Updating Your Kitchen On a Budget

When it comes to putting money into your home the first thing people gravitate to is the kitchen. It is usually the focal point of the house and is also the most used room in the house. But it can also be the most costly updates you can make to your house especially if you do no know what you are doing.

 

You have to be careful not to overdo it especially if you plan on moving within the next few years. High end kitchens are great but at the end of the day you will want to make sure you are getting a return on investment when that times comes for your to sell. You can go here if you are looking for a kitchen renovation in Calgary to help maximize your budget to create the dream kitchen that really sparkles.

 

Below are a few tips to help you keep that kitchen budget in line but still giving you the luxurious look you are going for.

 

Cabinets. The typical cabinet size is 30″ and 42″ tall. If the the is over $300,000 in value then I would suggest using the 42″ cabinets. Anything below $300,000 value I would keep it at 30″. Many homeowners these days are going with the soft closing doors. This is an added expense that you can save on if you don’t feel that the soft closing doors are necessary. You can find stock cabinets at your local Lowes and Home Depot that you can buy right off the self. Anything that needs to be ordered will be more money.

 

Appliances. Keeping your appliances a standard size will save you a lot of money. Fridges come in 30″, 36″ and 42″. In our renovations we typically use a 30 fridge. The only problem with a 30″ fridge is that they come out 30″. If you order a 36″ or 42″ fridge you’ll have the option of going with a counter depth one which is 24″ deep. The smaller the fridge the more affordable it is. Get advice from Appliance Hunter for affordable yet high-quality appliances. The typical over and microwave size is 30″. Custom sizes in ovens and microwaves can get pretty expensive. We prefer to go with the standard 30″ stove so we can install a self circulation microwave above it.

 

Countertops. There are many options when picking a stone out for your countertops. The two most common options are granite and quartz. When going to your countertop vendor I would ask your salesman to start at the baseline stone. This will be the most cost effective option. You will find that you can find similar looks in the baseline price points as you will in the higher end stone. Keep your edges simple. The fancier of an edge you go with the more expensive it is. Most people don’t pay attention to the edging of the stone anyway.

 

Backsplash. Once again keep it simple. You can do a standard white subway backsplash for a reasonable price. Tile can get expensive especially for the higher end material. You’ll want to make sure you marry the cabinet color together with the countertop color. We don’t like to do the countertop trim piece as part of our backsplash. We will tile the entire backsplash from top of the countertop to the bottom of the cabinet. By not installing that 3″ piece of granite or quartz will save you a lot of money.