Does this seem feasible?

[WOT?*]

I know it depends on tastes but I want to be fairly basic since it's a tract home in an area where it's not known for the upgrades. We'll be selling in a few years or converting it to a rental. (Probably selling since DH doesn't want to do rentals)

Kitchen: sink bases need replacing b/c the contractor didn't install cabinets properly. In lieu of replacing just the one set, I would be looking at replacing or refacing cabinets. bases are 56" (multiple cabinets for this length including one custom due to angle/depth), 24", 27", 24", corner, 36" sink base and 36". Uppers are 39", 39" (above fridge), 24", 27", 33" (above micro), 36", corner, 30" and 33". We would also redo the island, about 48" (currently 60" with an overhang but the cabinet itself is 48"). We will be doing quartz (the designer is pricing out at $84/s.f. but I'm going to check for lower prices as well) and a subway tile backsplash. Upgrading to a granite sink (not a fan of the stainless we have) but probably keeping the faucet. Some moderate rewiring (undercabinet lighting wired to a switch already installed to overhead light and two pendants rerouted from current wiring to pendant over dining table.) $15K.

Office: built in desk - U-shaped with 48" wall (closet in the way), 102" wall (with 26" each side of central window) and 66" wall (to doorway on wall 4). Cabinets to coordinate with kitchen. One wall or either side of window with upper cabinets/bookcase as well for storage. Floors changed from carpet to hardwoods. $7500.

Family room: cabinets and bookcases flanking fireplace (48" per side) fairly traditional build and in keeping with cabinets in kitchen (they are in adjoining areas). Tile fireplace surround. $7500

Guest bath: New 48" base cabinet (again, the contractor didn't properly tile the countertops so water has etched the sink base) and countertop (from kitchen remnants). Tile floor. Remove and replace mirror, replace vent, repaint. $2500

Master bath: New shower, with new tile; fairly minimal with some accent. Replace shower and cement board with wedi shower surround. Replace tub with freestanding soaking tub. Tile floor, adding radiant heat and confirming soundness of subfloor. Remove linen closet to enlarge shower area. New sink base, countertops, reframe mirror (possibly add upper cabinet to replace storage lost with removal of linen, or add linen to wall facing entry. Replace single six-light fixture with two separate three-light bars. New sinks. Countertop will be quartz from kitchen remnants. Some plumbing to be rerouted. $15K.

Where would you add/subtract. Keep in mind this isn't our forever house but we'll probably be here a few years longer. We've been here seven and "lived with it." We're not looking at resale so much as "what we like" and *some* return on investment.

[kaylie]

It'll depend on what type of area you're in, but those estimates sound fairly realistic to me. The master might be more from the sound of some of the changes. If you use one contractor for all of it you might be able to save a bit.

I know you aren't as concerned with resale so much, but I might skip the built in U shaped desk. As a buyer I would see it as a waste of space, unless it was easily removable (and you removed it before closing). You probably won't get back what you put in, but you're focusing on the right places (kitchens and baths).

[WOT?*]

DH wants the desk because he works from home fairly regularly. We have an old Sauder desk we bought 15 years ago we assembled ourselves and it's gone through a couple moves already and has seen many better days. I haven't been able to find anything that would fit the office that I like so we figure it's easier to have something built. It's a small room (obviously) but DH wants u-shaped so he has maximum desk space (he's doing double-monitors on one area, double-printers on another surface, we need filing drawers...) I think a U would take up too much space but since we have an L-shaped and a filing credenza on the third wall it might be feasible.

We're in moderately HCOL (Seattle) in the 'burbs but I'm using a fairly reasonable designer from Everett, who is less expensive than "in-city and I'm using her for all the room designs; her husband can contract or my brother can but bro is from Cali and his time would be limited. Our house was built in '05 and the phases after ours were built had granites and solid surfaces and double-ovens as standard. We were the last of the below-grades from when houses were selling like hotcakes and didn't warrant the upgrades. The contractor also did a crappy job and the house already needs some repairs and modifications; we're having the exterior painted in two weeks because the paint is already faded and gone in places. Crappy, shoddy workmanship. :sigh.

[FoxInFiji]

Aug 8, 2012 17:18:03 GMT -5 WOT?* said:

I know it depends on tastes but I want to be fairly basic since it's a tract home in an area where it's not known for the upgrades.

Wohoo slow down there! If your area isn't known for upgrades why are you sinking $17,500 into this house?! And if this isn't your forever home why waste the money if you'll never see it back? These are way beyond basic upgrades. Basic = what the big box has or contractor grade. Not quartz countertops. Not new cabinetry. Not custom cabinetry. Not freestanding soaking tubs. Not radiant heat. Not plumbing rerouted. Not electrical changes. Not hiring a tiler (you didn't say you were DIYing so I assume you plan to pay someone to do this).

I don't know what kind of COL area you're in. If you had bugdet breakouts showing the components and sf we could give a lot better advice. We're in a MCOL area so here's my advice based on this area:

Kitchen - Not near enough for new cabinetry especially if there is some custom sizes. Not enough to hire someone to do all of this for you. Sounds like a complete gut to me and a good sized kitchen which always cost more.

Office - Should be fine. Depends on the type of flooring and cabinetry and the size of the room.

Family room - That is plenty.

Guest bath - Should be OK. The tile floor and beefed up subfloor will affect other things like the tub/shower, toilet, doors, and floor vents so you'll need to look into how that will work. People often decide to replace the toilet when they have to remove it and redo the floor washer (sometimes not salvagable). It might end up being a gut for everything but the tub which will cost more.

Master bath - Not enough for the mid-range to higher end bathroom you describe. Free standing tubs cost a lot. Try $4K of that budget (www.us.kohler.com/us/Bathing-Freestanding-Baths/category/656432/429296.htm). Walk in showers are the most expensive sf in a house. It's unlikely you can use only "remnants" from the kitchen for both bathrooms unless you buy extra slabs for your kitchen than you really need. Slabs are only 56x120" Quartz is very pricey. You should be able to get it for slightly less but most of the cost is the cutting of each and every hole. if you're planning to use every portion of the slabs it will cost you more than if you have waste. The single slab of quartz we're buying for our master bath is $3500 with all of the cuts. We're using it for two vanity tops, a shower bench, strips around the tub deck, and every horizontal surface in the shower (bench, niche bottom, threshold, half wall cap, etc.).

[WOT?*]

Our subdivision isn't known but it may end up in a few years; all the newer homes they've built since ours have the upgrades as standard. We have a few people who have upgraded on other streets and a couple nicer ones on our street but overall, it's pretty much your basic box. We're going to be here a few years and are tired of "making do" so we want to upgrade to what we *want* to live with for the next few years.

DH wants stone countertops because we absolutely abhor the tile crap we have (sanded 1/4"+ groutlines, textured tiles that don't come clean. It's miserable.) I want quartz over granite and DH and I both want slabs not tiles. The designer and K&B company both say that refacing costs similar to new cabinets but I think we can lower the grade on the cabinets since we're upping the grade on the countertops. I'm bringing in a sample to the manufacturer to see if they can match what we have so I don't have to replace everything if the cost is prohibitive. Only one cabinet would need to be custom (semi) and that would probably be only a face rather than a cabinet. The hall bath may or may not be a quartz remnant; we can do a prefab granite for quite a bit less and it's "only" a hall bath upstairs and not near anything else. The tub I really like for the master is a bit over $3K but I've found "adequate" ones for $2K. I don't think I'll be insisting on top end for this house but rather for our next (which will be retirement) house.

Thanks again for the input and the checks-and-balances. I'll have to see what the designer comes up with (and the other peoples I have coming in for price comparisons too.)

[FoxInFiji]

How do you plan to pay for all of these renovations? Are you hoping to get your money back on this when you go to sell the house?

Again a cost breakdown would be helpful. What do you have allotted for the walk-in shower? Because this has come up in more than one post this week here is our walk-in shower costs...

3.5' x 4.5' so average to small size for a walk-in, two walls tiled and a half wall tiled, one and a half walls glass, one niche, and a quartz bench

Tile, $6/sf for field and $5/piece for bullnose = $1080
Accent tile, $22 per sheet x 6 = $132
Glass surround with U-channel not frameless (frameless is more) = $2800
Drain with removable grate + install by plumber = $136
Shower head, thermostatic valve, handheld, divertor = $1400
Mud base (preslope, rubber membrane, and final slope) = $300
Hydroban roll on waterproofing for the walls = $150
Epoxy grout = $100
Silicone caulk to match grout color = $30
Estimated thinset = $70
1/3 of the cost of the quartz slab and cutting = $1170

Grand total = $7,370 or $470/sf

And that is DIY basically everything! We did have a plumber instal the drain (plumber did that), of course we're not installing the glass ourselves, and had help on the mud base (a family friend who is a tiler is giving us a discount on the cost of the mud base and the 3 separate trips he has to make to our house because DH is helping him make it). The mud base would have normally cost us $700-800 and the rough estimate I got on hiring out all of the tile work for the shower alone was $4,000. So if we hired someone to built the shower for us it would have been another $4500 or so. That would make the shower $11,870 or $750/sf!!


Now there are a number of ways we could have saved money on the walk-in shower. If we went with a non-Starphire (clear with no green tint) glass or with Showerguard (to help keep the glass clean and prevent spotting) it would have cost $1800. The shower fixture could have been less by $800-900. Epoxy grout added $70. We could have gotten cheaper accent tile (though that wouldn't have changed the price much because we didn't use much of it) and shower tile could have been as low as $4/sf or so but bullnose is always expensive and $5/piece is a good price. Since we're running the tile to the ceiling and topping off all of the horizontal surfaces in the shower we don't need much bullnose. So best case scenario cutting all of these costs it would drop the price by $2760. That makes the price of the shower $9100 or $580/sf.

Hopefully that helps you and the other nesties trying to budget for a walk-in shower. Hmm....maybe I should copy this into a new post for people to find later with the search engine.

[WOT?*]

We have savings and are saving more. We have a high enough income to cover it, but don't want to lose our shirts in the process. I'd like at least a 50% ROI but would prefer something a bit higher, obviously. I appreciate the breakdown, it certainly helps. I'll go over it in greater detail with the designer next week; we might just cut down on a good portion of our wants vs. needs.