By making smart material choices and by doing almost all their own labor, including making their own cabinets, Reggie and Victoria Grotewiel stayed under their budget by $1,000 and increased their home equity by an estimated $11,000.
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Figure A
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Figure B
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Figure C
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Before
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After
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Kitchen Remodel: Value-Adding Tips- With a fixer-upper home like Reggie and Victoria's, practically any improvements on their home will immediately boost the value. By removing their carpet to uncover hardwood floors and gutting their kitchen, they've already boosted their home's value.
- There are plenty of popular options for kitchen flooring ranging from natural stone or tile to hardwood. Reggie and Victoria opted for a porcelain tile with a slate finish. The tile looks like natural slate (figure A), but is less expensive, just as durable and is easy to clean.
- Reggie had both the equipment and expertise to tackle the job of building his own cabinets (figure B). While this is not a project for everyone, if you have the tools and the know-how, building your own cabinets, versus having custom cabinets built and installed by pros, can mean a savings that could range $10,000 to $20,000 depending on the style of cabinetry and the material.
- Marble and granite slab countertops (figure C) are "in" at the moment, but they do come with a hefty price and are relatively difficult to install yourself. Granite tiles give the look of slab and at a third the cost. That spelled the right price for Reggie and Victoria, and provided them with a greater return in equity.
Final tally: cabinets = $2,100
appliances = $2,750
electrical = $1,300
counters = $650
tile floor = $750
misc. = $1,650 TOTAL = $9,170 realtor's estimated value increase = $20,000
total cost of material = $9,170 NET RETURN ON INVESTMENT = $10,830
RESOURCES :
Blumotion
Website: www.blum.com
Breville, USA
Website: www.brevilleusa.com
Peachtree Woodworking Supply, Inc.
Website: www.ptreeusa.com
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