I think it's a great idea. You can even just replace the doors with a different design in the same wood and refinished the box to save more money.

The only reason I didn't reface my vanities was because I want to get taller ones.

I was stuck with this exact dilema in current home and opted to rip EVERYTHING OLD out. It would have taken more time to order new doors, paint old bases etc. then installing new ones. These cabinets from home depot were around $400 US but I think just MAKE the bathroom. http://www.basicthink.com/House%20Done%20122.jpg
The designer actually recommended I use a granite or faux granite top against the maple to set the wood off but I just couldnt see it. Wish I would have did that tho.

The other thing to consider is older cabinets are much shorter! New bathroom cabinets are same height as kitchen now making it harder to find doors for your old base and making your old base look that much more dated.

Ok, on to kitchen. I total regret not ripping out the cabinets. The cost was only $4000 to replace but would have added SO MUCH to the home's resale value.

Its all about knowing where to put your money and more importantly time. Remember most custom items take 3 to 8 weeks to order! I can't wait that long especially when Home Depot has them on their shelves now!

This is a timely thread! I didn't have the cabs re-faced but just yesterday had new under-mount sinks and new faucets installed. I had re-painted my cabs cream a few years ago, and will give them a fresh coat, but wow, what the new sinks/faucets have already done to improve the look.

I have cultured onyx which was used back in the 80's, but i'm still seeing in current homes, or it's something that looks identical. They're in good condition, no nicks, or deep scratches, and the sizes are not considered standard anymore. I would have had to get all custom-made tops and didn't want to put that sort of money in 2 baths/PR for re-sale purposes.

This might be a consideration for you. I'm in CA where granite is the 'norm', but i'm not letting that sway me as my home will be at the lower end of the market at 400K/450K according to curent stats. ;o)

patty_cakes

We were on a budget for a major dated fixer upper. This is a pricey neighborhood (granite is the norm) and so we opted to make everything as nice as we could and move in ready since we knew the new owners would end up ripping everything out to majorly upgrade. Our bathrooms had the original 50s vanity and 80s shell-shaped sink. I found two $50 modern vanities (including tops, sinks and faucets!) on craig's list and replaced them with those. They were oak, so I painted them white. They look 150% better than what I had, even with the laminate countertops and uneventful faucet. I replaced one faucet because it was in sorry shape.

My kitchen cabinets are dated flat maple/oak color, yet custom and in great shape. I was gonna paint them, but didn't have time. So I spuced them up with "restore a finish", added elegant black iron handles, replaced the butcher block laminate with faux granite laminate and painted the walls a trendy green. Added a cheap bistro table from walmart, coffee prints from ikea, and I have the cutest little "bistro" kitchen ever.

Our house is still not high end, but it shows very well and priced well for the condition.

Overall, I think it depends on your target price range, your budget, and what kind of buyer you think will end up in your house to justify the costs.

Jeff, that's one nice vanity for $400!

We replaced the oak kitchen and master bath cabs in the house with maple. However we only refaced the powder room and hall bath. It was slightly cheaper and the same look. We ordered the fronts from lowes and 1 large section of maple for 1 side. I am glad we refaced those for 2 reasons: It was easier and my husband was sick of tearing out cabs; and I don't like the taller cabs in the secondary bathrooms because we have a small child. We put pre-fab granite tops in all the bathrooms.

Great input from everyone. I guess my question is more of if there is a difference in what the end results look like for refacing and if there is enough of a price incentive?

mayvenne, is it in good enough shape and a decent style to just paint it to freshen it up? That would be your cheapest option. Next cheapest is painting and just replacing the doors and paint those to match. Depending on what kind of re-facing you do it is sometimes easier to just buy a new one and if it is a standard size it is often less to buy a new one. If it is a non-standard size it might be cheaper to just re-face.

If you have other storage, and it won't require new flooring (or you are re-flooring anyway), your bathroom would look larger with a pedestal sink. If you get one with a large "landing area" on top and have a big medicine cabinet, you might not even need extra storage. New light fixtures are an inexpensive "fix", too.

Sounds like a good paint job will do the job. Here's is a great article (altough they are painting kitchen cabinets, but the information is still the same): http://hauteapplepie.com/2010/07/28/how-to-painting-kitchen-cabinets/

Here is a link that might be useful: Rta kitchen cabinets