Less Is More When It Comes to Remodeling the Kitchen

Image of new Cedarbrook kitchen in Niles I sold.

The numbers do not lie, and they have been in for some time. The numbers prove that when it comes time for a home seller to decide whether or not to remodel the house or sell the property "as is," that a minor kitchen remodel is the number one investment to make before reselling a house in the San Francisco Bay Area. It scored almost 116% recoup. That's a good thing. Interestingly, a major kitchen remodel did not fare as well in the recoup group as one might think. It scored a 94%, so less really is more. An excerpt from the report defined the minor kitchen remodel as:  

• A functional kitchen about 200 sq ft with 30 ft linear ft of cabinets. 
• Keeping the cabinet boxes and replacing the fronts with the new raised-panel wood doors and the drawers--This is often referred to as refacing the cabinets. 
• Replacing all appliances with energy efficient models. 
• Replacing laminate counter tops and install a mid-priced sink and faucet, repaint the walls and wall cover in necessary--also replace resilient flooring. 
• Slab concrete can take any type of flooring, but if you live in a multi level home where the kitchen floors may flex, then refrain from installing grout and tile flooring unless first layering with wonderboard(tm) or the like. 

These numbers are encouraging for us. We want to see investments pay off, especially in the kitchen where a lot of time is spent in the home. 

But, the post would not allow much contrast if I never mentioned the one "upgrade" that is really in the dark. A backup power generator install scored a loss on recoup at 45% of the original investment. So, I know you were thinking about getting that done first, but hold off. There are differences in percentages of recoup when it comes to remodeling or installing features to a home prior to sale. It depends on what remodel and to what extent. More of a good thing does not always pay off.

Hanley Wood LLC, the creator of the report, allows reproducing or posting information from the site as long as it is sited correctly as well as informing the public that it is always free, but you should use the siting properly like this: © 2011 Hanley Wood, LLC. Reproduced by permission. Complete city data from the Remodeling 2011 Cost vs. Value Report can be downloaded for free at www.costvsvalue.com. I have a copy of the Cost vs Value report on my website for you to download free here. http://www.tricityhome.com/Fremont-Newark-Union-City/Selling-Houses/costvsvalue.html By Jeff Pereyda