Additional image of island

Pic of the wall I want to remove to push the back of the kitchen into the pantry to gain about 3 feet.
I would keep allappliances

Here is one more pic of that back wall

More than "a little more counter space" is probably worth. So much depends on construction/structural and mechanical issues, but you're talking about some pretty big changes -- lots of wall movements, installing a DW in the middle of a room -- guessing you have slab constuction, replacing cabinets with extra tall or stacked cabinets -- and you are going to cause some problems with the inlaid wood flooring and the balance of your DR ceiling. That probably means either more expensive changes or taking a hit on resale. Both are expensive.

Your kitchen looks beautiful at first glance, but functionally could use some help.

Agree with Lascatx that so much depends upon construction/structural and mechanical. Being on slab or unable to access utilities from below would make it much more expensive. My guess would be at least $50k, could be considerably more, to replace all those cabinets and do everything else you've listed.

Moving walls will also require patching or installing a new floor if you can't patch in to match the existing. That adds even more expense.

You could accomplish parts of what you want fairly inexpensively. On the pass-through side - taking down the small cabinet and changing the walls to half-walls really open up the kitchen and would be inexpensive if the walls are not load-bearing.

You also could reuse and paint the existing cabinet boxes and frames and just buy new shaker doors instead of purchasing all new cabinets.

Depends a lot on the structure, what it's holding up, utilities and how you plan on integrating the existing flooring in the two areas. Your best bet is to get quotes because they'll be far more accurate than what you'll get online.

I don't know and don't think you can get an estimate online, but if you aren't wanting to spend $100k, this is a good way to do just that.

When you do get an estimate, budget a lot more. Is it 30%? Can't recall but it is substantial.

This post was edited by snookums2 on Sat, Apr 26, 14 at 23:17

First thing I'd look at is if either the pass-through or range walls are load-bearing, and second thing I'd look at is if you would be able to reconfigure your vent hood duct run and plumbing without major costs. Any of those four things is going to be quite expensive.

But aside from that, the entire rest of the home has a sort of Tuscan color palette. White cabinets and trim don't fit into this sort of decor scheme; they will stick out like a sore thumb. Do you plan to change the rest of the home's color scheme?

This post was edited by beautybutdebtfree on Sat, Apr 26, 14 at 8:20

60-180K depen ing on amount of mechanicls that need to be altered, flooring to be changed out, patches to everything, and the level of quality of your choices. Just an average kitchen remodel costs 55K nationally.

Here is a link that might be useful: cost vs value

I'm in agreement with Beautybutdebtfree (what a name!). I think your kitchen is beautiful and the style fits perfectly with the rest of your house. Even if you painted/redecorated, I think your house has sort of a Tuscan feel, with those floors and the beams in the ceiling.

While it might not be terribly pricey to take the archway and single cabinet down to open up more to the living room, I don't think you'd gain a whole lot by doing so. It's already pretty open, and the archway suits the architecture of your house's interior. I like the arch. The single upper cabinet is kind of funny there - I might take that down if I didn't need the storage space. Maybe replace it with an open display shelf instead.

If I were picking the changes to that kitchen, the main thing I would do would be to get rid of that "island" piece of furniture in the middle of the floor. Everybody thinks they need an island, but some kitchen feel better with open space to move around. I think yours looks like one of those to me. I can't imagine that island does anything but get in the way...

From the list you gave and before scrolling though your pictures I was guessing 80-120k. Then I scrolled down and saw the range. Moving that range may be a very expensive proposition. It's possible the structure under it has been beefed up to support it and that will need to be done in the new space. Not to mention moving and reconfiguring the venting system and gas lines.

citadelcadet:

I suggest you contact a reputable interior designer first. For relatively modest fees compared to what you are proposing, you can be presented with different ways of accomplishing your goals and rough estimates. The designer may agree with your vision as is, you never know. The biggest strength you can have, especially at this stage, is knowing what you don't know.

Good luck.

If you can't remove the wall, maybe you could enlarge the doorway by removing that end cabinet. I would put the money into having the cabinets refinished to all one color instead of the contrasting crown moulding color. A softer shade of green on the walls. Danville Tan by BM would be nice. It's a greenish tan. Very soft, looks tan on chip, green on wall.

The stove is magnificent! Beautiful home.

Unless it's an old house, the structure that the range is on is a concrete slab. In Texas nearly all of them have been that way since the 1950s.

On the other hand, the gas line is possibly in the slab. That could be somewhere between "fun" and "loads of fun" to deal with. Venting would be in that neighborhood too depending on what's going on above the kitchen and what direction the joists run.

Bring your checkbook...

"That could be somewhere between "fun" and "loads of fun" to deal with."

Remodeling humor. Take note, citadelcadet, you're going to be needing and appreciating it.

Based on our much less intensive remodel, I would say at a very minimum, 80k but probably much higher than that.

I'll guesstimate at least $100K, but don't know the Dallas area. Allow plenty more for the unexpected and a few might-as-well-while-we-have-a-GC-here add-ons.

Is this house a done deal? I would apply that $100K towards purchasing a "better" house that doesn't need a new kitchen to replace a new-ish kitchen.

Maybe the kitchen looks better in the pictures than in reality, but it looks pretty good to me. It at least fits in well with the house. I understand having an open floor plan is all the rage right now, but I personally appreciate having a small amount of separation between the living room and the kitchen, be it partial wall or half wall. Maybe after you live in it for a while, you will appreciate the layout more than you do now?

hope the home is priced right. looks like an 80's to 90's home. you may come out ahead with a new build. looks like 100K easy.

I'm guessing you end up with 50 ft of kitchen, counting appliances and island- 400 ft of flooring.
Assuming you are moving toward the exterior of the house?
That may make the gas line not a big deal.
Don't see the structure as likely a big deal but then I haven't looked at it :)
Venting out could be an issue.
Then budget might look like (in thousands):

Cab 50 ft kitchen 30-65
counter 8-15
electric 6-8
install 20-30
floor 400ft 6-9
structure 0-2.5
gas line 0.6-1.5
sink(s) faucet(s) 0.8-3
misc 1-3
venting 0.6-2
total 73-139
These are all off the top of my head- Hudson Valley NY. The most accurate are the cabinet numbers-still a guess based on my brands semi custom to can't get much better (but can spend more)
Looking at the house my guess is the higher number is more appropriate.
Then pick a number and talk with someone to see if they can do what you want for the number you want.
If you end up doing it would love to hear back where it ended up- like guessing how many jelly beans in a jar :)

thanks guys. Wow that is more than I would have imagined.

Ok. How about if we didnt move the stove/ back wall but just opened up the area around the island and then built a bigger island and pushed that out into the living room. The island could be something without a sink, stove top. Maybe a small wine cabinet or dishwasher or microwave.

Attached is an image of the style we are going for.
We would be changing the paint through the home to a light grey with white trim. Hardwoods would be stained a darker color and the tile in the kitchen would be removed and the wood extended into the kitchen.

Thoughts?

This post was edited by citadelcadet on Sat, Apr 26, 14 at 20:24

I actually love the kitchen the way it is but to save money, you could remove the doors and install white shaker doors and add another set of cabinets to the ceiling. I love the floor and would leave that. The Island as a work area is nice the way it is.

What is there about this particular house that you want it and not another? I'd say keep shopping. You will spend more making it into something it's not than you will buying a house that is already laid out with the open floor plan.

House is in the right neighborhood, has the perfect lot, great price, has great schools, faces the right direction and is in a culdesac.

I gotta cast my vote with julia42. Also, if it ain't broke don't fix it. The house looks great just the way it is. Open concept is a fad that in a few years could reverse itself.

Remkving walls means repacing floors where the walls were. If you can't source exact replacements, you replace it all. It means repairing ceilings. It means relocating the electrical and plumbing that is in the wall. And that is all simple wall removal if the wall isn't load bearing. I can guarantee that at least one of those walls WILL be load bearing and need engineeing inspections in order to size a beam and create a footing to accept the point loads from the ends of the beam.

Either love it as is and live with it for a few years, or move along and find something else with the extra 100K that you'd be spending after closing.

How long does something have to be popular to no longer be considered a fad?