Thread: Getting Ready to Remodel my Kitchen

Originally Posted by TheGreatSatan

My wife and I are going to be dropping about $12,000 on a new kitchen. That's for all new appliances, cabinets, counter, sink, and possibly the floor. We will hire a contractor. I was wondering if anyone here has done a kitchen remodel and what it cost you. Also, if anyone has some advice on what to look for or what possible headaches to avoid in the near future, please explain.

Writing, writing, writing! Get everything in writing from your contractor. Be very specific with him on what you want. You're very creative so draw everything out if you can. This will eliminate any confusion and leave interpretation out of it.

The bulk of your expenses are going to be counters (if stone) and cabinets. To save a few bucks maybe use your old boxes? If not, try to stay away from custom sizes. There are so many pre-made cabinets out there I see no reason to buy custom.

Flooring can be expensive as well so do your homework.

I'm to much of a control freak so I would be my own contractor. It's a relatively small job and with a small amount of homework you can research the proper way to do so and save 10-20%. This is obviously a lot easier if you're keeping the same plumbing and electrical locations. If you need to start moving these around you'll need to pull permits and that can be a headache.

Good luck!

I've done one. As far as costs go, it's hard to say exactly how much it should cost because the price range of cabinets and counter tops is rather large. You can go bottom of the line and get away with maybe $10,000 for an average sized kitchen (10x10), or you can go fancy and jack the price up to the $25,000-30,000 range. You've also got top and bottom with appliances, although the differential between top and bottom isn't as large as it is for cabinets and counter tops.

The biggest headache for me was being without water in the kitchen for a couple of weeks. Paper plates and cups are your friends at this time as well as take-out food.