Reader Question: Kitchen Reno Costs
THE BRYANT HOUSE I know you guys are going to be really surprised to hear this, but we're still (STILL!) working on the backyard at the Ravenna House. The shed is getting close-ish to being done and we've started planning a fence. We're also still waiting to hear from the lien-holders to find out if we got that mysterious new house I keep hinting at (we'll call her fixer #4 for now). So with nothing much by the way of progress to share, I thought it would be a good time to answer a reader question.
I received this question from Miyuki last week:
"My husband and I own a small home in LA, and are looking to remodel our kitchen. I love what you did on the Bryant house kitchen and I'm wondering if you can tell me about how much it ran you and in general, how do you budget for a kitchen remodel?
"We have a galley kitchen with very poor storage space. Our cabinets are old, but I think we can salvage some of them so long as we can find a way to make the new ones match the old which is why I like what you did with the Bryant house. Was it hard to make the cabinets somewhat match each other?
"And using butcher block is exactly what I want to do in ours too (my husband thinks I'm crazy). Is Maple the standard wood you would go with, or would you suggest other wood qualities to consider?"
Great question, right? Since it is such a detailed question, I'm going to split it into three parts and tackle one a day - today we'll focus on budget. But first let's get reacquainted with the Bryant House kitchen reno.
We completed this renovation in March 2013 when I was 6 months pregnant with Wilder. It was a gut job besides keeping a wall of existing cabinets. We added appliances, custom cabinetry, lighting, tile, fresh hardware, and painted everything. You can read more about it here. This is the finished product:
I've said it before, but this kitchen/dining space is one of my favorite rooms that we've ever renovated. It's so light and bright and just plain happy. We spent more time in this room than anywhere else at the Bryant House. And I will always have such sweet memories of holding 1-day-old Wilder at that table, introducing him to family and friends, as we drank coffee and ate apple cake.
Okay, now let's get back to the topic at hand. Money. Luckily I kept really good records when we remodeled the Bryant House, which unfortunately is not a trend I continued at the Ravenna House. I'm going to blame it on the birth of Wilder and the strange void which I used to call spare time. Anyway, the Bryant House kitchen remodel cost us $9,700. It was a 100% DIY job, so we didn't pay for any labor. We did get plenty of help from family, especially my father-in-law who happens to be an electrician and is cool with being paid in beer. What is family for after all?!
Here's what the cost breakdown looked like:
Total $9,700
The pair of sliding doors, which we installed ourself, were an additional $1,540.
Of course every renovation is unique and so is the budget. It depends on your scope, how much work you plan to do yourself, and the level of finish. Our budget for the Bryant House kitchen probably won't work in 90% of kitchens. I've read that the average kitchen remodel runs somewhere in the $15k-45k range. Based on that, an average remodel breakdown would look more like this:
Total $30,000
And then add contingency. I usually use 10-15% of the total budget, but I'd recommend 20% for a novice renovator. That would equal an additional $6,000, in this scenario. If you don't use it, great. But I find that the unexpected always happens on an old-house remodel and it's best to be prepared.
Back to Miyuki. I think a $36,000 budget is a good place to start. Yes, that's a ton of money. But you can subtract from there (or add if need be), based on size of the project, work you plan to do yourself and the how nice of finishes you're planning. Obviously we subtracted a lot in labor but didn't have to scrimp on the finish level much (sure I'd love a pro-range, but we really didn't need it). Quality cabinets were really important to me, so we spent the extra money on custom shaker-style cabinets, but saved about 10% by painting them ourselves. I also think we got a lot of "style mileage" out of the inexpensive white subway tile backsplash, installed floor to ceiling. Renovations are about compromise, just make sure to keep your goals in tact!
What about you guys? Any budget advice for Miyuki or feedback on our renovation? I'd love to hear about it in the comment section below!
xoxo
-Cathy
p.s. "Children's menus are the death of civilization." An interesting look into the recent history of kids and food.
p.p.s. Did you guys know the Pioneer Woman renovated a commercial property? It's beautiful!
p.p.p.s. Have you guys seen Jersey Ice Cream Co's renovation work? I'm obsessed with these guys!