Designing Kitchens and Bathrooms - old kitchen

My husband and I own an old house, built in 85. We want to sell the house, and we live in a very upscale community, but our household salaries do not match that of our neighbors. We have formica counters, popcorn ceilings and wallpaper. How can we update, without spending a lot of money? We know that the kitchen and bath are the main components of selling the house.

Sorry, but a house built in 1985 is not old. But you are correct, kitchens and bathrooms have a big affect on buyers, and you will recover most of your money spent on renovating those two spaces. That may not sound positive, but a bad looking kitchen/bathroom can make or break a sale.

The best advice is to check with your realtor. but they usually advise, remove the wallpaper and paint in neutral colors. If the kitchen cabinets are in good shape, maybe just install a new countertop. Solid surface, man made stones or granite always get lots of WOW's. If the cabinets are shabby, could be time for a kitchen re-do. Dirty tile and/or grout in a bathroom can be a turnoff. Clean things up, renew caulking(but make it neat), maybe regrout. A new vanity, faucets are a definite improvement. A small investment in time here can bring a big return. If the house is shown with furniture, remove clutter, not too many knick knacks. If a room has a lot of furniture in it, remove it to storage of send to Goodwill.

Now that the house looks so good, you may decide not to move.

Sorry, but a house built in 1985 is not old. But you are correct, kitchens and bathrooms have a big affect on buyers, and you will recover most of your money spent on renovating those two spaces. That may not sound positive, but a bad looking kitchen/bathroom can make or break a sale.

The best advice is to check with your realtor. but they usually advise, remove the wallpaper and paint in neutral colors. If the kitchen cabinets are in good shape, maybe just install a new countertop. Solid surface, man made stones or granite always get lots of WOW's. If the cabinets are shabby, could be time for a kitchen re-do. Dirty tile and/or grout in a bathroom can be a turnoff. Clean things up, renew caulking(but make it neat), maybe regrout. A new vanity, faucets are a definite improvement. A small investment in time here can bring a big return. If the house is shown with furniture, remove clutter, not too many knick knacks. If a room has a lot of furniture in it, remove it to storage of send to Goodwill.

Now that the house looks so good, you may decide not to move.


Thanks Bill. That's kinda what we thought. The cabinets are in good shape. I redid them about two years ago. They had thick white paint on them and i removed it all and stained them. They look much better now. I'm thinking that the whole countertop needs replacing. It is the old formica that looks like wood, and the seams are starting to come apart. Also arond the sink is not quite as stable as it used to be. Removing the wallpaper is definately going to happen. Thanks for your advise and if you have any other ideas then just send them my way.

sometimes, it is better to do nothing. You can invest a lot of time and a bit of money, but you might not ever get it back. Maybe your home is going to be scraped by the new owner, maybe it will be gutted, no matter what you do. A good realtor, familiar with your market, will be able to give you sound advice. I sold ahome that I wanted to do all kinds of improvements to help it sell. My realtor advised against it, and she was right, in this instance