Should I replace my kitchen before selling my home?
We are asked this all the time. Homeowners are aware that a fabulous kitchen can be a major selling point, so ask if a less than fabulous kitchen will be a negative. So – should you update your kitchen before selling? The short answer is no.
If you have a glorious kitchen, relatively new, with lots of shiny appliances and modern cabinets, great lighting and acres of worksurface, good for you – yes, buyers will love it. But if your kitchen is the opposite – dated, cabinets looking battered, worksurfaces less than polished and the appliances on their last legs, that’s fine, because buyers will expect the price of your home to reflect the need to fit a new kitchen – and get happy at the idea they can have the kitchen of their dreams in their new home.
So – why not preempt that and fit a new kitchen yourself, you might ask – simply because choosing a kitchen is fun, it’s exciting and your choice may not fit someone else’s taste. And a brand new kitchen can’t just be ripped out and replaced, so if a viewer doesn’t like it, but can’t justify the cost of replacing it, they’re likely to keep house hunting.
What if your kitchen is somewhere in the middle – not falling apart, but not fabulously new? In these cases we recommend a bit of a refresh, rather than replace.
First – look at the floor. If it’s carpet – rip it up and lay a light-coloured linoleum. It will immediately lift the quality of light in the room.
Next – the lights. Get up on a ladder (do be careful! Make sure someone is there to hold it) and if you can, take all the lights down and give them a clean. It’s amazing how much grease and dust can adhere to warm lights over time. You can quickly restore their original sheen. If you can’t take them down, use a hot cloth and some decent kitchen cleaner on hand to sort them out. While you’re up there, make sure all the bulbs match – no blue light here and warm light there, unite the space with even lighting.
Third – clean all the cabinet doors and tighten any knobs or handles. Empty each cupboard and clean inside. This is a great chance to declutter and have a clearout. We guarantee you will find spice jars several years out of date, chipped plates you never use and multiple ‘handy gadgets’ you haven’t found handy in years. Remember spiralizers? What about the juicer that’s so hard to clean you simply pushed it to the back of a cupboard and forgot about it? And when was the last time you used that wok?
Bin. Donate. Sell. The holy trinity of decluttering and the easiest of ways to give yourself a bit of a buzz. Clearouts are good for the soul…
Finally – hit those windows. If cleaning windows isn’t your idea of fun (and we can relate) grab your local window cleaner next time they come round and book a full indoor clean.
Your kitchen may not be a buyer’s idea of perfection, but if it’s not ready for the skip, they can appreciate that it’s going to be easy to live with until they are ready to plan their own idea of kitchen heaven.
(Kitchen picture used from Finney Drive, Chorlton Green).
Eddie – Friday 19th August 2022
