What is one of the main rooms of a home? The kitchen. It’s where we spend a lot of time and it’s also one of the rooms that can increase the value of your home after an upgrade or remodel is performed.
Everyone would love to improve their kitchen if they could, and most don’t because they are limited by a budget. But that shouldn’t stop you. Savvy home owners are always finding ways to bling out their kitchens without breaking the bank, and I am one of them.
We recently upgraded our kitchen and took several steps to make sure we did it for the lowest possible cost. This is what we did…and you can do it too!
Learn to Research on YouTube
It’s amazing how much DIY (do it yourself) home remodeling content is available on YouTube. There are a lot of suppliers, manufacturers and even contractors that make some incredibly detailed instructional videos that you can use to teach yourself how to do almost anything.
Whether you want to learn how to lay down countertops or demo old cabinets, there is a video available that can help walk you through the entire process in great detail.
Eliminate Professional Labor Costs
The majority of the cost of a new kitchen is the labor. If you can eliminate the majority of that and do most of it yourself you can cut the costs by a huge margin.
As I mentioned above, YouTube is a great resource for kitchen remodeling projects. It may take you longer than it would a contractor and helpers, but if saving money is your main objective then why not take a little longer. You will also learn something along the way as well.
Buy Appliances at Surplus Auctions
You can also save money when replacing appliances. One of the easiest ways to boost your home value is by adding stainless steel appliances.
They can be quite costly, but if you are up for some surplus shopping then you can score some great stuff at a deep discount.
Buying surplus equipment is a way to save on the biggest purchases. Imagine being able to buy a $3,500 refrigerator for $800? Then install it yourself and you get a major improvement for pennies on the dollar that really contributes to your home value.
Have a Flexible Time Table
When tackling a kitchen design project on your own you need to be sure you have plenty of time to dedicate to the project. In fact, it’s best if you have a “I’ll finish it when I finish it” approach.
If it’s your first crack at it the learning curve might take some time. You will want to go at a slow pace to make sure you do everything correctly.
If you have a large family, it might be inconvenient to have a half-operational kitchen at some times, but the slight inconvenience for a couple of months will be worth it when you have a brand new upgraded kitchen in the end, complete with a wipe clean tablecloth.
Consider purchasing raw granite slabs that have slight blemishes. They are often very minimal but they drop the cost by a huge amount. You can then have them cut and polished to fit.
You can also do the same when it comes to upgraded cabinets. Sometimes all you have to do is a little extra sanding and touchup work, but in the end you save a lot of money and are able to create a much better kitchen.
