Definitely NO to the strap hinges, no matter what color they are! I would go with a contrasting counter top, darker than the cabinets, but with some white/off-white veining. Brushed nickel hardware and brushed nickel/stainless steel faucet.

I should note that this is a flip house in an average neighborhood. Our real estate agent advised that in this area and with the craziness of the market here right now, we could get away with installing good quality laminate countertops without affecting resale price. However, I'm a sucker for a stone countertop, and have been trying to decide between quartz/stone countertops and new doors in order to keep the costs down.

I've considered making the original doors shakers and changing hardware and still getting quartz, or corian.

With the doors looking similar to this in the end:

New doors.

Can you do a mockup with black or silver strap hinges? For some reason I kind of like the idea if it.
I'm confused...are you going to flip this house or is this a house you are going to live in.

In one remodel I did, I used high-end laminate that looked just like slate, even down to a high-textured surface. I had the edges finished in a square edge, instead of molded edge, and it looked just like a slab of slate.

I think you should try for a high-end laminate or Corian and new doors. Both for cost and to fit in with the rest of the design.

this is an interesting thread.. just staying notified.

look forward to seeing the finished project!

Last time I shopped for counter tops I found Corian to be in the same avg ball park range as granite $52-$58. per sq ft while laminate more in the high $20. per sq ft. though it can run into $40. sq ft based on thickness and quality. I've run across Houzz threads lately with people putting Corian in the same price category as a laminate so unless pricing has changed on Corian or laminate I just want to clarify that. And Corian is going to outlast any laminate. Completely different creature.

@ljptwt7 We have decided to go with shaker doors, so the strap hinges aren't being used. If we weren't planning on selling/moving in the near future, I just may have taken the risk! Next time! :)

We are currently living in the house, doing our first "live-in flip" and learning a lot along the way! We already have a list of things we will be doing differently next time. Live and learn! Since it is our first one, we are keeping things as cheap as possible and doing most of the work ourselves. Starting in an average neighborhood in a hot market that keeps getting hotter (houses comparable to ours are selling for 40-60,000 more than we paid for ours, and with absolutely no updates). As long as the market doesn't crash, we are guaranteed to come out of this on top! It's a low-risk learning experience for us. If the market stays the same, the worst thing that can happen is that we make less than we "could have". Which will be a learning experience for next time :)

@Trem Wills We are going for shaker doors, and I am currently waiting for a bunch of quotes on quartz, corian, and some laminate options! My real estate agent has advised that stone/quartz/corian would be the better choice, but because the market is so hot here right now, we might be able to get away with laminate just this once! Will update again once the doors are installed and the countertop selections are narrowed down :)

New doors are as much as new budget cabinets. With far worse and far less appealing results. It’s an actual buyer turnoff to have those old boxes and bad layout. Plus the time lost that eats into the profit. Carrying costs are a big deal. This is your first flip, right? 🙄

If the cabinets are good, solid wood I would not be turned off at new doors. Good luck on your endeavor! I look forward to seeing your counter options.

@Celadon I have kind of "flipped" a couple houses before, but did not purchase any with the goal of selling in a short time and just updated as I went along. This house I bought with the goal of turning a profit! So, it is my first official flip and the first time I've paid really close attention to cost/labor/resale value! Luckily, I married a pretty skilled carpenter, so a lot of the work only requires materials+time! And I have 2 brothers in trades with lots of connections, so we are actually spending way less than we anticipated!

The cabinets are good, solid wood, which is why we opted to keep them!

But yes, it is definitely a learning experience! There are already many things we will do differently next time! And after this house we will be in a way better financial position position (goodbye student loans!!) to buy and flip some "nicer" houses with more resale potential. But...you gotta start somewhere!

If you don’t track and account for all of the hours of personal labor, and all of the business carrying costs and expenses, you won’t know if you’re really making money at all. If you or your husband could be making more on a different paid job than what y’all net as a bonus on top of the salary doing this, then you’re losing money.

If you and your husband are not earning money as a paid employee from your S Corp set up for this, you’re both not tracking expenses correctly, and you are losing money to both taxes, and to the entire flip endeavor. Most people don’t track their expenses properly. Get a CPA involved now, if you don’t want this to be your first and last flip.

Time is money. This is why demo on a flip doesn’t keep 60 year old cabinets or anything else like that. It’s a streamlined process driven project. Remove almost everything and start over with budget components that hit popular style points. Flat pack cabinets for 4K is a much better bottom line choice than 2K for doors and 2K for a painter. The results are more appealing to the move in ready crowd. The originals as original appeal to the GrandMillennial stylists, but that’s a much smaller subset at the moment than the ubiquitous Gaines farmhouse folks. And that’s why you have to know your demographics. In a hot real estate climate, you can do nothing more than paint everything and be dollars ahead of a flip. A flip loses money in a super hot market. Because you had to spend money and time. And you could have spent a week instead of 2 months.

look into Silestone.

This one

or the Eternal Serena. (this is the one I have in the matte finish. I love it)

both of these come in a matte or a polished finished. They would look great w/your white and your floors.

A slab of this cost 2300. (just so you know the price if you go shopping) And it comes in the Charcoal, which would look amazing w/your cabinets

this is the matte finish

this is Cambria. bit more expensive.

In addition to the quartz options above, you could also do butcher block to keep costs down. I always prefer a natural material to laminate.

@Sel Bee However, I'm a sucker for a stone countertop, and have been trying to decide between quartz/stone countertops and new doors in order to keep the costs down.

This made me smile. Many years ago when we were flipping houses, we did it because we loved the process of creating a really nice space and we were sick of buying fixer uppers we lived in while we worked on them and then moving when it was finished. We too did a lot of the work ourselves as a hobby (both had other full time jobs) because we liked the work of doing it. We always spent too much on some aspect of the project, just to make it special for someone because that is what we wanted to do. We always sold the houses for asking price, sometimes even above if it would appraise for that.

We got out when flipping became a "thing" and we saw too many really nice first time home buyers suckered by cheap but attractive materials and we couldn't compete on our terms.

I've got nothing against laminates and think they are beautiful now but I applaud you for wanting to make some money at the same time you can do a special thing for someone. And yes, it's definitely a learning process. Have fun!

@tozmo1 Yes!! We both have jobs as well, and are doing this on the side because we both enjoy it! If we actually have success doing this, we might someday work on houses we *don't* live in! It is quite stressful living in a construction zone!! I am sure you know this feeling. The thought I always have is that we are taking something that is really just an ugly/dated old house and turning it into a "home" for someone else!

Unfortunately, because I am backi n school (changing careers from landscaping/concrete to something long-term sustainable for my body lol), we have to be more selective about our updates in this house. In the next house, we will have a lot more money to work with! I might have to go for a really nice laminate countertop here (sadly), but I've been researching like crazy to find a high-quality, modern, durable laminate countertop! Still considering corian as well, just waiting for quotes. As I said in a comment above, my real estate agent and I have discussed this on several occasions and she maintains that the market here is so hot right now and houses in our home's price range rarely come up, and they sell almost immediately when they do! Usually she would recommend stone/quartz but given the climate she advised to just do laminate. The buyer's won't even notice when our house is one of the only houses up in their price range!

We still have to add a powder room to the main floor, and completely gut and re-do the master bath on the 2nd level. I think we would rather spend less money and install a nice, high-quality laminate countertop in the kitchen and put more into the master bath! I don't think anything has been done in there sine the 70s!! it has the most wonderful brown/mustard yellow patterned linoleum and the shower head was installed so low on the wall that the water doesn't even reach my husband's head!! Gotta love these old houses haha.

@Design Girl I was looking into butcher block!! I did some research and apparently it is a turn-off for many buyers! Partially because it isn't a common material here for a full kitchen (maybe an accent or island), and partially because people tend to think it is unsanitary. I personally love the look of it as a countertop material!

As I've mentioned in other comments, the market here is extremely hot and this house will be selling for a lot less than the majority of houses. Houses that come up in our price range have been selling within days!! My agent said we can basically do whatever we want with the countertops at this time and it won't have a huge impact on resale value, though she usually recommends stone/quartz.

Laminate has come a long way in the last decade, so I may end up going with it just this one time (this is our first official flip, so we are being careful financially to maximize our profit so that the next house we buy can be in a nicer neighborhood with higher resale potential, and we won't be able to get away with laminate in it! lol)

@Beth H. : I adore Eternal Serena!! I have looked at it so many times. We have decided to do new doors, and are likely going to install a really nice laminate in this house. As I mentioned in other comments, it's our first flip in a really hot market and we have been advised that in this neighborhood and at this time we could get away with a nice laminate. This won't be the case in the next house, as we plan to get into a nicer neighborhood! Eternal Serena will probably be the first sample I bring into the next house! I also love Silestone's Classic Calcatta and Calcatta Gold. Their whole Eternal line is gorgeous!!

Sel, I have the serena and have been very happy with it. no issues at all.

I think we may be going for Formica 180fx Calcatta Marble in this house, and going for quartz in the next one!! Will post updates+pictures in the near future

I think there is a fine line you walk when you put a product in that mimics marble and is available in higher priced products. It can appear that you "cheapen" out by going to the Formica. I think you are better to select a Formica that stands on it's own and doesn't mimic another product so that the buyer doesn't wish you put in actual marble or even quartz. Have you looked on-line at the Formica Calcutta Marble countertops? IMO- it's not very attractive.

@tedbixby

do you have any specific color examples by Formica of a color/style that stands as its own? I will definitely look them up!

I have to ask, though...isn't quartz technically mimicking another product also when it appears as natural stone or marble?! I know some people who dislike quartz and only like "natural" stone because quartz is "manufactured" so it isn't the real deal in their eyes. I is definitely a matter of personal preference!

I think because marble is such a soft stone, many people avoid it in their kitchens (hence the popularity of quartz products that mimic marble!) The formica is another cheaper alternative to achieve the same look, and this particular product has had some really great reviews!

Bearing in mind that I myself prefer granite and quartz, but my real estate advised that during this time I should go for laminate because the market is so hot countertops are the least of peoples concerns when they are in constant bidding wars to just buy a place!!

Here are some of the photos that made me consider Formica's 180fx calcatta marble. Ignore the DIY posts online where people bought the sheets and built their own countertops, we are getting it prefabricated with factory finished edges/edge profiles.

Sorry for the long comment!

@tedbixby

@tedbixby

If it were me, I would go for a plain, bull-nosed edge, rather than one of the fancier ogee ones. I think if you did a straight edge you would see the black background of the Formica on the corner edge.

1st, I agree the if your Realtor is telling you to put in a Formica that is the way to go.

Let me ask you this- fast forward to your house being on the market and you are a perspective buyer and are looking at this house. You are in the kitchen and you see a counter top that looks like marble but you find out it isn't quartz but Formica. How do you feel about that as a buyer? Does it affect the price you would offer? Are you already thinking that you'll replace it? If not, then go ahead and install it. If you are, then go through this exercise as if you put a Formica in that isn't looking like marble. Is it less of an issue because it isn't reminding you of a marble quartz? Quartz is the darling of counter materials to most people right now and so it becomes a more acceptable alternative in place of actual marble. I see nothing wrong with using Formica, it's just that is having a marble looking one going to be an issue for a buyer or will it be a plus because it looks like marble. Perhaps ask your Realtor who seems to understand your market well.

Also, my last post I mentioned that the Calcutta wasn't attractive. I had mistakenly looked at a different Formica and that is what I was referring to.

For what it is worth. Some of those photos you posted feel showroom or photoshopped. I thought this one looked more realistic of the product and also closer to what I believe you are wanting to achieve with your kitchen so thought I'd post these photos to help give you a visual.

White Kitchen with Marble Look Laminate Countertop ~ Akron, OH · More Info

White Kitchen with Marble Look Laminate Countertop ~ Akron, OH · More Info

One other alternative...have you gone to a stone yard and looked for remnants? If not, find one that doesn't have a showroom, but one that focuses on fabrication. Put on your old shoes and walk around their muddy yard and see what you might find. I found a really nice remnant for my laundry room at a place like that. The cost including their stainless steel sink (they like to use a standard sink, reduces fabrication effort) was 1/3 the cost of a "showroom" stone place without a sink. If this is something you are going to do a lot of, a relationship with these kinds of vendors is a good thing to have.

@tedbixby Everyone has such varying taste! I agree most people prefer granite or quartz, though some people still do prefer laminate due to the lack of maintenance required and the ease at which it can be replaced/updated/changed. I can spend thousands on a nice "marble" quartz, or even a plain, classic quartz, but the next person may really love natural stone like Fantasy Gray/Brown or maybe they prefer dark countertops. On the one hand, someone may be turned off by the countertop material, but on the other, the appeal of laminate is that it isn't considered "permanent" like stone/quartz is and it can be removed much easier! I have seen all sorts of posts: "Help! How do I update my kitchen and make it look good with dated/ugly/not my personal taste quartz/granite". If someone is looking to make this house their "forever" home, I can imagine they will change all sorts of things over time! If I end up using this product and really liking it, then in future when looking at homes it would not be a deterrent at all!

That being said, in future homes, I do plan to use quartz, but given my real estate agent's advice and the price (the Formica is 20% the cost of even a remnant of granite around here!), I am going to use Formica in this house. I'm not sure what pricing is like in your area, but natural stone/quartz is extremely expensive here, even at the big box stores (I got quotes at Home Depot and Lowes as well!).

I believe the photos you posted are either from a different company (not Formica), or a DIY using laminate sheets, which is why you can see the dark edge/seam. I confirmed with the manufacturer that there will be no visible seam as in the pictures above!! That is definitely a turn off!

The pictures I posted last night were of the actual product I have been considering, Formica 180fx Calcatta Marble.

These people installed the same product I am looking at (with a different edge, I will be getting more of an eased edge, but still with no seam!)

http://www.elizabethburnsdesign.com/blog/2016/11/17/formica-marble

There are also a lot of pictures and comments in this Houzz thread

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/3634447/horrible-mistake-to-use-formica-180fx-calacatta-marble

I also ordered samples of these two, which do still mimic natural materials.

Pietra Grafite

https://www.formica.com/en-ca/products/180fx/07402

Carrara Bianco

https://www.formica.com/en-ca/search#q=carrara%20bianco

But really, this whole idea could go right out the window when the samples get here, as I would never install something I wouldn't use myself!!

To return to one of your earlier points, would you say that any of these are Formica products that stand on their own as laminate?

https://www.formica.com/en-ca/products/lamhome/00949

https://www.formica.com/en-ca/products/lamhome/06698

https://www.formica.com/en-ca/products/lamhome/08958 (this one is kind of cool!)

https://www.formica.com/en-ca/products/lamhome/08956

I am looking to use actual Formica brand laminate, as the reviews are amazing compared to so many others, and they seem to have really stepped up their game when it comes to edge profiles (no visible seams), texture/finish, durability, etc.

Thanks for the dialogue! I really appreciate it. You make a lot of valid points that have got me thinking! :)

@tozmo1 I did!! half of the placed here don't offer remnant pricing at all on quartz, and only on select (usually dated styles of) granite pieces. Even then, the Formica works out to 20% of the price of a remnant!! Pricing for natural stone here is ridiculous! Even at the big box stores like Home Depot, Natural stone/quartz will have to wait until the next house (unless this Formica is *amazing* like some have said it is in reviews! My real estate agent is also working on a house and she wants to see my samples+the finished product if we go ahead with it, because she might use the same product! At this point the general though is: the market is SO hot right now, there isn't even a point in installing natural stone because houses in this price range are being sold almost as soon as they hit the market! (She usually installs quartz in her flip houses and this time she is considering laminate as well due to the high demand in our area)

@tozmo1 I also inquired about corian remnants and pricing!! Pretty much the same price as the quartz or granite

Sel Bee- you aren't understanding my point so we'll just move on. Good luck.

I have Lyra Silestone on SW Pure White cabinets and the slightly gray goes well. I used formica in a denim shade in my laundry room with Pure White cabinets and love that too. But I really LOVE your floors and I think formica countertops in a similar color to your floor would be a WOW look.

By the way- this photo states that the counter top is Formica 180x Laminate Calcutta Marble and it appears that the kitchen was professionally done by the web-site it is connected to. And yes, the Formica brand is a good way to go for that type of material.

White Kitchen with Marble Look Laminate Countertop ~ Akron, OH · More Info

@tedbixby I understand your point, but I cannot think of a "formica that stands on its own as a laminate."' Do you mean that it is a solid color?? Most formica is designed to look like natural stone, or wood, or else it is a solid colour.

The thing I notice first about the photo you posted is the dark seam on the edge of the countertop. I have confirmed with the manufacturer here that this will not be on the product I order, thankfully!

The edge will look more like this:

and NOT like this with a visible seam:

@Design Girl I did consider butcher block! I personally love the look, but apparently it isn't the best for resale because in this area is is not very commonly used for countertops, and it is considered 'unsanitary' by some!! I keep going back and forth about butcher block. Looking at picture like the ones below, I think "how could anyone not love wood countertops?" Sigh. I am waiting for my samples to come in from Formica and then I will make a decision about that. Butcher block may be the next option!

@Sel Bee - I understand the problem. We are all different. Personally, I dislike formica counters. Then again, I don't like quartz or granite either. Granite is too busy for me, and I have never found a quartz that actually fooled me into thinking it was marble. If I had to get quartz, I'd get a solid color so it wasn't trying to be something it's not. I'm doing marble in my current remodel because I love it. I love the feel, I love the look, and I don't care if it etches. Carrera (which I am not getting) is much cheaper than quartz and even granite where I live and has become even more popular because of its' great price point. Have you priced that out. That's why I asked about butcher block. It's a natural material and only needs oiling with food grade mineral oil to keep it clean and fresh. However, I'd never cut on it (even though you can). I'm sure you'll make the right choice for you and your neighborhood. Good Luck.

Update: doors are going on!

I'm leaning towards doing all pulls to avoid having to constantly clean around knobs. Here is what I was thinking:

Will all pulls work or is it too much??

Countertop will be formica 180fx calcatta marble and white subway tile for backsplash.

how come you didn't go w/the overlay option so as not to have the hinges? or did you want exposed hinges?

i think your pulls are too modern looking.

(are the hinges brass or silver?

maybe just stick w/knobs or cup pulls that match the hinge color

you like these?

maybe just do glass knobs. this way it won't be too much w/the hinges

i think I like the glass option better. since it's clear, it won't compete w/the hinges

they even have glass cup pulls. you could use these on the larger drawers

^^ good advice above. Those pulls will get very busy looking with the hinges

@Beth H. : My thinking was that I wanted the handles to be more prominent than the hinges.

Next house I will likely be going with a hidden hinge-- I've been using this house as an opportunity to experiment with different looks! Everything will be very white and light here so I thought the T pulls might be a way to add a little "more" and that they would be "bigger" than the hinges and catch the eye first.

I will look into those glass pulls and see if they have any available here for a reasonable price! They are very pretty:) my husband doesn't like them but if I do we might be using them! ;)

Update:

@Celadon we have finished it off now! It's been a live-in flip and we both work, so there was no loss of income in that sense. We definitely tracked our expenses, but did not count our labor as it was all done in our spare time when we would have typically done non-protifable things like watching TV, just hanging out, etc. We stayed within our budget, going a little over our "ideal" but staying well under our upper limit! It was a learning experience, to say the least.

We selected the used cabinets because of pricing. We plan to put a little more money into the next one but this one was really to get us started (without taking out any loans/lines of credit!). Thanks for your advice; if we end up flipping more houses in the future, especially if we don't live in them (which we have considered), we will likely get some help with the finances. And buy new cabinets, etc. Since we will be in a position to afford them :)

@Beth H. : we ended up sticking with the t pulls due to pricing (i found a bulk pack and it was much cheaper than any other options we looked it). Unfortunately, we had to sacrifice some things we would have wanted due to budget.

I tried my best to update the house while still acknowledging that it is a 100 year old home, which is why I kept the wood floors and chose the door style that I did (we also had to keep the doors on top with exposed hinges due to the original style of the doors and the cabinets themselves, as we could not afford new ones).

Originally, this house had wallpaper everywhere that had been painted multiple times and white vinyl plank, which was a nightmare to keep clean). We went right back down to the original floorboards and tried to find a balance between old and new/modern while still keeping to our budget. All things considering, I think it turned out alright for a couple of amateurs on a budget haha!

It looks very nice, Sel Bee. I love the floors.

SelBee, that looks amazing. you did a wonderful job. It works w/the age of the home.

I think you could go w/a larger island when you get the chance

I love this marble topped french table. would look perfect in your space

or you could easily fine an antique console and top it w/a remnant marble piece

@Beth H. : those islands are gorgeous. I will keep my eyes open for a used table like that. A vintage one would really fit the space

Thanks! :)