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momlvt22

Euro kitchen cabinets and house for sale.

momlvt22
9 years ago
We are trying to sell our house and our terrible kitchen cabinets are not helping. What would you do to replace these laminated, almond colored, Euro cabinet doors? The boxes are light oak, not laminate and are in good shape. We will be changing the countertop and the floor is newer. Oak is still fairly popular were we live, so we are thinking we will just replace with new mission style doors in a light oak color and a darker countertop. I don't want white cabinets since there is a chance we won't sell and we dislike white kitchens. It needs to be a budget redo or it will not get done. Hubby really see nothing wrong with the current kitchen!

Comments (23)

  • apple_pie_order
    9 years ago
    What does your agent say about feedback from potential buyers who have toured the house?
  • momlvt22
    Original Author
    9 years ago
    Well, that is another sore point between my husband and myself. He insisted on doing For Sale by Owner. The feed-back we have gotten include "shows well" "really like" "like but top of our budget" "wish it had a pole barn" (we are in a more rural area with 1.4 acres) It is a very tough market and agents I have talked to have told me that buyers are looking for houses that are updated or priced very low. Again Hubby doesn't want to lower price, so I told him we need to update some!
  • apple_pie_order
    9 years ago
    Thanks for info about feedback and FSBO. Many buyers are naturally very polite about a house to sellers face to face; with agents they can be more candid. With feedback potentially all over the place, it's hard to know what to do. It might be useful to find some MLS photos of houses in your price range in your area, print out the kitchen photos and do a side by side comparison. What do they have that yours does not have? And vice versa. Be specific: Cabinets? Color? Every single appliance updated? Granite? Laminate? Tile? Wood valence over sink? Lighting? Flooring? Spend an hour on comparisons, see what jumps out.
  • Carol Johnson
    9 years ago
    FYI Changing to new doors & drawer fronts won't be cheap - DYI $2-3k possibly.
  • acm
    9 years ago
    well, you can tell your husband that this style of cabinet screams vintage 1981, and undermines your stainless appliances et al. new doors is the most cost-effective change; maybe you could do that and new pulls and leave the counter (likely to add another $2500) for new owners to fantasize about...
  • momlvt22
    Original Author
    9 years ago
    My husband is very fond of the 1980s lol! The house was built in 1990, so it started out outdated. I have priced out cabinets for DYI and it was affordable and much cheaper then a contractor that quoted us $5000 without new countertops.I have looked at the MLS and have a good idea what the comps look like in our area. It is a tough market. Even updated house can sit on the market for months. I hope the spring market will be better and want to get the house ready.
  • momlvt22
    Original Author
    9 years ago
    Wood valence will come down when the cabinets are redone. Would like to put crown molding along the top of the cabinets. The blind over the window is a must. It is a west facing window and the sun really blinds you if you are at the sink in the late afternoon and evening. Thought about a Roman blind but too hard to keep clean because of the splatter from the sink. Can't move the refrig. Wouldn't work any place else. I know the oven and refrigerator are sort of close but it is what it is. We needed the bigger refrigerator. The paper towel holder frees up counter space, so it is staying. The picture is at a odd angle. The kitchen is bigger then it looks.
  • happyleg
    9 years ago
    Those are my kitchen cabinets, but mine are white. They're not bad. One thing I see is the stove next to frig. Can you move that to the other cabinet by table. The cabinet is better severed at the stove. I like your floor. Put a rug runner at sink. What's your lighting like? How about a roaman shde at window. And declutter.
  • momlvt22
    Original Author
    9 years ago
    The kitchen is usually more decluttered for showings. The lights could stand some up dating but there are recessed lights and a large overhead light. It is a very well lite kitchen. I had a rug in front of the sink but I found it hard to keep clean with dogs and kids. Maybe one just for showings. Not much can be done about the layout without a major remodel. The refrigerator doesn't work in any other spot.
  • apple_pie_order
    9 years ago
    Is the dishwasher stainless or can it accept a stainless panel?
  • happyleg
    9 years ago
    What's the rest of kitchen look like?
  • momlvt22
    Original Author
    9 years ago
    We plan on getting a stainless steel dishwasher. The other appliances are new, we just didn't get a new dishwasher yet because the current one still works extremely well. I'll try to add more photos soon.
  • momlvt22
    Original Author
    9 years ago
    A couple more pictures. One shows the eat-in area of the kitchen and door to a small deck. The area to the left of the table is open to the living room. There is another opening to the living room to the left of the small door(pantry) next to the refrigerator. I know the light/fan over the table needs to go. The horizontal blinds aren't great but they are usually open. The kitchen is bigger then it looks. Hard to get good pictures. Thanks everyone for your comments!
  • happyleg
    9 years ago
    The regfrig., can go next to cabinet & move china cabinet down to end of wall.
  • sonka21
    9 years ago
    I had a similar issue with FSBO and hubby thinking everything was fine - even though I have training as a home stager! With proper staging, we sold in one day in the suburbs. You can be sure you'll stay on the market longer or be offered a much lower price if you don't stage it. I also learned that taking photos and staging for a walk-through are a bit different. De-clutter more for photos! That way your photos will give a better impression. You may also want to stand on the first or second step of a step stool or ladder to get a larger view. You may even consider taking out the leaf from your oval table to take photos and make sure potential clients have ample space to walk around the table when they arrive. I recommend you de-clutter even more - remove items from tops of cabinets, leave a single mid-sized to large item (like a cookie jar in your accent color) or three smaller items of same color/shape on the hutch (or at least stack the books horizontally and place a candle on top, and remove the plant from the upper hutch. Does your computer have to be in the kitchen, or can you hide it better/mount the monitor on the wall or remove it to another room you can use as an office? Also, add one larger floor plant next to the slider - in the corner, and a bowl of apples, or lemons; some decorative balls, whatever you have on hand and place them on the counter in a simple, dark brown bowl - could be wicker - with a simple grass-like greenery on the table instead of those smaller items that just get lost. You may also want to add some cushions on the chairs in a stripe to incorporate your reds, browns, and yellows. Other ideas are incorporating a cool backsplash and changing out the light fixtures, and adding another picture below your cute doggie - in a similar color palette - it can even be one of a cartoon-like dog (?). I hope this helps!
  • momlvt22
    Original Author
    9 years ago
    happyleg, what would go next to stove? The small overhead cabinets would look out of place, though I guess we could remove them, and the base cabinets on the other wall opposite the sink will not fit by the stove. Too long.
  • momlvt22
    Original Author
    9 years ago
    Sonka21 thanks for the ideas. The pictures we have on the listing are more decluttered. These are just pictures I had on my iPad. I think I only had one picture of the kitchen on the listing because I know it is one of the weaker rooms in the house. For showings I tried to stage it as much as possible but it is hard to live in a staged house when you have kids, especially when the house is on the market for months. We live in rural Michigan and houses just aren't selling. We do have it on the MLS as a limited listing now, but only time will tell.
  • happyleg
    9 years ago
    It cost more energy for the refrig., there. Just helping. A fancy tray cart next to stove?
  • momlvt22
    Original Author
    9 years ago
    Thanks for the advice happylegs. This poorly designed kitchen is one reason I want to move. If we do end up staying, I think we will try to move the refrigerator and rework the layout. The house has its share of challenges and I am just ready to move to house that functions better. We moved here for the great outside space, not really for the house.
  • momlvt22
    Original Author
    9 years ago
    Oops that last comment should go to happyleg not legs!
  • sandradclark
    9 years ago
    If nothing else, you could paint the cupboard doors, all one color, take down the scalloped wood, above the sink, Take everything from on top of the cabinets. I agree with removing the leaf in the table. I also do staging & it's probably the best thing you can do at this point to sell the house w/o a complete kitchen redo. Details are important. You can buy self adhesive stainless sheets that you can apply very cheaply to the front of the dishwasher. Everything you were planning to do for yourself, you should do to help sell the house.

    I can only imagine what the market is like in rural Michigan. I have friends who just walked away from their house in urban Michigan and moved across the country to start over. Nevermind that the roman shades get splashed on & the verticals are ugly. Replace them or plan to live there for a much longer time. Your husband should agree at least to buying new cabinet doors and new fixtures. That type of older cupboards are one of the easiest to update by replacing the doors. Put an apothecary jar with limes & lemons to add color.
  • apple_pie_order
    9 years ago
    Rural Michigan is a tough market, all right. Move-in ready with updates puts your house in the competition at its price point, compared to a "cosmetic fixer" in a lower price point. Someone is very likely to buy the house for exactly the reason you did: wonderful land in a rural area with a good house on the lot. Springtime will be key. Make sure the land looks attractive: trim the shrubs, trees, and grass at appropriate times, clean up all broken branches properly, and keep the riding mower shiny and clean and fun-looking! No rust on anything outside, no lost mittens revealed in spring thaw.

    So, I agree with your proposed changes: replace the doors, add door and drawer pulls or knobs, replace the countertop. I think a light neutral laminate countertop will appeal to more buyers than dark, but that may be a regional preference.

    The other changes that are cheap and easy: remove all the silk plants, replace vertical blinds with washable white/off white panels. Paint needs to be in great shape if not brand new (nothing stays pristine with kids around) so touch-up frequently (put a little paint in a jar, rubber band a $1 brush to the jar, and use it every few weeks). Take down the stuff on top of the cabinets, it makes it look like there isn't enough space to store a wok and a kettle.

    Good luck with your FSBO. If you have other questions about staging, you might start a new thread with the dollar amount you are willing to spend in the header, as it tends to get moreattention, e.g., "Stage this 1990 bathroom for $100?"
    momlvt22 thanked apple_pie_order