Home & Hearth
New Kitchen Need a New Look?
More homeowners today are choosing to remodel kitchens in homes less than 10 years old.
In one case, a client remodeled her kitchen within six months of moving in. She purchased a spec home and didn’t fully realize how poor the quality of her cabinets was until it was too late. They were so poorly installed that they didn’t line up straight.
Another couple started to remodel their kitchen, but decided against it when they discovered the price would be close to $30,000 to $50,000 for what they wanted in terms of quality. They decided to buy a new home and start from scratch. Unfortunately, they could not find the quality level they wanted for their home in their price range. In the end, they too, decided to remodel the kitchen they had.
This wouldn’t have happened five years ago. Within the past few years, newly constructed kitchens have suffered because of escalating costs of building. Often the cabinet allowance from the builder covers no more than the basics. You should be prepared to supplement that allowance if your tastes and needs require more accessories, moldings (so popular now), matching wood appliance panels, and special touches that make the kitchen truly yours. Even in the $1 million homes, you’ll find mid-line cabinets that do not do justice to the home.
Another reason buyer’s end up remodeling their new kitchens is that they came too late to the design process in the first place.
Then when they move in, they find that the builder’s basic kitchen isn’t quite right for what they wanted to do, so they end up making changes.
What kind of changes? People add state-of-the-art water purification and ventilation systems, upgrade appliances, and opt for more stainless steel. Granite counter tops, decorative hardware, more ornate faucets, and tumbled marble backslashes are also popular. So, too, are two-tone and the newer glazed heirloom finishes for cabinets.
Also, after all those plain, mass produced post World War II kitchens, people are turning away from the basic look and going back to more traditional trims and moldings with intricate fluting, rosettes, turned legs, and more things that had previously enhanced the appearance of the kitchen.
One final reason increasing numbers of homeowners are remodeling their relatively new kitchens is simply—because they can.
The economy’s been good and there’s been more discretionary income available. People have money, so they’re spending it, sometimes for no better reason than they’re tired of what they have and want something different. TPW
In one case, a client remodeled her kitchen within six months of moving in. She purchased a spec home and didn’t fully realize how poor the quality of her cabinets was until it was too late. They were so poorly installed that they didn’t line up straight.
Another couple started to remodel their kitchen, but decided against it when they discovered the price would be close to $30,000 to $50,000 for what they wanted in terms of quality. They decided to buy a new home and start from scratch. Unfortunately, they could not find the quality level they wanted for their home in their price range. In the end, they too, decided to remodel the kitchen they had.
This wouldn’t have happened five years ago. Within the past few years, newly constructed kitchens have suffered because of escalating costs of building. Often the cabinet allowance from the builder covers no more than the basics. You should be prepared to supplement that allowance if your tastes and needs require more accessories, moldings (so popular now), matching wood appliance panels, and special touches that make the kitchen truly yours. Even in the $1 million homes, you’ll find mid-line cabinets that do not do justice to the home.
Another reason buyer’s end up remodeling their new kitchens is that they came too late to the design process in the first place.
Then when they move in, they find that the builder’s basic kitchen isn’t quite right for what they wanted to do, so they end up making changes.
What kind of changes? People add state-of-the-art water purification and ventilation systems, upgrade appliances, and opt for more stainless steel. Granite counter tops, decorative hardware, more ornate faucets, and tumbled marble backslashes are also popular. So, too, are two-tone and the newer glazed heirloom finishes for cabinets.
Also, after all those plain, mass produced post World War II kitchens, people are turning away from the basic look and going back to more traditional trims and moldings with intricate fluting, rosettes, turned legs, and more things that had previously enhanced the appearance of the kitchen.
One final reason increasing numbers of homeowners are remodeling their relatively new kitchens is simply—because they can.
The economy’s been good and there’s been more discretionary income available. People have money, so they’re spending it, sometimes for no better reason than they’re tired of what they have and want something different. TPW