Buying a home knowing you want kitchen rennovated

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720pete
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Buying a home knowing you want kitchen rennovated

Post by 720pete »

I am in the market for a home. Been looking at a lot of post WWII homes and I may want some renovations done, such as knocking out a kitchen wall to create an open floor plan and then replacing cabinets/countertop/sink/etc. When during the buying process should I be including a contractor to assess what is needed?
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Kenkat
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Re: Buying a home knowing you want kitchen rennovated

Post by Kenkat »

Depending on the wall, you may or may not be able to knock it out. It could be a structural wall or have plumbing, etc. in it which complicates the process and increases the cost. This is more likely in a two story house but possible in a single story house as well.

If you are looking to substantially relocate the sink, you may need to re-run plumbing - basement access would be a huge help there. Some older kitchens have soffits built in above the cabinets and these can sometimes have things like plumbing or electric running through them.

I’d try to figure that out early in the process so you can price anything in before you make an offer.
bradinsky
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Re: Buying a home knowing you want kitchen rennovated

Post by bradinsky »

Bringing in a contractor in these crazy real estate markets could get expensive quick. Unless they are one of your friends, expect they will charge you for each estimate. You might want to educate yourself a little & that way you can make a guesstimate at the time you are thinking about making an offer. Remember, remodeling kitchens is very “expensive”, but at least that would allow you to factor something into the purchase price & to see if it was in your range of affordable.
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Watty
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Re: Buying a home knowing you want kitchen rennovated

Post by Watty »

What is the price range of the house that you might buy?

If it is $1.5 million then dealing with a remodeling bill that is $50K more than expected might be something you could live with. If it is a $400K house that could be a big problem.
720pete wrote: Fri May 27, 2022 6:47 pm When during the buying process should I be including a contractor to assess what is needed?
You need to be realistic about your expectations about getting a contractor to look at it.

Unless you have a friend or relative who is a contractor or have a contractor that you have used before you will likely have a hard time getting a contractor in to look at it on short notice even if you are willing to pay them for their time. In most of the country a good contractor will pretty much be booked a year in advance because they are so busy. In many housing markets houses are still selling fast so if your contractor cannot get in to see it for a week the house could be sold before you can make an offer.

You might be able to find a good home inspector who is a semi retired contractor who could give you some insights about what you are facing.
720pete wrote: Fri May 27, 2022 6:47 pm Been looking at a lot of post WWII homes....
With a 70 year old house you may find that you need to put in an entirely new plumbing or electrical system if it has not already had major updates.
720pete wrote: Fri May 27, 2022 6:47 pm ....I may want some renovations done, such as knocking out a kitchen wall to create an open floor plan and then replacing cabinets/countertop/sink/etc.
Once you start moving things around the prices can go up dramatically. It would be best to keep looking until you find a house that does not need things moved or has even been remodeled already. Again the price range of the house makes a big difference.

It might not be where you would want to eventually buy your cabinets and countertops but you can go into a store like Home Depot and talk with them to get a ballpark idea of what the material costs might be for the different grades of materials they sell. Also ask them about how long a lead time to expect since that might be a lot longer than you would like.

If you are planning on having the work done before you move in then also check with your lender to see if that will be a problem. For an owner occupied home loan with the better rates you may be required to move in within 30 to 60 days.
Audioarc
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Re: Buying a home knowing you want kitchen rennovated

Post by Audioarc »

Once you have a contract on the home talk to contractors and get estimates.
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jabberwockOG
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Re: Buying a home knowing you want kitchen rennovated

Post by jabberwockOG »

Prices have gone up. Add approx $80-100k for mid quality level total kitchen remodel. $150k for high end.
Parkinglotracer
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Re: Buying a home knowing you want kitchen rennovated

Post by Parkinglotracer »

Great advice above.

We are in the process of doing what you are looking to do. It is a second home and we are in no rush. I’d estimate a kitchen redo budget now but concentrate on buying a house first in this hot market. We bought a 1969 house two years ago for $350K. Lucky to have gotten house in hot Tampa / St Pete housing market.


One could easily spend whatever one wants to spend on a kitchen - the sky is the limit redoing a kitchen if it involves taking down walls and ceilings. 60-100K could be realistic depending upon how big and how nice you’d like it. After some high quotes (which were not easy to get from contractors) we scaled back taking down wall info living room and decided to just remove trey ceiling and widen entryways - we are doing what we can ourselves. Most contractors were booking 3-6 months out. Our Original design would require trying to make ceilings level across a large area where wall would come down and having an island that required capping a roof stack (installing under sink air vent) - just more of a pain / cost / risk than we wanted. It’s a smaller galley kitchen with 10-12 feet of cabinets on each side. Tear down was free other than trailer and dump charges and few cuts and bruises. Drywall and loose insulation removal was a mess. Kitchen was open to attic for a month. Relocating electrical that went thru soffits and desired new outlets - couple grand after three bids that ranged from $2K to 6K as folks wanted to replace entire CB box, etc. lots of opportunity on contractor upsell. Relocated / replaced water line for fridge ourselves. Moved HVAC vent $500. Installed new ceiling insulation ourselves $400. Hired drywall guy to redo walls where soffits were and installed a new ceiling $3000. We primed / painted ourselves - paint has gone up - imagine that.

Signed contract for new mid range grade cabinets, hardware, etc and install this winter $13000 - it’s a small kitchen with 14 cabinets total and crown molding etc. cabinets were going up 8% the day we signed. Tough to find small contractors to bid install. We expect to spend 3 or 4K more on counter tops (about 30 sq feet), 1K on backsplash, plumbing $500, reusing appliances except dishwasher and disposal which will be $750 -1K.

So our redo may cost around $25K. We asked around but had trouble finding small contractor to install kitchen cabinets. We ended up buying cabinets from a place that does install too - it has a strong on line reputation so hoping it turns out well.


New floor / baseboards for 1000 sq feet of house will be $10-15K depending on whether we put tile in now or luxury vinyl plank after cabinets.

All first world problems - Good luck - thankful my darling wife is patient with my do what we can ourselves boglehead attitude. If stock market was up 15% this year vs down maybe I would have been game to hire a general contractor.
Mr. Rumples
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Re: Buying a home knowing you want kitchen rennovated

Post by Mr. Rumples »

This site gives very basic estimates. Issues come up on site once a contractor looks at the structure. When I bought my last house, I saw that both inspectors (for two different houses) were using this site to get their figures.

https://www.homewyse.com/project_costs/index.html
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Parkinglotracer
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Re: Buying a home knowing you want kitchen rennovated

Post by Parkinglotracer »

Mr. Rumples wrote: Sat May 28, 2022 5:55 am This site gives very basic estimates. Issues come up on site once a contractor looks at the structure. When I bought my last house, I saw that both inspectors (for two different houses) were using this site to get their figures.

https://www.homewyse.com/project_costs/index.html
Great website - thanks - came within 10-15% for my project we took on above.
Nowizard
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Re: Buying a home knowing you want kitchen rennovated

Post by Nowizard »

The price will be the same at the time the estimate is made or if it isn't, and it will not when you undertake the project. What is done is your choice based on preferences, funds, timing, etc. Unless there are very significant issues that are unknown until the time you start the renovation, that may or may not occur. The seller is obligated to disclose any known issues, and every house will potentially have different requirements for the work.

Tim
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Re: Buying a home knowing you want kitchen rennovated

Post by carolinaman »

It is hard to get contractors to call you back right now when you are ready to build. Forget about them providing estimates for something that may or may not happen in the future.

Also, building codes have changed and older homes no longer conform to many codes (electrical, plumbing, etc.). That is not a problem until you start remodeling. Then these older homes have to conform to new codes which increases your cost.
quietseas
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Re: Buying a home knowing you want kitchen rennovated

Post by quietseas »

Surprisingly accurate (for our remodel in 2017 and adjusted for expected inflation)
Mr. Rumples
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Re: Buying a home knowing you want kitchen rennovated

Post by Mr. Rumples »

It does get a bit dicey on remodels since there is no way to tell what will be found once the plumbing and electrics are exposed. Somethings might not have even been up to code when installed, much less up to current code. With a remodel its always good to have a buffer. We saved $$ when we remodeled our 1924 townhouse kitchen. We had the entire kitchen moved around; but the contractor let us do the demo. Surprisingly - at least to us - was that the kitchen design store served as the contractor and were the least expensive. I think our kitchen was one reason our house sold during the housing crisis of 2008 and it wasn't even on the market, but we got an offer out of the blue.
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DiscoBunny1979
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Re: Buying a home knowing you want kitchen rennovated

Post by DiscoBunny1979 »

In a kitchen remodel, it's important to note how many circuits (not outlets) are in the kitchen. You might need to add a few extra circuits to handle new appliances like a circuit just for a rice cooker or a circuit just for an extra convection oven/microwave. Do You want an electric stove top or a gas burner? These play a large part in a kitchen remodel because it's all about Form and Function. You want it to look good, but if it can't handle what You need, then it's a waste of money. It's also a waste of money if You renovate to make it look good, but never use it....like so many housewives that want granite but never cook.

I'd also suggest that in renovating a kitchen, it's a big hassle if the house You buy also needs bathrooms remodeled but 'sometime' down the road. If it's a perfect world, I would gut a house that needs a kitchen remodel because the rest of house won't live up to the new kitchen design and will look tired, outdated and dissatisfaction will eventually lead to renovating them anyway.
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Post by Bogle7 »

720pete wrote: Fri May 27, 2022 6:47 pmKitchen Reno…When during the buying process should I be including a contractor to assess what is needed?
6+ months after you move in
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Sandtrap
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Re: Buying a home knowing you want kitchen rennovated

Post by Sandtrap »

720pete wrote: Fri May 27, 2022 6:47 pm I am in the market for a home. Been looking at a lot of post WWII homes and I may want some renovations done, such as knocking out a kitchen wall to create an open floor plan and then replacing cabinets/countertop/sink/etc. When during the buying process should I be including a contractor to assess what is needed?
To OP:

If you have a reputable, licensed, General Contractor, with a strong and long history of custom homes and remodeling, and who is or was a certified or high end (legitimate) journeyman finished carpenter (vs framer/former/digger of dirt), and. . . who is a good friend of yours,. , .,

by all means, , invite him along on your prospective home "walk through's", get his professional honest input. . . and then treat him/her to a fine lunch at the local excellent Thai or Vietnamese or Japanese Restaurant, or Steak House, or Texas Roadhouse, if that is a favorite.

Converting "any" home to an "open floor plan" can turn into a "money pit" (Old comedy Movie "Money Pit" with Tom Hanks and Shelley Long).

I hope this is helpful for you,

PM me as you wish.
j :D
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snackdog
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Re: Buying a home knowing you want kitchen rennovated

Post by snackdog »

Anything involving contractors these days can be a nightmare of delays and cost over runs. If you can find what you want, all done, buy that and skip the horror.
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Re: Buying a home knowing you want kitchen rennovated

Post by Leemiller »

We did this. Cost came in under six figures, but we did some pricy appliances and fixtures. Taking down the wall was no big deal, the bigger costs we upgrading electric, cabinets and appliances. Flooring also was pricey as we redid old wood floors and added new ones stained to match.
adamthesmythe
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Re: Buying a home knowing you want kitchen rennovated

Post by adamthesmythe »

Renovating a kitchen is expensive and time-consuming. Especially now. Renovating AND changing the floor plan is more expensive, takes longer, and has many more uncertainties.

Consider whether you can possibly manage with existing floor plans. Most older houses are actually fairly well designed and function well.

Unless you have a special relationship you will have trouble getting a contractor to walk through in advance of purchase.
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