Minor Kitchen Remodel

Cost vs. Value
Minor Kitchen Remodel

Cost vs. Value home

Project (average cost recouped, national)

Minor kitchen remodel (88%)

Bathroom remodel (85%)

Major kitchen remodel (81%)

Family room addition (80%)

Deck addition (77%)

Master suite (75%)

Attic bedroom (74%)

Siding replacement (73%)

Window replacement (69%)

Home office (55%)
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2002 Cost vs. Value Report

2000 Cost vs. Value Report

The kitchen, says real estate salesperson Cecily Bliesath of Birmingham, Mich., is “the one thing people really look at. If it’s dated, they know they have to spend some money to change it.”

Real estate salespeople say a newly remodeled kitchen remains current for five to 10 years, longer in some markets. A minor kitchen remodel is the low-cost way of updating. “It raises the value dramatically,” says Sacramento real estate pro Steve Walker.

Our panel of real estate practitioners rates the kitchen facelift as the one project more likely than any other to add value to the house and improve saleability. Costs range from $11,427 (in Raleigh-Durham, N.C.) to $18,538 (in San Francisco), and, taken as a national average, the minor kitchen remodel recoups 88 percent of that cost.

Design Tips for Consumers

Patterning with inexpensive materials like floor tile makes this project look a little more customized.—Kurtz
Add undercabinet lighting.—Freysinger
Change the front edging or the backsplash to a different material.—Porter

Project Description
In a functional but dated 200-square-foot kitchen with 30 lineal feet of cabinetry and countertops, refinish existing cabinets and install new energy-efficient wall oven and cooktop, laminate countertops, midpriced sink and faucet, wall covering, and resilient flooring. Repaint. Job includes new raised-panel wood doors on cabinets.

Region or City	Job cost	Resale value	Cost recouped
East Average	$15,555	$14,177	91%
Albany, N.Y.	14,578	12,655	87
Baltimore	13,408	7,704	57
Boston	17,956	19,667	110
Burlington, Vt.	11,347	10,135	89
Garden City, N.Y.	17,559	24,700	141
Hartford, Conn.	15,955	12,375	78
Lancaster, Pa.	14,720	10,000	68
Nashua, N.H.	13,999	9,875	71
New Haven, Conn.	15,443	15,541	101
Passaic, N.J.	17,553	9,167	52
Philadelphia	16,880	16,951	100
Pittsburgh	15,644	11,750	75
Providence, R.I.	15,921	17,080	107
Westchester, N.Y.	17,421	20,995	121
Wilmington, Del.	14,934	14,065	94
South Average	$12,976	$11,875	92%
Atlanta	13,947	13,000	93
Birmingham, Ala.	13,361	17,000	127
Columbia, S.C.	11,539	8,019	69
Dallas-Ft. Worth	13,193	11,579	88
Houston	13,681	12,625	92
Jacksonville, Fla.	12,741	6,900	54
Knoxville, Tenn.	12,761	7,794	61
Louisville, Ky.	13,781	14,581	106
Miami	12,815	8,625	67
New Orleans	13,081	13,530	103
Raleigh-Durham, N.C.	11,427	9,800	86
Richmond, Va.	12,219	8,877	73
Tampa, Fla.	12,542	10,900	87
Tulsa, Okla.	12,911	17,400	135
Washington, D.C.	14,643	17,500	120
Midwest Average	$15,306	$11,944	78%
Chicago	18,181	19,600	108
Cleveland	16,631	10,125	61
Columbus, Ohio	14,965	13,713	92
Des Moines, Iowa	14,578	8,600	59
Detroit	15,568	13,600	87
Fargo, N.D.	11,838	8,596	73
Grand Rapids, Mich.	14,177	12,526	88
Indianapolis	14,775	10,000	68
Kansas City, Mo.	15,147	8,250	54
Madison, Wis.	16,440	9,700	59
Milwaukee	16,775	13,167	78
Minneapolis	17,779	18,000	101
St. Louis	16,636	15,400	93
Sioux Falls, S.D.	12,829	8,050	63
Wichita, Kan.	13,267	9,838	74
West Average	$15,257	$14,157	93%
Albuquerque, N.M.	13,203	8,461	64
Boise, Idaho	13,742	12,400	90
Colorado Springs, Colo.	13,865	7,185	52
Denver	13,781	9,817	71
Honolulu	17,512	23,750	136
Las Vegas	15,311	7,625	50
Los Angeles	17,331	20,000	115
Phoenix	13,864	12,200	88
Portland, Ore.	15,037	14,429	96
Sacramento, Calif.	16,056	13,900	87
Salt Lake City	12,858	8,538	66
San Diego	16,859	18,700	111
San Francisco	18,538	24,600	133
Seattle	16,137	19,500	121
Spokane, Wash.	14,756	11,251	76
National Average	$14,773	$13,038	88%

The projects: Bathroom remodel >