They say when you start building a house or renovating it, no matter what kind of budget you had in your mind, you are bound to end up spending more money on remodeling and renovation and rightly so. No matter what kind of budget you have in your mind for kitchen remodeling in India, chances are that you will get tempted as you move with your renovation and end up spending more money than.
That’s quite obvious because when you prepared a budget, you did not know that if just increase it a little bit, you can have fancy lighting and fittings in your kitchen. But you know what, if you are really on a budget and want to get your kitchen remodeling done on a budget, then this post is for you.
Remodeling a kitchen might seem a pretty expensive affair at first. But if you plan it properly and smartly pull it off by combining DIY methods and other relevant tactics, you should be able to save a lot of money on kitchen remodeling.
Budget your expense for expense of kitchen remodeling
The most common trouble that we face while remodeling or redesigning our interiors is that despite of having a fixed budget we often fall for fancy items and end up adding a lot of unnecessary and expensive items into our kitchen thereby spending way more than what we have initially planned. Hence the best plan is to make a budget and strategically divide your expenses.
You should first focus on breaking the project into different parts. Here’s how it breaks down, on average:
35 percent on kitchen cabinets
20 percent on labor services
20 percent on buying and modifying kitchen appliances
10 percent on cleaning, modifying or replacing windows with the help of Art Construction
5 percent on fixtures
3 percent on fittings
7 percent on miscellaneous
Resale value of your House
You should remember one thing while remodeling and renovating your kitchen (or entire house for that matter), how long you are going to stay in your current house, if you end up spending a lot of money in an attempt to remodel it the way you want. But it will have no meaning if you’re not going to stay there for long. Hence determine the resale value before investing on it.
Another factor is the neighborhood you are living in; there is no point of making a ruling class kitchen in a middle class neighborhood. And you will not be able to get your proper return on your investment.
Setting the priorities right
Get over the fact that you can not change everything at once, it will not only cost you more but also may mess up your plans on an attempt to do all at once. Just make a priority list like adding or fixing appliances, cabinets, windows etc.
While setting your priorities, you can consider replacing your old faucet with a new and shiny one; consider deep cleaning your kitchen sinks and countertops. These cost-saving alternatives may save you from spending extra money on kitchen remodeling work.
Make backup funds ready to deal with unexpected expenses
Well right before you start your renovation work you might encounter a friendly group of cockroaches residing inside a wall crack behind the sink. If the infestation is severe you might have to hire a professional pest control service, bam! That’s a blow to your initial budget, you might also find that the old under wall electrical wire is outdated, or when you spot that the floor beneath your kitchen sink is rotten due to damp from a leakage in the pipe that you overlooked for the past 5 years, these not so significant things will significantly raise your budget.
Plan on how you are going to pay for the remodeling work on your kitchen
If you are on a tight budget, you need to plan on how you are going to arrange for the initial investment like making the deposits with your contractor for paying the initial costs of materials upfront. There are various ways for kitchen remodel payment, but home equity loans are the most popular ones among them as they’re tax deductible. Other options such as refinancing, personal loans or taking a loan against an insurance or retirement plan are also in the list.
Even if have enough liquid cash at your disposal, borrowing money at a low interest rate may be smarter move, than disturbing your bank accounts.
How are you going to cook?
Now there is some good news, you are freed of your kitchen duties for few days and can eat at restaurants? But obviously you might like to fit this expense in your budget too if you are habituated to eating in expensive places.
Keep track of your expenses
Running out of funds in the middle of renovation work is the worst thing that can happen hence, it is advisable to keep track of your expenses while the work is going on. You can keep a spreadsheet maintained for this purpose.
Cleaning and maintenance
You might have to consider spending a part of your money in cleaning work without which you cannot start your renovation works. If you can do it on your own then it fine or else you have to hire a professional cleaning service.
Don’t copy your neighbor’s kitchen design
Don’t get tempted to spend more on fancy items that your neighbor is using and deviate from your current project progress. This is the most common mistake that we often do while remodeling our house, like while watching TV your spouse says “look at this ultra mod gas oven that comes with an modern chimney over it. Please buy me this when we renovate our kitchen this time”. Just try to dodge these kinds of requests with some excuses or by making some other proposition, otherwise it will invariably increase your budget.
Over to You
I promised to share 10 amazing tips, but I have shared only 9, right? Because I wanted to give you the liberty to add one more point according to your situation, preferences and style. So feel free to add in the above list and make it suitable to your needs.
On a country which is obsessed with budgets in everything (PS: we don’t have a option either ). These tips might help you big time to get your kitchen remodeled without burning a hole in your pocket. Do consider these tips the next time when you decide to remodel your kitchen.
