I guess it is all a matter of what you can afford and will be happy with. I approach my pending remodel based upon what I have available to spend, not home value. If I look at it from a percentage standpoint, it would be less than 5% of total home value. But, that is fine with me as this what I want and can afford. As for yourself, I wouldn't worry too much on what you are spending, if you don't plan on moving. Make the kitchen the way you want, regardless of cost, if you have the means

I think it primarily hinges on if you want to get your money back out of your house or not and how long you intend to stay in your house. A good realtor could help you with those sorts of numbers. Investment wise, you don't want to make your house the most expensive in the neighborhood.

That being said, there are those who remodel solely for themselves and will never "get" all of their money back out of their home. It is very individual depending on a person's financial situation and personal values.

What might help you is to list out the old pros and cons of your remodel and get a realtor who knows the neighborhood well to offer advice to you. Then assess your comfort level with what you are doing.

Teehee. I understand your problem Kaismom. Homes in my neighborhood are (or WERE when I bought) ridiculously overpriced formerly modestly priced but nice homes with original owners who probably spent $20k in the 1950s to new idiots who spent over 7 figures.

I didn't have a budget. I got what I wanted and assumed my natural frugality would keep me from gold plating the place. Actually since I decided I liked the small kitchen, gold plating wouldn't have been THAT expensive...

But seriously, I am cheap and fiscally conservative. I wouldn't take out a loan on a remodel unless it was unlivable. (We have seen kitchens like that here, too!)

I bought the thing I most wanted regardles of expense... and the kitchen is still not done 3.5 years later as we slowly creep forward on paying for the items and getting them installed.

I'm naturally a splurge when it comes to the kitchen though so I'm not entirely sure I'm the person to ask.

I think you need to look at what the goal is - are you remodeling for YOU or to sell at some point in the future? And even if you are remodeling for you - you don't want to OVERimprove the house to the point where you will price yourself out of your neighborhood.

My advice is splurge on a few must have items and try to be moderate on other areas and thrifty on some other areas to balance it out.

We are doing what I feel is an expensive remodel (I nearly pass out every time I think about it), but in our case I have to remind myself that the house is from 1873 and the kitchen was last updated in 1968. It has no heat and the floor is horribly uneven, among other things. So some of our budget is going to leveling the floor and adding radiant heat.

I looked at some of those budget models that break down how much you should spend on each aspect of the remodel; I'm spending a lot more on some things (like appliances) and a lot less on others (such as lighting and flooring). However, I am spending approximately 22% of my home's value--sounds crazy, but it really is about bringing it into the 21st century (and up to code). And we are planning on staying for the foreseeable future (maybe forever), so we feel it is worth it (even though I think about calling it all off at least 3 times a week---I am not a spendy person AT ALL so this is hard for me--my husband has to talk me down on a regular basis!).

I don't think using a % of your homes value is relevant if this is a house that you are planning on staying in long-term. We are planning on being in our house at least another 15 yrs - by then whoever buys our house will want to redo our 2010 kitchen anyway.

Do what you can afford & spend money on the things that are most important to you & your lifestyle.

Well said, Marcolo. There's a lot of wisdom, put in a thoughtful manner, your words should be added to the faq's.

I haven't added up the costs yet, but I think I've spent about 8-10% of the value of my house. I did not get into debt and only spent what I could afford. That said, I probably spent too much on the kitchen because I bought at the peak of home prices and made other improvements to the house. I've probably put more into the house than what it is worth. Hopefully, the housing market will recover!

Thanks, kris ma. I wasn't sure the ideas would be very popular!

We didn't plan a budget, we just knew what we wanted and what we could live without. We then shopped around for the best prices on those items. As it turned out, our kitchen is probably around 10% of the value of our home.

if you are talking a percentage of home value it's probably worth discussing if that is is DIY or a professional job.
My ktichen reno is about 5% of my hoome value, but it's DIY so I figure it would cost double what we are paying, putting it around 10% of home value.
For me the budget was based on what we could afford without using debt and how big (or small) my 2009 bonus was!
Work with what is comfortable for you.
I echo the comment about a realtor-your realtor should be able to give you some ideas on resale and what amount you can reasonabily recoup.

We didn't really have a budget either, but I did have some idea in my mind of what I thought was "reasonable". Like you, I tend to be on the frugal side and spent ALOT of time finding deals on items that I wanted but refused to pay full price for. I could have spent more than I did, but like Marcolo so eloquently stated, I wanted to keep my options open for future purchases.

I also think the rule of spending "x" percentage of your house value on a kitchen remodel can get people into serious trouble. Look at what has happened to the home values in the last couple of years. The percentages spent on remodels will be much higher than they were thought to be at the time.

If I had the money to not worry about setting a budget ahead of time, I would probably be in a similar mindset. So I would create a plan. First I would shop for all items without a budget, not limiting expenses on anything and come up with a total number. From there I would 'right-size' the budget down to what I felt comfortable spending, say 50% of my crazy money unencumbered number, then take the remain 50% divide it in half and give half to a charity. Some of the remainder would go towards a kitchen opening party for friends and family.

These are the theoretical musings of someone on a limited budget, but I like budgets so that's not a complaint. I literally don't think I could function without a budget number, so I would do the above to make one.

Newbie here and usually a lurker at that, but I did want to say how much I agree with Marcolo's comments. I am trying to keep my kitchen under 15K and to finish it in less than a month. I could spend more, but to be honest, I'd rather take my long planned trip to Peru next summer to hike the Inca Trail than spend time and money designing a breathtaking backsplash. To me, in the end it is "just" a kitchen, a place to cook and eat, but not a form of personal self expression.

I hadn't heard the 5-15% ratio, interesting! Our budget is at 4%, but it may creep up once things actually start. We are doing alot of the leg work ourselves and the kitchen expansion is part of a larger house project (new windows, siding, extra bedroom, new bathrooms, new family room), so you can see how we must keep everything within budget since overall project is more like 30%! However it will more than come back to us in house value. Extra bedroom particularly-although we all know kitchens and bathrooms are what sell the house. In reality we are mostly doing this for "us", but it just as important to remember the practical as well and not put more $ in than the house would be worth--since you just never know. We bought the house 1 year ago, so I'm basing the house value on what we paid. Market has improved since then.

I would agree about keeping to a strict budget but also allow yourself some wiggle room if you have the funds--a kitchen is the heart of the house!

We started what I have termed a kitchen remodel (plus...) because along with gutting the kitchen and removing the dropped ceiling we removed all the popcorn ceiling in the first floor, replaced about half of the first floor flooring, replaced 5 windows and repainted about half of the first floor. So my budget is a bit more on a percentage basis than if we confined it to the kitchen. Although my DH would let me get whatever I wanted, I am sure if I got (too) crazy he would tease me about my project management skills for years to come :)

One thing that has helped keep things in line was to have a good idea of the actual costs of things, including all the "incidentals" like the can lights, trim molding, hardware, switches/plates etc. I have spent nearly every weekend haunting hardware stores, appliance centers, tile and flooring outlets armed with a notebook, camera and tape measure taking notes.

The other thing that helped was to prioritize one or two things (in my case my granite counters and lots of drawers in lower cabs) and make sure YOU get what you LOVE. Find areas to keep costs down in areas YOU are less passionate about (for me machine made white subway tile instead of handmade, no Sub-Zero fridge).

It also helped me to put the budget on paper (or actually on the computer in Excel) to play with the numbers for a bit. I also found an online calculator that seemed to be a good place to begin.

HTH

Here is a link that might be useful: online budget calculator

Thanks for all your insight. Marcolo, you have a great deal of wisdom which is well conveyed. Yes, we have old age and Yale (perhaps Cornell, my DH's alma mater) tuition covered. We spend plenty on our experiential splurges. Affording something is quite relative. I don't believe in legacy for grandchildren for moral and ethical reasons. The money should be plowed back into the society rather than create a class of aritocracy, as does Warren Buffet's belief. (I am sure my yearly salary is not even his hourly earnings.) I have had too much dealings with America's aristocracy (the legacy class) to see that it is not doing our society any good. My political musings aside....

We have a rental house. That kitchen will probably get done when the current tenants move out. My guess is that for that kitchen, the budget will be about 15K-20K. I think I need to do a midlevel remodel since the house is smack in the median price point for the region. I feel like I can make decisions for my rental in a few days and have a great looking kitchen that increased the function and form by huge leaps and bounds. I may even be able to increase the rent substantially. I will do Ikea cabinets, midlevel appliances such as Kitchenaid and probably extend the hard wood to the kitchen. On the other hand, I would never comtemplate putting in an integrated frig, attic mounted vent fan, quartz countertop, $3000 speed oven.. Forget it! Even with the budget limitations, I know that the kitchen can and will look great and function beautifully. I am actually really looking forward to doing it when the time comes.

However, my own kitchen remodel has been difficult in terms of expectations and decision making. So the struggle really is how to say enough is enough and stop....

I think I have made the last splurge on my speed oven. Off to look for a cost effective faucet with great design without spending $1000!

Anyone know of great alternative to Dornbracht faucets?

Well, given what you've said, and the thought you've obviously put into your choices, I solemnly say: Go for it!

Post the picture of the faucet you're looking at, and folks will try to help.

Wow Marcolo  then I read what Kris said and realized I couldnÂt have said it any better.

Well said, Marcolo. There's a lot of wisdom, put in a thoughtful manner, your words should be added to the faq's.

kaismom,

We too are spending a ridiculous amount on our kitchen reno, compared to the value of our house anyways. Our kitchen is going to run around 20% of our house value BUT most of the work has been and will be done by myself. We have not held back on any appliances, Miele column 30" fridge/18" freezer, AGA four oven cooker, Miele built-in coffee machine, you get the idea. We LOVE the neighborhood we're in and plan to stay here at least until our lids our finished school and considering the oldest just started, it's going to be awhile.

Someone once said, "life is a one lap race, you only get one chance" and that's the way I look at life. Just GO FOR IT!

vanisleevt,
Do you know that Miele refrigerator cannot hold gallon milk jugs in the door shelves? That is the only reason why we are going with Thermador, FYI.... It sounds like you already have your appliances and this is a moot point.

My kids are 10 and 7. We go through 4 or gallons of milk every week. We cannot use the shelves to hold the milk and have enough room left for other things and keep it at a reasonable frig size.