Kitchen Remodeling for Under $10,000

Kitchen Remodeling for Under $10,000

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  Gregory_DUBUS / Getty Images

  What's the chief problem with kitchen remodeling on a budget? Answer: no one but you cares about keeping the remodel within budget.

  Surprise, surprise, huh? All the parties involved--contractors, designers, suppliers, etc.--in your kitchen remodel may (on the good end of things) tacitly agree to your stated-upon budget and then forget about it until reminded.

  On the bad end, you may find a contractor or architect who willfully tries to punch holes in your budget--upward, of course. Yes, it...

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  Kitchen Remodel on a $1000 Budget. (c) 2011, Meredith Corporation

  The book provides kitchen remodel ideas within four budget levels, $1,000, $2,500, $5,000, and $10,000. Each kitchen's total estimated cost is itemized fairly accurately by materials cost (sinks, flooring, paint, etc.) and, though this is a DIY book, the occasional labor charge.

  This kitchen comes in well under a grand, and the book admits that it was more a matter of burnishing the good and fixing the bad. Designer Stephen Saint-Onge, whose book here, stepped in to get this basically-fine...

• $2500 Kitchen Remodel. (c) 2011, Meredith Corporation

  Believe me, this was one hideous kitchen before the remodel (you'll find the "Before" in Do It Yourself Kitchens).

  For around $2,500 the owners injected some well-needed urbanity into this suburban classic. Much of the work consisted of simple-and-easy things: new hardware, paint, lights.

  Almost half of the cost ($1,000) consisted of labor, presumably the services of a designer who guided them in the right direction.

• Another Great $2500 Kitchen Remodel. (c) 2011, Meredith Corporation

  It's worth noting that $2,500--or even $10,000--is rock-bottom cheap when it comes to a kitchen remodel budgets.

  Taking a stab in the dark, I'd say that the average cost of a kitchen remodels runs around $24,000. And in practice, that still tends to be a low estimate.

  So what we're looking at in Do It Yourself Kitchens: Stunning Spaces on a Shoestring Budget are not costly tear-out-and-replace projects, but smarter (and Earth-smart) projects that aim to inject some love and life into...

• $5000 Kitchen Remodel. (c) 2011, Meredith Corporation

  Let's double our kitchen remodel budget and go up to $5,000. Where does that take us?

  This homeowner put over a thousand dollars in new appliances for her lake cottage. Everything else amounted to cosmetic fixes--counters, faucet, paint, and so on.

  Do It Yourself Kitchens underscores the point that because the home is only 8-10 feet from the lake, the owner wanted eco-friendly touches including low-VOC paint and bamboo flooring.

• Another Kitchen Remodel Budgeted for Around $5,000. (c) 2011, Meredith Corporation

• Keepin' It Real For About $10,000: a Budget Kitchen Remodel You Do Yourself. (c) 2011, Meredith Corporation

  This kitchen remodels, budgeted for around $10,000, fixes the formerly hideous kitchen.

  One secret is that the homeowner replaced the cabinets with open shelving. Result: an airy feel, almost like that of a commercial kitchen.

  Would you believe this is only an 8'x10' kitchen? The book Do It Yourself Kitchens gives details on how the homeowner did something simple to add counter space and improve workflow.

• Budget Kitchen Remodel in the $10,000 Range. (c) 2011, Meredith Corporation

  And for the last $10,000 budget kitchen remodel--if you think $10K is steep, you missed something earlier--a Cape Cod-style kitchen in Houston, TX.

  Fortunately, the layout was good enough to keep. Changing around the kitchen footprint is one sure way to drive up costs like crazy.

  So, check out Do It Yourself Kitchens: Stunning Spaces on a Shoestring Budget and learn how to remodel your kitchen on a budget--whether "budget" to you means $1,000 or $10,000.

Original article and pictures take www.thespruce.com site