Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We renovated our small townhouse kitchen in January 2022. It is 10' x 13'. We kept the appliances (other than microwave). Otherwise, we gutted, got new cabinets, added an island, converted the wall between the hallway/front door and the kitchen into a half wall and took out one inset cabinet and moved the small section of wall back to add 1.5 ft of countertop (much needed). That plus a half bath remodel and the floors and ceiling which wrapped around the hallway into the dining room. They also removed two soffits and pushed the plumbing and electrical back further into the walls so that we could have cabinets that extended up to the ceiling instead of shorter cabinets. Total $35K. The kitchen itself cost about $30K. The extra $5K was the half bath and extended the floors around into the dining room and eliminating the stucco from the ceiling.

Who was your contractor?

We live in Laurel, MD. We used VKB Kitchen and Bath in Columbia, MD.
https://vkbkitchenandbath.com/

They have other locations, but that is probably closest for most of DCUM. They are currently working on a new location in Washington DC, but it's not opened yet.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I live in a condo and have a small kitchen. I think it’s possible to get more space with a renovation. I’m curious how much that would cost. How would I get a rough estimate? Are renovations still super expensive right now?

If it’s a galley kitchen and don’t want to break the bank, you can probably get it done for $10k-20k.

This is unlikely unless it's a total DIY job, or you're reusing cabinets, appliances or both.

Agree. That's more like an appliance budget, not project budget.

My fridge cost over $20k.

Anonymous wrote:It has much more to do with the opportunity cost of the project for the builder than simply the cost of materials and labor which should be similar.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are doing this now in NOVA/Arlington and it will likely come in around 110k. I had planned on 75k but we went over to get what we wanted. This includes relatively high-end/custom cabinetry and top-of-the-line appliances/countertops/lighting, but no significant structural changes (e.g., no changing of walls or windows). It is a little insane but we are getting the vast majority of what we wanted. Our old kitchen was original to the house, the cabinets were peeling and starting to fall apart, and the appliances needed to be replaced so I do not feel bad or terribly wasteful. It was time.

Are you still gathering estimates or have you signed with a Contractor?

We signed with a contractor. When you pick higher-end and/or custom options, the prices are just high. Our cabinets alone were 45k, appliances were over 20k, countertops were 15k, etc. The labor itself (removing and replacing the existing kitchen, plumbing, electrical, etc.) is around 30K I believe. This also included the cost of the kitchen designer, which we needed.

I looked at some more reasonably priced options (e.g., Home Depot) but they did not have the type of cabinets I wanted and their designs were not to my taste. I could have stuck with the original 75k budget if I went the Home Depot route but it would have been a builder grade kitchen that I did not love. The kitchen I am getting is a much more designer/custom kitchen, which is what I wanted.

For your kitchen, are you basically removing existing and replacing with new? Appliances in same spots? No moving of plumbing or electrical? Cabinet footprint the same?

Were your other estimates labor portion in line with your accepted estimate of 30k?

We’re getting wildly different estimates for labor on our pull and replace job. I’m trying to get a better understanding why.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are doing this now in NOVA/Arlington and it will likely come in around 110k. I had planned on 75k but we went over to get what we wanted. This includes relatively high-end/custom cabinetry and top-of-the-line appliances/countertops/lighting, but no significant structural changes (e.g., no changing of walls or windows). It is a little insane but we are getting the vast majority of what we wanted. Our old kitchen was original to the house, the cabinets were peeling and starting to fall apart, and the appliances needed to be replaced so I do not feel bad or terribly wasteful. It was time.

Are you still gathering estimates or have you signed with a Contractor?

We signed with a contractor. When you pick higher-end and/or custom options, the prices are just high. Our cabinets alone were 45k, appliances were over 20k, countertops were 15k, etc. The labor itself (removing and replacing the existing kitchen, plumbing, electrical, etc.) is around 30K I believe. This also included the cost of the kitchen designer, which we needed.

I looked at some more reasonably priced options (e.g., Home Depot) but they did not have the type of cabinets I wanted and their designs were not to my taste. I could have stuck with the original 75k budget if I went the Home Depot route but it would have been a builder grade kitchen that I did not love. The kitchen I am getting is a much more designer/custom kitchen, which is what I wanted.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We are doing this now in NOVA/Arlington and it will likely come in around 110k. I had planned on 75k but we went over to get what we wanted. This includes relatively high-end/custom cabinetry and top-of-the-line appliances/countertops/lighting, but no significant structural changes (e.g., no changing of walls or windows). It is a little insane but we are getting the vast majority of what we wanted. Our old kitchen was original to the house, the cabinets were peeling and starting to fall apart, and the appliances needed to be replaced so I do not feel bad or terribly wasteful. It was time.

Are you still gathering estimates or have you signed with a Contractor?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I live in a condo and have a small kitchen. I think it’s possible to get more space with a renovation. I’m curious how much that would cost. How would I get a rough estimate? Are renovations still super expensive right now?

If it’s a galley kitchen and don’t want to break the bank, you can probably get it done for $10k-20k.

This is unlikely unless it's a total DIY job, or you're reusing cabinets, appliances or both.

Agree. That's more like an appliance budget, not project budget.

Anonymous wrote:We are doing this now in NOVA/Arlington and it will likely come in around 110k. I had planned on 75k but we went over to get what we wanted. This includes relatively high-end/custom cabinetry and top-of-the-line appliances/countertops/lighting, but no significant structural changes (e.g., no changing of walls or windows). It is a little insane but we are getting the vast majority of what we wanted. Our old kitchen was original to the house, the cabinets were peeling and starting to fall apart, and the appliances needed to be replaced so I do not feel bad or terribly wasteful. It was time.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I live in a condo and have a small kitchen. I think it’s possible to get more space with a renovation. I’m curious how much that would cost. How would I get a rough estimate? Are renovations still super expensive right now?

If it’s a galley kitchen and don’t want to break the bank, you can probably get it done for $10k-20k.

This is unlikely unless it's a total DIY job, or you're reusing cabinets, appliances or both.

Agree. I'm doing a bathroom right now and the vanity alone is almost $10k.

Anonymous wrote:It appears a lot of people on here dont do their research. I bought my cabinets wholesale on my own cost me 7k delivered, hired a contractor for install. With appliances new floor I was under 20k 10x15 kitchen size. Gotta do your homework and not rush into hiring any contractor. Shop around and negotiate.