Whether you wish to sell the house or upgrade your living conditions, renovating it can be strenuous. Along with hiring professionals and investing time, you must allocate considerable funds to achieve your plan. This can be the most stressful part of the process because inflation leads to material and labour shortages, impacting the whole home improvement industry. Therefore, anything from floor coverings to furniture and appliances got extremely expensive, so homeowners must expect their projects to take longer and cost more compared to a few years ago.
Unfortunately, this affects the market to offer less-qualitative houses considering the high cost of renovating. Tenants and homebuyers have few options, especially when important rooms such as the kitchen or bathroom are provided in poor conditions. And while the looks of the whole house are essential, seeing an immaculate kitchen will impress more than a neat living room because this is where people spend the most time.
Let’s see why a kitchen upgrade will make your house more profitable.
The kitchen is among the most crucial house spaces
Prospective buyers usually prioritise three rooms when looking for a new house: the kitchen, the bathroom and the bedroom, which is expected because these areas are most frequented in one’s daily life. The bathroom needs to have high-end finishes to avoid causing further trouble with leaking, and the bedroom should provide enough storage for clothes and decent bedding.
However, the kitchen is more important because it’s used a few times daily.
That’s why modern kitchens are appreciated more than old finishes and appliances. A new kitchen must allow enough space for walking around, big countertops for cooking and contemporary housewares that are time and energy efficient. At the same time, proper storage is required. But how do you renovate a kitchen to be high-end when the prices of materials are so expensive?
How to upgrade your kitchen on a budget
It’s safe to say that potential buyers are willing to pay more for qualitative furnishings and appliances, but reaching this level of luxury takes time and considerable investments. Therefore, you must start with better expectations and thoroughly plan the renovation.
Moreover, you should consider alternatives to material options and everything necessary if you have a tight budget. So, here are some of the things that you can do effortlessly without investing money:
- Cleaning and decluttering are easy to achieve if you have a keen eye for dirt. Sometimes it’s better to throw everything away and keep a few basic things than keep them in a mess;
- Demolition is also feasible if you have all the tools necessary. You can also ask for the help of a friend or a relative for a small project such as the kitchen;
- Painting cabinets, appliances and everything that can be painted is also easy; just make sure to wear the proper equipment;
Still, we must warn you that only some things can be done alone. For example, if there are any drainage leaks in the kitchen, you should ask for a professional’s help -otherwise, you’ll mess things up and have to pay even more for these fixtures.
What to consider adding to your kitchen to level it up
Besides decluttering, painting and demolishing everything, which is the most demanding, you also need to think of designs for the kitchen that will make it appealing to future clients. This includes cost advantages for the long term and catchy decorations.
For example, people will be attracted by an energy-efficient kitchen that will save them money because they won’t have to worry about high bills and environmental effects. A green kitchen usually has new appliances that help reduce energy usage.
Here are some examples of what green appliances mean:
- Refrigerators should be Energy Star rated, which translates to high performance, less heat and improved insulation;
- Dishwashers with a green label should use less energy and water than regular models and also require less detergent;
- Some efficient cooking appliances include induction cooktops, 5-in-1 ovens, and warming draws;
Approaching kitchen styles that sell the most
Numerous kitchen styles are trending every season, but only a few are timeless and will be appreciated regardless of fashion. And while it’s true that people have different tastes in how a kitchen should look, here are the kitchen models that will always be valued.
Classic kitchens
Classic kitchens aren’t unique, but due to their simplicity, anyone can transform them into something fancier. Their features include white and neutral tones paired with traditional door and cabinet designs that you can see in shaker kitchens. Classic kitchens are flexible in design, so you can include simple colours, appliances and models to win anyone’s heart.
Modern kitchens
Modern kitchens are similar to classic kitchens regarding colours but differ in shape and atmosphere. A modern kitchen isn’t dreamy and leverages minimalistic design elements with sharp edges and an industrial look. Materials for the appliances should also be high-quality and look sleek, so approaching glossy acrylic and matt laminated finishes for cabinets and worktops is best.
If you’re selling the house, try staging the kitchen
While your efforts will be appreciated, sometimes creating something that sells on a market with few clients is too challenging. Therefore, you can try home staging, which means presenting the house in the best way possible to make it appealing to anyone visiting it. You can ask for the services of a professional stager, but they can be pretty costly, so you may want to speak with your real estate agent and do it yourself. You can stage the kitchen by removing personal photos and objects and instead try making it look like a kitchen out of a magazine, with fresh flowers in a vase on the table and touched-up decorations.
Final considerations
Selling a house isn’t easy, considering increased material prices, but you can only increase its value by investing time and resources to make it look new. Remember that the kitchen is one of the most important rooms in the house, so fix its drainage and plumbing issues and renew it with a coat of paint.
