updated appliances. This is the cheapest way to go and many times, this will be enough to get the job done. The probability of selling your home will increase, but the cost of projects like this will not be significant and too risky where you end up not recouping the investment of the kitchen. In fact, most of the time and in most markets, you will not get back 100% of the kitchen remodel. This is why you should try and sell your home first, as is, unless your kitchen is a complete broken mess. Buying a homeKitchens are one of the most expensive things to update. So when you are looking for a home, look for one with an updated kitchen. But, as noted above, make sure you bring a check list to make sure that the major parts of the home are in average condition and that things are in good working order. Next, compare the improvements with everything you want in your home. You'll have to make the final decision and everything must be compared with what you can buy in your market area. What are you willing to trade for an updated kitchen. Look, an updated kitchen may cost you $20,000, but so will an extra shop building. The roof may cost you $5,000 to replace. New windows and siding may cost more than $20,000. Look at the overall picture. I'd look for a nice updated kitchen with plenty of cabinets. Usually, homes in the same vintage will share similar cabinet space. Would I buy a home with a dated kitchen? Yes, I would, as long as the price was correct and that there are other major items that are important to me when buying. How's the flooring? Newer double pane windows will save on your heating bill. A new heat pump is much more efficient than baseboard heaters. So look at the entire package and than make your decision.RefinancingA clean kitchen will go a long ways. If you are about to refinance, don't update the kitchen and don't expect the kitchen to increase the value of your home. While it may, it may not. It depends on the comparable sales in the market area. Your home will have a number of factors that influence the value. If the rest of your home is “spot on” and you've updated everything in your home, but the kitchen, this may be a good bet. But if this is the only thing that is updated, don't spend the money until everything else is up to average condition. |