Current kitchen

Updated photo

We got rid of a lot of clutter and wine rack!

Thanks for the feedback.

Still struggling how we could update without replacing our oak cabinets.

If prepping for resale never would I go with painted cupboards. YOu are losing any worth they have. Wood is classic on the long haul. Color is here to day gone tomorrow and what you like won't be what buyers want--just as you don't care for the gray. Walls are easy--stick to dealing with them.

If the kitchen works for you in both layout and function, I’d leave cabinets alone. Painted oak is never a good thing. You could update by removing the wall cabinet to the right of the window and replace with open shelves, install pendants over the island, replace countertops with the whiter color you were looking at- honestly, laminate is totally fine. Streamlined bar stools, new hardware and fresh walls complete the transformation. Don’t forget to take down the window valance and de clutter the counters.

Rachel Lee said it all - so no need for me to repeat. Just decluttering and making a few of the changes suggested - especially the drapes and stools will make a big difference.

I don’t think OP said anything about painting their cabinets?

5-10 years is actually a long time and that kitchen is VERY dated (looks very similar to mine). you are ”allowed” to do a remodel for yourself with the design choices you like without worrying anout the mythical potential future buyers down the road. you’re not a flipper trying to maxi ize profits and appealing to the masses. i know it feels like nobodydoes wood cabinets anymore, but they do! we’ll be putting in wood for our remodel, so you won’t be alone. you can also improve functionality with base drawers instead of only cabinets.

No painting, cabinet refacing. New hardware, soft close and hinges. Home depot wants 30k for refacing and 10k for countertop.

5 years can be a long time, I remodeled my kitchen 3 years before we sold, I loved every minute of it. It also had a bidding war, and I was told by the realtor that the kitchen sold it. My advice is If it will make your life happier for a couple of years , do it. If you can live w/o it, dont go through the headache.

If you "may" sell in 5 to 10 years, you don't need to worry about what will be popular in the future. You would not be doing this for resale, you would be doing it for you.

You have a pretty, functional kitchen. You could refresh with paint on the walls, eliminating some clutter (and the valence over the sink!), and new hardware for the cabinets. Undercounter lighting if you don't have it already. Change the dishwasher to stainless if you want (or wait until it goes to its eternal reward)..

OP wasnt asking about if they should remodel for selling down the road. They asked if they should remodel their kitchen for themselves, and whether the possibility of selling in 5-10 years will impact their choices.

in short, yes you should feel free to remodel. Your kitchen looks to be 25-35 years old. In 10 years it will be 35-45 years old. That is plenty old to justify a remodel both for yourself and resale. Dont do grey on some hope of resale - that is already a dead trend. Otherwise the world is your oyster to do whatever you want. Ten years out is too far to be able to predict trends, so no sense in trying to do something with resale appeal. You should just avoid anything too bold - bold backsplash or ornate cabinet choices for instance.

I liked my oak cabinets in previous home but did not like the open space above so contacting the cabinet supplier we were ablw to have cupbaords installed above existing cabinets to the ceiling. More storage especially for seldom used items and less dust. Painting warm white walls, interesting backsplash and no window valance gave it a fresh look. I would replace the metal shelf unit to the left of the photo with a buffet or cabinet with drawers to store “stuff” after you’ve done a good purge. (I also had similar green counters I loved).

I always wonder what the financial situation is of OPs here. If you lose your job/ jobs will you be able to keep your house? Do you have much debt?

For some people $40K+ is a nothing burger, others have to borrow that amount (and end up paying 2x+ the amount). Or are you spending a good part of your savings?

Of course these are questions only the OP can answer, and we all assume spending the money is no problem and don’t want these design forums to become financial discussions. But it seems like this is a primary issue to be answered.

Agree with valinta. Lighten the wall color and buy a nice new high quality (not laminate) countertop in a light warm color that blends with your lovely cabinets. Is it possible to add a new pantry-type cabinet where the trashcan is? You seem to have more stuff than storage space.

Do you love the kitchen and how it functions ? If you do then refacing can be an option otherwise it is a waste of money. What I seee in that space is you do not have enough storage and that to me as buyer would be the first thing I would notice . The lower cabinets are dated as to function the upper as to style but it looks like a decent kitchen if you were selling right now. I assume you want to enjoy this space and IMO 40K to fix the things that can't be fixed without new more functional cabinets is a mistake. 5- 10 yrs down the road who knows what people will want .. Declutter it is amazing how much space you can find when you get rid of stuff you honestly don't use. The first step to that is empty all the cabinets then put back only what you actually use and near the place you use it. I start by telling my clients to get rid of all plastic storage stuff and get some glass pieces to replace what you honestly need with a DW it is really minimal what you have to store for leftovers etc. Change all the light bulbs to LED 4000K and then look at your kitchen . What do you really want to change for you. I will say the color choices you are thinking of will be more dated than what you have.

If you are trying to remodel with resale in mind, talk to a realtor. Maybe the one who helped you buy this house. He/she can help you decide what grade of finishes would be typical of your area. Quartz vs. formica, for example. And if you're refacing, investigate moving the dishwasher to the other side of the sink. That would be a big function upgrade to the space. Worth buying an extra cabinet for.

😆Lose a job in this market??? More likely the boss will pay for the new kitchen. OP, what do you want? As long as you don’t have super specific taste and don’t overspend, do what you want in the kitchen. In 10 years, there will be new fads and trends, and the market will NOT be what it is today.

@Patricia Colwell Consulting . I agree with a lot that you said. It doesn't look so much like OP doesn't have enough cabinets (that is quite a few!) but that there is a bunch of non-kitchen stuff being stored in the kitchen. I think that the visual overload really disguises the value and beauty of the existing kitchen. I don't consider oak or cathedral doors dated.... both have stood the test of time. It's everything else around them that is dated. *If* OP needs additional storage, or more convenient storage, there are SO many ways of improving it. I recently redid a kitchen that I know 99% of the people on Houzz would have razed to the ground. I dropped a couple thousand into it and yeah, even in a not-great market my house sold very fast and well.

What everyone said: you have a terrific kitchen! Totally agree with everyone's advice to declutter and remove curtains and everything from the counters - and be vigilant about what goes back. Clutter dates a kitchen more than anything. There are some great blogs out there on freshening and modernizing a kitchen with similar cabinets and they might give you some ideas (https://julieblanner.com/updating-kitchen-oak-cabinets/).

If it were me, I would go with a creamy wall color that toned down the contrast with the cabs. I would get a fresh countertop - prob a soft white Corian or laminate and I would definitely hunt for a neat shallow hutch or pie safe to use on the long wall for storage. I would lean into creamy whites and neutrals for the whole room, change my faucet and hardware to brass and get updated counter stools (love the CB2 Chairo in gold) - throw in some jute or vintage runners to break up the wood floors and bamboo shades on the windows.. a few plants would be lovely too

Redoing the kitchen can be a worthwhile investment. Select a wood finish instead of grey or white.

The cathedral door style really dates the home & doesn't really fit the style.

You could elect this shaker oak style for the kitchen

Or to expand the space you could do a combination of oak on the bottom and white cabinets on top.

Or a very creamy white cottage kitchen would look good in your space with an oak or darker stained wood island. Something unique for your home.

Before remodeling everything would have to be packed up...and so...a ruthless purge is the first order of business. Removal of the clutter, replacing the countertops with a white shade of Corian, and, if needed, buying a tall shallow closed cabinet (to replace the open shelving behind the bar stools) would make a huge difference in appearance. IMO your functional cabinets look good with your floors. Agree with @ulisdone, in light of supply chain issues, this is not the time for a big remodel.