This kitchen is nicely designed and neat as a pin. Sounds like a good plan, the recessed lighting will eat up most of the $1000. Can you add new undercabinet lighting? It's likely to be darker without the full fluorescent fixtures there now.

New paint after installing lighting? A pendant light over the sink could give good task lighting. The homeowner might want to pick out some new pots and plants for the green house window. New towels and hot pads can add some color punch.

Eventually, the mismatched appliance(s) can be replaced.

I'm a 25 yr old dude that typically gets furniture in black so it matches... Any help will be greatly appreciated!

It would be great to upgrade appliances and flooring. Check if that can be done with a trade discount possibly. Your can find very inexpensive tiles for as low as .99 per sq.f. (net).

Frankly, the budget is unreal, as you have to consider labor charges and design fees as well.

Backsplash is needed also....

One option is to paint the island black to provide some contrast.

Thanks for the input, I'm also worried about the room darkening too much. There is no under cabinet lighting, that could definitely help, I've been looking at possible pendant lights over the island, maybe help tie it in a bit better?

House is about to go on the market so I don't think appliances are in the cards.

Hah, that backsplash and countertops were installed a month ago...

Additional pics

You can change the hardware on the cabinets and refinisht the cabinets to give them new life. That should only run you a 3 to 4 hundred dollars if you do it yourself. You could redo the floors as well

Unfortunately the cabinetry and floors are continued throughout the home, built ins in the living room, bathroom cabinets, etc.

If I were walking into the house the 1 thing I couldn't live with would be the lighting, so I think the recessed lights are the best investment. Other than that, a richer new paint color that flows with the countertops and staging accents. It's not that bad really, new owner can tweak. Good luck.

I just finished these yesterday. I wiped cabinets down with Acetone, sanded real good with 220 and used Krylon spray cans-Satin Black Prime&Paint $40.00 materials

@Joshua: are you the listing agent or advising a friend who is selling?

@Painting Services by Steve: That garage looks great in the "after" photo. I like the painted walls, floor and the new white countertop. Black is a common color for garage equipment, so it looks appropriate there. The paper towel holder is a nice touch.

It's my great aunt's place, she's in a nursing home so I'm helping where I can. Thanks for the good ideas everyone!

It is kind of you to help prepare your great aunt's house for sale.

Is the fix-up budget for the whole house $1000? Looking at comparable houses on the internet can be done in an hour or two, try http://www.zillow.com. Look specifically at how the kitchens are outfitted and how the houses are presented. Advice from the seller's real estate agent should be taken seriously. Perhaps the agent has worked with a home stager. Decluttering by removing personal things, fusty old artwork and extra furniture items such as the (cute but unnecessary) pie cabinet can be followed by professional top to bottom cleaning for an excellent presentation.

You might also search for "home staging" on houzz or a more general google search. If you post photos of each room with a request for advice on staging for sale, you may get some useful comments on houzz. "Home Staging for Dummies" is an excellent book.

I would remove all the items from the counters to give yourself a clean slate for staging this kitchen. Only select and position a few choice pieces to stay on counters during showings. I would change the light over the sink to a pendant light. Remove clutter and magnets from fridge. The picture on the one wall is too small. One big modern piece of art would change the look of this kitchen. I would also change the light over the dining room table to a modern piece. This would keep you on budget.

What a good guy! That is very nice of you to help! Because you said that this decor is carried on throughout the house I would recommend to leave everything as is. I would clean off all the counters, clean out the extra food in the cupboards, remove (the trash can and freestanding cabinet from the kitchen) clean the windows, shampoo the carpets, clean everything. Now that everything was clean, I would bring in somebody that can look at the place, and tell you they see; maybe a watermark, a dirty toilet seat, etc. With the $1000.00 I would fix the items they have listed for you, the fixes should be cosmetic. Then, if necessary, I would buy some towels, a new bedspread, small silk plants, candles, pictures, etc. Your trying to sell the house - let whomever buys the house make the modifications. You can even hire a cleaning service with part of the $1000. The house doesn't look bad, but it does look dated; unfortunately, you are not going to fix that by putting on new knobs. If you want to update the flu light, you can install new clear panels - make sure all the bulbs are the same color and paint the trim to match the ceiling. Good luck!

definitely paint the cabinets white, paint the island a dark espresso color and add new pulls.

I'm with Christine. The countertops are beautiful. I'd paint the cabinets white and put on new pulls.

Remove old overhead light box. Paint. New light fixture. Invest in 2 glass reface doors for uppers. New handles. Paint island for contrast. See before and after below. New light over sink

Joshua, if it were me, I would start with lighting. Definitely take out the light box - that is a very dated look. It appears to be centered on the island (?) so I think your idea of a pendant fixture over the island is a good one (how about a glass shade pendant?). This would give you task lighting there as well as some interest. You could install some molding around the edge of the box and install rope lighting for a nice tray ceiling effect - paint this in a different color than the rest of the ceiling. Add some undercabinet lighting and another pendant over the sink (make this style compatible with the island pendant but not the same fixture). As dytecture said, I would also paint the island - a more modern look and will give people an idea of what more they can do if they are so inclined. Brighten up the room with a brighter paint color on the walls, a little staging, and I think you've gone a long way to modernizing the kitchen. PS Is the cabinet hardware brass? If so, I guess you might want to change that out, too. Here is a great resource for inexpensive cabinet hardware
http://www.dlawlesshardware.com/brasdiecasca.html

give the cabinets a good cleaning, first off.

they have battery powered LED undercabinet lighting you can get fairly inexpensively at home depot or lowes.

recessed lighting would be a fantastic idea.

if there's any money left over from recessing the lighting , i would paint the walls. something soft, with a khaki kind of coloring.

Another option would be to use LED lighting. You can do this with LED tubes - just like the flu lights - so you could easily swap out lights and fixtures and put in newer diffusers. Another option would be to remove all the wood, diffusers and light fixtures. Clean up the large area and paint it. Add crown molding to the edge area and behind the crown molding add LED Tape lights (you could also use rope lights) The tape lights will use a small transformer and it will take a little bit of time, but you could certainly do it yourself. Then I would hang a light over the island.

Recessed lighting is good. Paint the cabinets white and leave the island medium oak? Or vice versa?