If there's an Ikea in your area, a local handyman could build you very nice cabs using their stuff, it would have top notch hardware and install easily. You DON'T need to be a carpenter to put Ikea cabs together. If you have an electric screwdriver or drill, you can build a box in half an hour, and build 3 drawers to go inside in 15 minutes. But if you just aren't up for that, you could ask the Ikea if there are any local tradesman that do this regularly. HD and others carry pre-made boxes [not ready to asseble, like Ikea] that aren't hard to install, though from what I've seen they are nearly as expensive as the Ikea ones, but not as well made. For a laundry room, I don't personally think granite is worthwhile. you could either use Ikea, or a pre-laminated piece cut to size from HD or other company. Bear in mind that HD and Lowes can have some decent stuff, but a locally owned store likely carries a slightly higher grade of merchandise-- the big stores are more 'lowest common denominator'. I think your budget is do-able, but you will have to pay some attention, too: seems like the numbers can get crazy fast if you have to have any plumbing or ductwork moved.

You need to do some homework. Every material has it's pros and cons, and it all comes down to what you are willing to live with. "Best" is completely subjective. Frankly, if my DH had not felt so strongly about our using a "higher end" counter top (we ended up with engineered quartz) I would have done a laminate. They are durable, warm, soft, and very inexpensive. Completely low-maintenance if you are not careless about using them. Our quartz will be fine, and looks fantastic, but we spent nearly three times what we could have spent on a high-end laminate. IKEA has some DIY laminate for incredibly little cost if you are willing to put in the effort and will buy you plenty of time to do some research on your countertop options. Here is a link that might be useful: IKEA wood and laminate countertops

We are currently doing 2 baths and a kitchen. We have been to several stores to look at quartz and will end up with countertops from two different companies. The Ikea at our location said their quartz is by Silestone so I wonder if brand varies by location. My advice is to locate actual Ceaserstone/Silestone/Cambria etc. showrooms and view the slabs you are interested. These showrooms were about an hour away from us but clustered within 10 miles of each other. Take a day off, visit 2 or 3 showrooms and bring home samples (larger samples will have to be ordered). It makes a huge difference when you see the whole slab (if you have them available, take samples of your floor, paint and cabinet color).After you narrow it down, order as large a sample as you can get and set it in your kitchen and see how it wears. We loved the way some of the Matte/Suede/Honed finishes looked but could already tell they would be more maintenance than the polished quartz after having the samples sit by the sink for a week. Also shop around. We discovered some stores told us one of our countertops was only available by the slab while another store said we could just buy what we needed. Best of luck!

I think we are moving in the direction to do the island, perimeter counters and backs splash (all the way up the wall) in the same White Santorini Quartzite. Any feedback on this? Im sensitive to adding too many different materials into the mix. Is this too much of one thing?