Holy Moly! Laminate costs almost as much as granite!!
mistydatn
12 years ago
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lascatx
12 years agoRelated Discussions
Care 2 Share? How Much Did your Home cost to Build?
Comments (30)$360,000 to build + $200,000 for 40 acres with 330' lakeshore in MN. The cost to build includes about $30,000 for gravel driveway, $7,500 for underground electricity, well for $6,250 and $10,500 for septic. 4 BR/2.5 bath. 1,450 sq ft main finished, 1,100 2nd level finished, 1,450 basement unfinished, 780 bonus room unfinished. 2-car garage unfinished, 28'x28'=780 sq ft. Colonial variation with 6 dormers. 9' ceilings throughout including basement. Open floor plan two story great room/kitchen/dining room. Master BR and laundry on Main Floor. Split-faced block, Hardiboard siding. 8/12 pitch with architectural 40-yr shingles. Upper mid-level finishes. Large porcelain tile, BR-111 Amendoim wood floor, 48" stainless steel double oven stove with custom 48" range hood, maple stair treads and railings with white balusters, maple fireplace hearth surround, custom mudroom lockers, geothermal HVAC including radiant floor in basement plus desuperheater, garage and bathroom tile floors, closed cell sprayfoam insulation, quality vinyl argon-filled casement windows. Finished building August, 2009. Hopefully plan on never moving. I was nervous building in a severe market collapse because I didn't know what would happen if our appraisal was less than what it cost to build. Local lender really helped as well as one-time close construction to permanent loan as they had an incentive to get it closed. I was technically the GC although we had an experienced, quality builder. I did the tile, wood floors, built master shower, painting, basement waterproofing, interior and exterior drain tile, much of radiant tubing and below slab insulation, closet systems, pantry, low voltage wiring including Cat6 and coax to multiple locations in each room, security wiring, music system and speaker wiring, fireplace mantle, hearth and surround, etc. On-site every day after work and many days before work too and every weekend....See MoreSelling. Should we replace laminate with granite?
Comments (46)You need to upgrade for your area. I am on my second house with ubatuba after a house with a lighter color, and it is a pretty low maintainence granite. I love granite, and despite HGTV's predicted obsolencence (by people who's livelihood requires you to change out your design frequently btw), I do not agree that other emerging materials provide better performance and beauty for the price. Laminates are not heat resistant; tile has grout staining; concrete is was too trendy, and must be done right; and quartz/silestone look a lot like corian (dated). Granite tiles look cheap, and I wold not pay one cent more when offering. I believe granite slab will at least return it's cost every time as long as the designer isn't color blind ... You also need to at least certile the floors, and maybe do some cabinet coat and/or some wall texture - all very inexpensive and possibly DIY with a little bit of artistic ability......See MoreCountertop: Laminate or Granite Tile?
Comments (43)greenhaven, you may have the solution. I never thought about that, but the BS has a metal edge. I think I'll see if it fits upside down, although I'm pretty sure the 'lip' isn't deep enough to cover those mistakes. PhoneLady, I totally spaced out your recommendation. Bad, bad of me. I used a craigslist guy who certainly ran a good sales game. I am so mad, I will do my best to put him out of business. Not only did he do a rotten job, he took 2 boxes of tile that I bought - and DH's bluetooth speaker. He will live to regret it. We can't fix the range hood, but I did find a new GE Adora micro at a liquidation center for a mere hundred bucks. Still, it's money I didn't need to spend....See MoreHoly House Help #1
Comments (25)i have to agree w/above. there is so much clutter out on the counters, walls, fridge, atop the cabinets, etc,,that it's hard to know what to do. my eyes just keep bouncing to and fro! Take down all the 'stuff' from the cabinets and countertops that aren't necessary. just put them away for now. do a major decluttering. then come back with another pic. right off the bat I would take out the peninsula and put your fridge over there. put in a nice, large island and remove your table against the wall. with the large island, you'll have plenty of room to sit and eat. put your microwave in the island, along w/more storage. where the fridge is, I'd extend that countertop, w/above shelving and a pantry. take out the small freezer and your ice box. (maybe move that elsewhere) your room is dark because you have no lighting. if you can't to recessed lights or ceiling lighting, then invest in some good floor lamps and table lamps with adequate bulbs. the dark floor is swallowing up every bit of light. throw down a large, white or light colored rug for the sofa area. take off that chair rail around the entire room and paint the walls one color. that brown is also sucking out all of the light. trim out your windows with inexpensive paintable wood trim. learn how to cut and nail them around the window. Paint them bright white. it will help frame the windows and give it a finished look. Did you want to paint your cabs? Are you guys DIY handy? If you are, all of this can be done inexpensively. you can also look at craigslist daily. people on there remodel and sell complete kitchens for less than 1K. might be 3 yrs old, and they're ripping them out. granite, sinks, cabs, everything. you may have to play around to get them to fit, you may have to add to it. just depends. Pre-fab granite and quartz counters can be had for under 500 bucks. again, know where to look and how to shop. you could even do a cement overlay over your existing counters for a few hundred. that will buy you time to save up for something down the road. you didn't mention a budget, or your ability, so it's hard to say if it can be done....See Moreaa62579
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