I think red's last line was the best...Improving for financial return can be a mistake today. (shortened because I'm lazy). Improving somewhat is always valuable, but going nuts and expecting to receive every penny is nuts too. In our current remodel I expect to have about a 60% return on the remodel in it's entirety. The appraisal (as proposed) supports that theory. We chose to improve at a higher level than the appraisal supports because A) we plan on holding onto the home and don't really care about immediate resale value and B) most important...we're doing the upgrades for US not for anyone else. We live in a townhouse and ours shows that you can play with resale in any neighborhood no matter how similar the units are. Ifyou have something special (ie we're an end unit with lake in the front and side) you can improve over resale of the other units/homes in your neighborhood. You just don't want to improve over the market as a whole. Our units tend to sell in the mid 300's on the lake and low 300's off the lake with a view. Our as proposed, despite the fact that we're smaller than the other units came in at $500 because townhouses on lakes are rare and desirable and anything in the mid 500's is considered "affordable" here due to the oil industry and their love of houses without yard obligations :) The other townhouse we purchased in the next group of units over should have sold for about $315 or so. We picked it up for aroudn $170 because it hadn't been updated since birth (1976) and was also not maintained. I can turn it around for another $100 and still make profit if I want because this is an incredibly desirable neighborhood, but to do so, I have to meet certain standards like granite and high end appliances. It's really easy to say "this is how it is for everyone" but really it can vary from block to block and city to city as well as house to house. So maintain your sanity and do it for yourself instead and enjoy what YOU want to enjoy!

Lot's of really good advice here from all parties - I have to single out Live Wire Oak - really sound wisdom... I am not a designer - just a Fabricator - but That said - I'd think about maybe a "Danby Marble" too - totally fits into the "time frame" of a "period" home like the one you have....Looks similar to Carrara, but is from the North East US - Danby from Vermont Quarries... I'll try to post a link... Plus - Gaining a few square feet of countertop space (in my opinion) should not make your project jump from "average" to "Taj Mahal".. or unless I am missing something... My guess is that you will see a modest increase in cost overall, but not something of a "Goverment Job"... HA!!! just my .02 cents worth hope this helps you....... kevin Here is a link that might be useful: Danby Marble

If you do need to seal--and I actually don't think you do--this is a 5-minute job that does not require your contractor to come back to do. It does not need any special skill - if you are able to wipe lightly in a circular motion, you can do it. In fact, if your counter is the type to need annual resealing, you will have to do this yourself eventually anyway. Buy the smallest bottle of sealer you can find at HD. It will still outlast you in this kitchen, as you just need a very small amount in order to seal. (Don't get one that says "enhancer", you just want "impregnator"). Follow the directions on the container. Seriously, 5 minutes or really 3. It'll take longer to clear your counters of your toaster etc than it will to seal. Having said all that, I am not sure you need to seal. There is such a thing as too much sealant, and/or sealant applied when it is not needed. When that occurs, your counters will show what is called "hazing" as the sealer sits on top and doesn't absorb, either because there is already sealant applied, or because the stone is so dense it doesn't need sealer (I haven't sealed my granite counter in years because it is a dense-type stone). One way to tell if you have hazing if you aren't sure is to drag lightly a dish or bowl on the counter, and if it leaves track marks, your sealer is not needed and hasn't absorbed. That could be what the "swirly marks" you mentioned are, but we can't tell without photos. The drag marks are in the sealer layer, not in the stone. You can remove it with acetone; there are threads about this. http://www.homedepot.com/p/Miracle-Sealants-16-oz-511-Impregnator-511-PT-SG-H/100672948

@Beth H.  The current gray tile is actually pink stone tile that we couldn't identify but had it diamond ground *because it's so hard), steamed cleaned then painted and sealed.  I like the uneven look and the cool feeling of the stone under my feet that you can't get from porcelain or ceramic.  Initially, we were going to replace it but it sits on 2 inches of floated cement and nothing is really level in this house and chose not to go that route hence if we replace it would need to go on top of the current floor and/or repaint. The carpet is inset but if we were to replace the floor then we would fill it in.