As a professional kitchen and bath designer and published design journalist, I see hundreds of projects and regularly advise clients and readers on how to get the best results from their remodeling projects. These are the most common mistakes you want to avoid in yours.
OVERSPENDING
While kitchen remodels return more of their cost than almost any other upgrade, this isn’t true if you overspend. Think in terms of an investment level of 10 to 25 percent relative to the value of your home.
If your home is in the early/entry level of the market, stay as close to the 10 to 15 percent investment level as possible. In the middle of your market, you are generally safe in the 15 to 20 percent level. Underspending is a risk here, as your neighbors improve their homes, as is spending more than the neighborhood will bear.
At the luxury end of the real estate market, you should invest in the top 25% of that scale, as this is where homebuyers justifiably expect the highest-end amenities.
MICROVISION
Almost every home being built today has an open layout that puts your kitchen in full view of your great room, dining room, and other nearby public spaces. This requires a higher level of design integration, what I call “Open Plan Design”, than an older house.
So… While you may love a Tuscan or French style, consider whether this style will work with your surroundings. If you’ve ever had friends install their dream kitchen and then the rest of their house looked horrible, they probably succumbed to microvision.
Here are some tips to avoid this mistake in your home: Consider the door and window frames of the house, along with the chimney surrounds, open arches and crown molding to “reality check” if the appearance you want will fit just fine. Also consider any heirloom furniture and large-scale furnishings you plan to keep after the remodel to ensure that what you’re putting in the kitchen will look great in your shared space.
TREND BENDING
This is related to Micro Vision, but goes much further. Don’t choose a kitchen style based solely on its current popularity, but rather on how well it works with your overall taste and lifestyle. You may have the budget for mass makeovers, but I doubt you have the stomach for them!
