How Much Value Does a New Kitchen Add?
Estimated reading time 8 minutes
When you attempt to sell your home, you’ll typically have three objectives in mind. To sell your house fast, sell it for as much as possible, and sell your house for free, with no fees. Whilst it can be hard to guarantee all three of those, it is certainly possible.
Perhaps the best one to start with is trying to sell it for as much as possible. This often starts with two things. Timing, and whether you have given the house a suitable amount of care and renovation.
The kitchen is often an ideal place to start. It's one of the most used rooms within the house and often serves dual purposes as not only a place to eat your meals but also for homework to be completed, parties to be held and for the kids to indulge in arts and crafts. A well-crafted new kitchen can see as much as 10% added to your house value - sometimes even more - thanks to the versatility and pleasing aesthetics it provides.
That being said, you shouldn’t always renovate your home before selling, especially if the costs are extremely high and the return on investment is likely to be negligible.
A kitchen though can be the ideal room to begin your house upgrade plans.
Is it worth renovating my kitchen?
If you are looking to sell your home, it’s important to remember that potential buyers will shop with their eyes before their wallets. If your kitchen has cracked walls, damaged surfaces, chipped flooring and faulty equipment, any interest is likely to dwindle very fast. If you are lucky, they may make an offer, just one significantly lower than you may have hoped for. In these cases, you should consider installing a new kitchen.
If there is just a leaky tap or a flickering light, you may not have much to worry about. These problems are significantly cheaper and quicker to fix than the others. The buyer may be happy to fix them or understand that you have the problem at hand.
If you aren’t looking to sell your home but feel that the kitchen could do with being brought more up to date, it’s worth looking at the cost, time and benefit the refurb may bring. A new kitchen can cost anything from £5,000 to £20,000. If that level of cash could bring further benefits elsewhere, it may be worth putting the plan on hold.
Ultimately though, the reason for renovating is two-fold. To help increase the value of your home and get your home closer to the dream house you hoped it would become. So, if it’s affordable, stands to give you a better opportunity to sell in the future, and makes your house a home, go for it.
How much should I spend on a new kitchen?
Before visiting the showrooms and putting grand plans into your mind, you should work through what you need against what you want. If your kitchen is relatively new, a fresh lick of paint, some additional tiling or a new floor may be all it needs. This won’t break the bank but can go some way to adding some extra value to the property. You can complete jobs like this for just a few hundred pounds.
Should you have a kitchen that requires repair and renovation, then it would be best to look at adding a new kitchen. This can cost as much as £20,000, perhaps more, and should be assessed with the value of the house in mind.
If your home is worth £400,000, and you spend £20,000 on a new kitchen, you could see a return on your investment. If your home is worth £150,000 and you spend £20,000 on the kitchen, it is likely to be a struggle to recoup that expense.
Bearing in mind that a kitchen could add as much as 10% to the value of your property, you want to see that any expense generates the appropriate level of return. If your property value has only increased by £5,000 but you spent £15,000 on your kitchen, it’s not a good investment. Therefore, take into account, price trends in your area to see if house prices are tending to rise or fall. If prices are falling, you may see that you only get what you would have previously got for your home.
Can I increase house value without a full kitchen refurb?
Depending on the age of your kitchen and the general condition of the appliances, it is certainly possible for you to improve your kitchen, drive up the house value and not have to install a new kitchen. We mentioned earlier that certain changes to your kitchen can cost very little but greatly alter the impression it creates. Some of the easiest and best kitchen upgrades that transform your kitchen, help increase the property value and won’t set you back large sums include:
- Painting the walls
- Fixing leaks
- Replacing or upgrading faulty lights
- Painting or replacing doors or draws that are tired or damaged
- Replacing old and worn flooring
- Replacing worn worktops
What should I look for in a new kitchen?
If you decide a new kitchen is the venture you should invest in, you should take into consideration some key features that can make the kitchen more attractive to potential buyers and more practical for you.
Consider the style of kitchen you are looking to implement. Does it match the rest of the house? If you opt for something completely removed from the general look of the house, it can look out of place. A country farmhouse-style kitchen will look quite odd in a house built with modernity at its core.
Check for storage opportunities too. Less clutter and more clarity not only make your kitchen look cleaner but also help make it easier for you to locate things when needed.
Think about the kitchen appliances too. The sink, fridge and cooker should all have quick and easy access points close to a work surface. This not only makes meal prep easier but keeps a flow to the kitchen that helps encourage easy navigation.
Important factors to remember with a new kitchen
Things such as style and flow are important, but you’ll also need to remember the more cosmetic things too.
The colour of the kitchen should be something that naturally looks clean and is simple to maintain. Lighting plays a massive part in the colour you choose too. It will highlight areas you have neglected but also give your room the vibrancy it needs. Find lights that match the ambience you want your kitchen to create.
Where possible, consider matching appliances. Equipment from the same range from the same manufacturer will add a more refined look to your kitchen.
With a new kitchen will come new cupboard doors, new work surfaces, new extractor hoods and more. With these items in place, do they now make your walls look aged or dirty? You may have felt the paintwork was fine, and perhaps it is, however, all new fixtures and fittings will soon enhance any faults or age shown elsewhere. This same thought can be used with the flooring too.
Should I install a new kitchen myself or hire a professional?
Doing it yourself could save you money but if you are not in any way experienced in DIY, it would be too much of a gamble to take on such a project. You could find yourself spending much more than necessary to find you can’t complete the job. Look to hire a professional team, their work will help increase the value of your home whereas yours might drive it down.
Adding a new kitchen to your home could add as much as 10% to its value, however, you should spend wisely and not spend more than 8% of the current house value on a kitchen refurb. If you are trying to sell regardless of a kitchen refurb or not, and have found the market a little slow, speak to Bettermove. We purchase any type of home for cash throughout the UK. Our speedy, free and efficient methods mean your sale will happen, and happen in a timeframe that suits you. You can either allow us to purchase the house directly from you or present it to a team of cash house buyers. Both routes to sale are quick with our team being able to purchase your home in as little as seven days. What makes it even better is we don’t charge for it either. With no surprise fees or hidden charges, you can sell your home without spending a penny. Contact our team today to find out more.
