Selling in 5 years says Ikea, and nothing more expensive than that.

I know Ikea has great results and I like their new line, but I just can't put them in. Some people are really against Ikea and it's just not worth arguing with them - my husband is one of those peoples. HA! From what I've read the Bellmont line isn't that much more expensive and it's a small step up.

Money talks. If he's willing to pay triple to quadruple for better quality, then that's fine. If he's not willing to pay the costs to be the boss, then that's another story. Nothing approaches the value of Ikea. And yes, I'm high on the supporters of the Omega Frameless line, but if I only had a 30K budget and was going to sell in a short time, you bet I wouldn't spend 20K of that 30K on cabinets.

Is $30K your cabinet budget or your kitchen remodel budget? (I have Bellmont 1900 in my condo kitchen (also San Francisco), and they were nowhere near $30,000, about half that actually).

Good question; 30k is the total budget for the remodel. I have a quote for the 1600 line (with upgraded plywood boxes) that is about $12k. May I ask where you purchased your cabinets?

I got mine at Cabinets & Beyond on Harrison.

Are you set on doing frameless then? There are far more budget brand available in framed that could help you stay on budget. But, frankly, IKEA is your best value. If you don't like their door styles, you can always do their boxes with custom doors.

Also have Bellmont 1900 and they were pretty reasonable. Instead of "upgrading" to plywood I'd look at the 1900 series to get the full extension drawers and soft close everything as standard construction.

I recently made my first trip to IKEA and can say all the good things your hear about their kitchens is true! I would consider IKEA for my next kitchen, I just didn't have time to figure it all out in addition to planning all the other details ( including learning how to make my own lighting plan)

Show these to hubby

http://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/2422346/finally-finished-walnut-quartzite-idea-kitchen-with-pics

http://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/2678448/finished-kitchen-circa-1840-working-farmhouse-ikea-budget-reno