A recent survey by the National Association of Home Builders says new home starts decreased sharply in the fourth quarter of 2007, but remodeling decreased only slightly.
As a result, some builders are moving into remodeling. And kitchen design companies, with fewer new-kitchen jobs, are more willing than in years past to take on small and midsize projects. In other words, more pros are chasing your remodeling dollars.
In Kansas City, the average cost of a minor kitchen remodel is $21,672, according to Remodeling magazine’s 2007 Cost Versus Value Report (read the full report at costvalue.remodelingmagazine .com). A major remodel averages $57,156.
But it’s easy to take thousands off both those numbers, local remodelers and kitchen designers say. Especially if you avoid unnecessary changes to the basic layout of the kitchen and resist the lure of premium features and costly upgrades.
“People get caught up in the magazines. They get caught up in the showrooms,” said builder and remodeler Mark Eddy, co-owner of Gahagan & Eddy Building Co. in Leawood.
But good value doesn’t mean picking the cheapest materials and hiring the lowest-bid contractor. A kitchen that looks low-budget or comes apart at the (flooring and cabinetry) seams is no value.
The best strategy, especially if your remodel is a once-in-a-lifetime expense, is to choose high-quality, classic materials for flooring, counters and cabinetry.
The best-value picks, according to local kitchen experts, are solid oak floors, basic black granite countertops and semi-custom cabinets (engineered wood boxes with solid wood fronts.)
No matter what the budget, you’ll be happier with the results if you splurge on one or two things that are important to you, says Geri Higgins, owner of Portfolio Kitchen & Home in Kansas City. If you really want a pro-style range, get one and make up the savings elsewhere.
“You have to have a few things that are wow-factor focal points,” Higgins said, and you can do it even on the smallest budget. For example, a two-cup Brew Express coffeemaker built into the wall costs just $400 but has the coffee-bar glam of larger plumbed-in systems that cost thousands.
Because homeowners are staying in their homes longer, their kitchen planning is driven more by how they want to live than by how they can recoup the investment, local remodelers say.
“You should never do a project for resale. Do it for yourself,” Eddy said. “But if you do it right, you can get the money back out.”
Cabinets are often the biggest expense in a kitchen project and the first thing people notice.
Linear foot prices for cabinets, including top and bottom boxes but not installation, start at $75 for stock (inexpensive materials and hardware), $225 for semi-custom (better-quality materials and hardware) and $500 for custom (best-quality).
At each of those quality levels, you can easily double or even triple the cost through upgrades. Detailed door trim, glazed finishes and soft-close drawers are potential budget busters.
But savings are possible at all levels, says Randall Sisk, owner of Kitchens by Kleweno in Kansas City. Among his suggestions:
•Limit the number of cabinets by building a pantry to use as a “warehouse.”
•Eliminate specialized spaces. Put the microwave in a regular cabinet instead of building it in.
•If you splurge on solid wood doors, birch and maple are cheaper than walnut or cherry.
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