There comes a time when the kitchen just isn’t what we need in our home and the dreaded words of remodeling and budget tend to get thrown around a lot. This can be a scary time in any homeowner’s life and can take a whole lot of planning that might cause you to be at your wit’s end. One way to avoid a lot of the turmoil is to follow a few simple steps that can take your remodeling from frustration to a important time that will bring joy to your family in the future. Whether you’re remodeling to sale your home or trying to make the home more comfortable for your growing family, you will love these tips cut back on the talk about budget and allow you bring to life the kitchen of your dreams.

1. Shop Secondhand Stores
When you’re remodeling your kitchen you don’t have to go for the newest items for your home. There are a lot of secondhand cabinets, fixtures and islands that can turn your kitchen into your own personal haven. Secondhand items should be purchased with care though as many stores might you cabinets that won’t work right in your home, so make sure you know what you’re looking for. One of the best things you can do is try to shop at the Habitat for Humanity Outlet. This store will sell off excess supplies to anyone who needs the items, which can save you money and will allow you to donate to a good cause. Habitat for Humanity tends to sale off items they didn’t need on a project or items that are still in good shape that were extracted from a home. This means you’ll be getting good quality even if the items have been used before.

2. Remember Functionality Not Space
When you start to plan out your new kitchen don’t try to make your kitchen more spacious. Yes, spacious areas are nice, but when it comes to sticking to a budget you should always have functionality in mind. This means adding areas that make sense next to each other so you can move around the kitchen in a manner that makes complete sense. This might be as simple as making the microwave area above the stove, or adding in cabinets that spin so you can store more items. When it comes to adding space to your kitchen it is usually best to only do this when it is absolutely necessary. When adding space you tend to have to knock down walls and possible add more onto the house or put up more walls. This is where the big money comes in, so it is best to try to maximize the space you have, so you can get in and out of the kitchen with the least amount of labor and financial burden as possible.

3. Demolition
If you do decide that adding on is the way to go then try to tear down as much as you can on your own. This can be one of the most favored parts of saving money because typically you can find a lot of volunteers that are more than ready to take a sledge hammer to a wall. When you do knock down a wall make sure you are careful as you don’t want to do damage to pipes or get hurt. You can also take out flooring, wallpaper and cabinets on your own. When you do this you are taking a day’s worth of labor off of your bill and you are ensuring that the renovation isn’t just a hired on deal but a labor of love. When you do demolish some of the home make sure to see what can be used again by charity organizations. A lot of the time many charities will take on the majority of your rubbish which will help them out and save you on disposal fees.

4. Leave the Sink
Remodeling the kitchen can be a breeze if you manage to keep the kitchen sink in tact. This is particularly important if you don’t want to pay for a lot of extra labor and potentially clean up a huge mess. The sink is usually connected to a certain area for a reason and moving it can mean reorganizing the pipe work in your kitchen. So, by moving the sink you’re looking at hours of work that will not only tear up the walls in your kitchen but will cost you an absolute fortune. If you do leave the sink then you can easily work around this area and will save enough money to buy a fancier sink that will match your kitchen’s new look.

5. Natural Lighting
There is nothing more relaxing than natural lighting while you work in the kitchen. The only problem is adding more windows to your kitchen can be a huge burden on the budget as well as a difficult task to complete. Providing your home with more windows means purchasing the windows as well adding insulation and weather stripping to ensure that the windows are functioning well for the home. This can run you over a thousand dollars per window, so if your kitchen is lacking in light then you might want to consider replacing fixtures. There are many light fixtures on the market now that actually take bulbs that produce a light that looks and feels natural to you. This is a great way to make the room more comfortable and can save you a lot of money. If you want to add more fixtures into you home it will cost you around $500 per fixture, which is still a grand in savings.

6. Shop Discounted Flooring
When it is time to replace the flooring then you might want to do a lot of shopping around for discounted vendors. There are many retail centers online that will offer you a discounted price on flooring that doesn’t sell as well. This will give you the opportunity to choose between a large variety of wooden floors as well as tiles and vinyl that can suit your kitchen more than you ever thought possible. If you aren’t interested in waiting awhile to get your tiling then you might want to shop around locally. You can always ask a salesperson if they can show you to any discounted or clearanced flooring that will save you a lot of money. This might not give you as big of a selection, but can help you save when you are looking to keep a budget. You might also find a retailer that will offer you free installation when you buy from them, which is a huge help if you don’t know how to install yourself.

7. Buy Imitation Decor
After you have finished up redecorating you might want to look into a few signature pieces that will turn the room into a great place to spend time. The best thing you can do is avoid any piece that is name brand or that comes with a huge price tag. There are many imitation pieces available that will help you save a lot of money. This is especially great if you are trying to keep to a theme that you might grow tired of as the years go by. If you can find a couple basic wall pieces and some floor or counter pieces that you really love then your kitchen will look great. You can also buy a cheaper vase that matches your color scheme, which will allow you to pick or purchase seasonal items that will help you save money as the seasons pass. Decorations are where many people tend to overspend, so make sure you look around for similar pieces before you decide on what should go in your kitchen.

8. DIY
If you plan on doing a major remodel of the home then you should really consider doing as much of the work as possible. This is especially important with the easier task. For instance, you can easily tile your own home with minor instruction. There are many online tutorials and videos that help guide you through your home tiling experience. Another great way to save on money is to paint and wallpaper the walls. This is one of the easiest tasks possible, and will help you put a little love into your home. By doing most of the work yourself you are allowing more of the budget to go into areas of the remodeling that might require more money, such as for an electrician and plumber. A little DIY can help you make a big change to your home and will provide you will a warm feeling that will make you feel like you built the kitchen from scratch.

9. Neutral Colors
Colors are an important part of your remodeling so you will want to choose carefully. Generally, when you are remodeling to sale the home you will want to choose colors that are very neutral. This will make the kitchen look even more appealing to people who are looking into the house. Neutral colors allow people to see themselves living in the home easier as they suit any theme. If you are choosing colors for your own home then you might also want to looking into finding neutral colors that you like. This will allow you to remain happy with your home for longer, and will work well with any phase you might be going through. Neutrals paints can range in color so feel creative when you choose the one’s that are right for your kitchen. Color is especially important when you choose your cabinets as this will be a more permanent fixture in the kitchen than the color of the walls. So, to avoid more work choose a color that you can actually grow with instead of one that is a passing phase.

10. Hauling Materials
There’s a good chance that you’re going to have a lot of material you need to get to your home as well as haul away from the home whenever you remodel the house. The best way to do this is to use your own truck, as hiring someone will cost you a lot of money. If you don’t have your own truck and can’t borrow one from friends and family then you should try to rent a small trailer to help you get rid of your supplies. This can save you a lot of money in comparison to hiring someone as renting is generally a fixed fee for the day, whereas hiring someone might mean paying a lot of money per load. Hauling off your rubbish can be a great finalization task for the remodeling and will allow you to return to a kitchen that makes you want to spend time in it.

Your kitchen is an amazing room that can bring your family closer together. Having a place where you enjoy to spend time is a great way to make cooking and cleaning up less of a chore, so remodeling can really change your life. With these remodeling tips you can turn your kitchen into a room that better suits your family and lifestyle. Now, you don’t have to stress as much about how you’re going to budget your remodeling task and can instead enjoy planning out the beautiful room of your future.

Author: John Terris