A Few Hundred Dollars + Cabinet Refacing = A New Look for Your Kitchen

by Sue Booth
Face Your Kitchen Columnist

More homeowners are turning to kitchen cabinet refacing to freshen their kitchens and increase the future resale values of their homes. With a couple of hundred extra dollars, you can rejuvenate your entire kitchen. Here's how.

A Wise Investment

According to the National Association of Realtors, in 2006 homeowners got only 80 percent of their kitchen remodeling costs back as opposed to 91 percent in 2005. With this growing trend, you will want to keep your kitchen remodeling costs to a minimum to make the most on your investment. Saving on renovation costs with cabinet refacing with the addition of a few minor extras is an ideal investment choice.

Cabinet Refacing with a Little Extra

Your contractor will reface your kitchen cabinets by attaching laminate or wood veneers onto your existing cabinet surfaces, creating a new look for your cabinets. If you only have a few extra hundred dollars to spend on your kitchen:

• Replace ceiling fixtures. For $25 to $250 you can buy lighting fixtures that will eliminate the eye strain of your weak kitchen ceiling lighting.
• Install laminate flooring. As long as your kitchen floor is level, for $1 to $5 per square foot, you can laminate over old linoleum, vinyl, or chipped tile. Your new flooring can resemble wood, stone, or tile and the pieces snap together without nails or adhesive.
• Refinish old appliances. An appliance refinisher can re-enamel your stove and refrigerator surfaces with a variety of looks for $150 to $250.

You don't have to spend $50,000 to $100,000 for an updated kitchen. Reface your cabinets and make some changes for a few hundred dollars extra, and you'll see the dollar for dollar return on investment (or maybe even better!) when you sell your home.

Source

• CNN.com - Kitchen Facelifts

About the Author
Sue Booth is a freelance writer and a former product analyst for Good Housekeeping magazine. She holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering.