9 Ways to Save on a Kitchen Renovation

Let’s get real. The cost of renovating and building is through the roof. Any amount you thought you might spend probably needs to be doubled. So, what do you do if you want a new kitchen but don’t have a cool $50 000 + to spend? Below are 9 ways to save on a kitchen renovation. If you’re honest with yourself about your budget and skills, these methods will work for you.

1. Shop Around

This is possibly the oldest tip and the one the people ignore the most. Why? Because people either don’t care enough or they don’t have enough time. Shopping around can save you a heap of money on everything you need for your kitchen. But you need to be dedicated to finding a bargain. I had my heart set on a traditional bridge style faucet for our kitchen. These can cost anywhere from $900 to $3000. Yep. MInd blowing. but after hours of searching, I found an exceptional quality one on sale. They reduced it from $1150 to $735. Such a saving and worth my hour of googling.

2. Look for seconds

It is not as common where I live, but on mainland Australia there are seconds shops where you can find the appliances you have your heart set on at hugely discounted prices. At our last house, we purchased a fridge with ice and water for half the original price. The top left-hand panel had a slight dent that was not visible when the fridge was in the cavity. This saved us around $900. Also, look at places like the Harvey Norman Clearance Centre. The store discontinues and marks down models here. It’s worth asking around in store too. They often have floor stock to clear. For the cottage, we bought appliances in bulk and went to two different stores. Because they wanted our business, the store we chose gave us a big discount, free delivery and stored the items for six months until we wanted them delivered.

3. Diy

The easiest way to save on a kitchen renovation is to do some work yourself. You might not be skilled at building, but anyone can use a paintbrush. If you’re not confident, tape everything off, lay a huge drop sheet and work slowly. Your kitchen will look amazing. It’s also easy to install cabinet handles or sew a basic curtain panel. The more you can do yourself, the more you save. I’m not advocating you lay tile or install an entire kitchen unless you feel you can. There are some jobs best left to professionals.

4. Think Outside the Box

Sometimes the best ideas arise from a problem you want to solve. You can create the look of an old kitchen dresser by adding a bookcase to a bench top. We added castors to a table to make it tall enough to become an island. For the cottage kitchen, We’re considering a freestanding look with multiple pieces joined. This will save us a lot of money.

5. Maintain the Layout

If the layout works, don’t change it. You might want new storage here or there, but save yourself a lot of plumbing dollars by keeping the services where they are if you can. The cost of not installing new plumbing is significant.

6. Set a Realistic Budget

This is so hard to do, especially when you don’t know the price of items. Quotes can be within a $20 000 range just for cabinetry. As a guide, we spent around $13000 for a good quality rangehood, freestanding oven, fridge, and dishwasher. You can get cheaper appliances if you go smaller or use another brand. Likewise, you can to top of the range, and the same might cost you $30 000. So the best way to save on a kitchen renovation is to make a budget, put it in a separate account and STICK TO IT. If that means cutting items or downgrading, do it. Just make sure you still love the replacements. There’s nothing worse than hating your oven because you chose a cheap one. If the expensive oven is a must have, scrimp on something you don’t care about that much..

Whatever your budget, you need to add a contingency of 50%. I know that seems a lot, but you don’t have to spend it. Keep it in a separate account and forget it exists until you hit a snag. And by a snag, I don’t mean buying a $4000 fridge when the $2000 one is great. I mean an emergency, like a rotten floor!

Most designers will tell you 10% over is a good continency, but if you’re working with an old house, that’s not realistic.

7. Use Second Hand

There’s no rule that says a kitchen has to be a bank of cupboards and drawers running along a wall with upper sand lowers. In fact, this can be a VERY EXPENSIVE way to create a kitchen. Why not think about creating a freestanding kitchen, where only the appliances and white goods stay in one place? YOu can add second hand buffets, dressers, and islands to create a look that is individual. Tie it together with a length of bench top or leave the pieces truly freestanding and add the same bench top to each.

Another possibility is to search FB Market Place for a second hand kitchen and rework it to fit your space. `If you’re a bit handy you can cut cabinets to size and repaint them the create a custom look for around $1500

8. Install open shelves

Open shelves have tonnes of character. You can style open shelves any way you like and they can serve a functional and decorative purpose. They can be a feature that’s a standout. I know many people think open shelves are messy dust collectors, but an open shelf encourages you to be tidy and develops your creativity when styling. Plus, they’re cheaper than closed upper cabinets and you can install yourself.

9. Use existing Cabinetry or White Goods

Another way to update your kitchen and stay on budget is to keep the cabinets you have but have them painted. Even if you get a professional to do it for you, the cost will be far less than installing new cabinetry. If there are parts of your kitchen that don’t function well for you, change those parts by adding plate stackers or drawer organisers inside. There are so many options online. Another option is to keep what you have and only buy appliances. You can even paint appliances to get an updated look using appliance or heatproof paint.