Buying the home of your dreams comes with the perk of choosing or building the ideal kitchen. However, a fully furnished kitchen is never complete because you must always update it. The constant updating is not related to increasing your home's value but adjusting the kitchen's functionality to suit your lifestyle. If you are planning a renovation in the foreseeable future, here are 8 essential tips on how to remodel your kitchen this season.
Kitchen Renovation Tips
1. Keep track of the budget for the renovation
There are few obstacles to creating the perfect kitchen through updates but the snare homeowners usually fall into is budget planning. It is easy to plan for a budget when you are building a brand new kitchen but updating it constantly comes with hidden costs.
That is why you need to come up with a total sum of money you are willing to spend and then distribute it evenly across several months. Some of the funds will be used for repairing appliances, while the rest of the budget can be used for moving walls or taking care of gas/electric installations.
2. Can you move a wall?
Budget planning is especially important when it comes to large home improvements, like moving walls. This is a costly project that is often not doable if all the walls in your kitchen are supporting ones. Such large-scale structural changes involve a lot of extra work, such as relocating plumbing, gas lines, and electrical wires so they might end up costing more than you can afford. If you decide that moving a wall is necessary, then make sure that's the only kitchen improvement for that season.
3. A gas cook or an electric stove
There are two main cooking fuel types: a gas cook or an electric oven. Although most homeowners decide on one particular type, you should aim to install both. This choice is wise both in terms of practicality and making the home desirable for prospective home buyers because you don't know in advance which cooking fuel they prefer.
A gas cook offers better heat control which results in faster heating up of meals. If you use a wok to cook your meals, then a gas cook is the ideal option for you. On the other side, an electric oven allows you to cook and bake at higher temperatures. One benefit of this fuel is that it's easier to clean an oven than a cooker.
4. Fix all the appliances in the kitchen
The gas cook/electric oven dilemma becomes unimportant if the stove is not operational. In fact, broken appliances in the kitchen not only make it harder to prepare and store food but they take up valuable space.
For example, if you lose the refrigerator due to a malfunction, the food inside will go off and the disused appliance will be a huge waste of space. For this reason, keep the number of an emergency fridge repairs service nearby so you can react the moment you notice the fridge is out of order. Sometimes renovating the kitchen might be as simple as making sure that all the appliances, from the hand mixer to the refrigerator are fully operational.
5. Not all kitchen cabinets are the same
You probably already know that kitchen cabinets come in all shapes and sizes. This allows you to match the design of the new cabinets with the décor of the kitchen but such freedom can trick you into thinking that there isn't much difference in quality.
Quite the contrary, cabinets differ in quality based on the material they are made from. Wood is the most commonly used material for kitchen cabinets but it too varies from cheap and weak plywood to hardwood cabinets that promise to last for centuries if maintained properly. Furthermore, there are various types of slides, hinges, and handles to choose from so go for the top-range ones.
The final tip involving kitchen cabinets has to do with their dimensions. Since you constantly lack storage space in the kitchen, order or buy cabinets that will extend all the way to the ceiling. This will allow you to use free space to the maximum. Also, keep in mind that shelves are not the best storage option because they collect dust and offer little protection to utensils stored on them.
6. You can always do with more natural light
Since you are wielding sharp knives and standing next to boiling-hot pots in the kitchen it is obvious you need maximum visibility. During the day, the kitchen should have as much daylight as possible so enlarging the windows is always a good option.
Admittedly, you are going to lose cabinet space because of large windows but the innovation is worth the sacrifice. Of course, think about the material of the façade since it is costly to make a hole in a stone façade, contrary to a wooden wall. As an excellent way to save vertical space, you can add a skylight to the kitchen ceiling.
7. Choose the best material possible for countertops
Since there is a lot of cutting taking place in the kitchen, the countertop gets worn over the years. The only way to slow down this process is to revamp the kitchen using top-range countertops. Stone, quartz, and granite are among the most durable materials used for high-end countertops so they are definitely worth the investment.
8. Lighting the kitchen at night
When it comes to functionality, lighting the kitchen after dark is one of the priorities. Big windows are only effective during the day but as night falls you'll need to add extra light sources. LED lights are the best option but you shouldn't stop at only replacing the ceiling fixture.
Namely, there are cheap LED strips you can attach to the bottom of the kitchen cabinets or on the backsplash to illuminate countertops. Furthermore, accent lights can be placed inside cabinets and they can be multicolored.
When your home goes up for sale one day, chances are that a fully renovated kitchen will add an extra grand or two to the final price. That's why renovating your kitchen this season is not an expenditure but really an investment for the future. The 8 tips listed above cover all essential fixes and updates the kitchen needs.
About the Publisher
Bo Kauffmann is a residential real estate agent with over 18 yrs experience in helping buyers and sellers achieve their goals. Inducted into the REMAX Hall of Fame in 2010 and receiving the REMAX Lifetime Achievement Award in 2019, Bo has sold over 500 houses and condos in the Greater Winnipeg market. He is an accredited buyer representative (A.B.R.) and a Luxury Home Marketing Specialist.
Bo provides exceptional service to First-Time Home-Buyers, Seniors looking to downsize and Home Sellers of all ages.
He can be reached easily By E-Mail or call/text him Call/Text Here
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