Agree with the OP, live with it a little bit and see what you think. I’d worry less about what is good for resale and more about what you want.

I would keep the countertop. If you don’t already have it, I would look into undercabinet lighting.

The bathroom light above your sink, a short track light and the ceiling fan are all pretty bad. I would also paint the ceiling white. If possible, I would cover the other side of the fridge also with a panel.

5-7 years is not a "flip". I would wait until you are ready to sell, and re-assess then. To make the kitchen more comfortable for you and your family for the next 5-7 years, I'd update all the lighting, including installing undercabinet lighting. Make sure the undercabinet lights are installed toward the front of the upper cabinets, not toward the back, and don't let the installer tell you installing toward the back is fine.

Change all the light fixtures if you want an update. Leave the Corian for a year to see if you like it, it's a great countertop. Quartz is in fashion in my area now, not granite. Who knows what will be fashionable in 5-7 years.

I think all you need is a great backsplash and hardware! If your not there long term I wouldn’t spend over 6k for granite.

Agree with the others paint and lighting will also make the space much more updated.

Light fixtures, fresh paint, cabinet hardware, nice window treatment and some great rugs. Your kitchen has good bones, it just needs some simple updates and personality.

I also had a kitchen with corian. The color grated on my nerves but that stuff is bullet proof and easy to clean.

when I mved in to my last house I wanted to change the corian. I thought it was awful. 6 months later and I loved it. so easy to clean and warm. now I have granite and I wish I had corian :(

Lighting, paint, and new hardware. Put some color in there!

I think the counter is fine - especially for a the time being - but the room itself is pretty cramped and dark. For sure you'll want to add better lighting.

I'd also be looking at trying to find a way to relocate the fridge, recess the fridge so it sits flush with the cabinets, or purchase a shallower fridge. And then remove the peninsula.

That alone would make this room feel SO much less cramped and be a lot more comfortable for more than one person to use the space at the same time.

Before:

After:

I also might consider removing some nonessential uppers.

Fortunately the relationships between the dishwasher, sink, and stove look pretty decent. You just need to remove some bulk from the rest of the room to make it all feel more spacious and airy. And lighting. And maybe also add pull-outs inside the base cabinets so those are as functional as possible.

If new countertops are not in the budget, then I think it's safe to assume refinishing of the floors is also not in the budget. If so, do not change the configuration of your cabinets.

Quartz would be appealing to new buyers, but it's impossible to recommend it without knowing the quality of your cabinets. Will THEY still look good/function in 5-7 years? If the Corian doesn't bother you, then why not wait until you are closer to selling to make a decision? In the meantime, you can remove the Corian backsplash and add a simple tile backsplash for a minimal investment.

Quartz will be appealing to some buyers. Granite will be appealing to some buyers. People can say granite is out but the 5 people I know who have redone kitchens in the last 2 years all did granite. I did also. Some people choose it because of price and some, like me, just think quartz looks fake and prefer real stone. We see people on this board doing kitchens with granite all the time. If you want to change it I would think you are fine with granite, quartz or quartzite unless you happen to live in a high $ area where people are really stuck on trends. What you have now looks nice too though. I would definitely live in the house a while before making any changes.

In my area everyone has granite. I would agree with getting fresh lighting. It would be a minimal investment. You can put the under cabinet lighting in yourself if you’re a little handy. Great looking kitchen. A few personal touches and it’ll be very cozy

Paint. Lighting. Hardware. Window treatment. Done!

Agree with suggestions to change out light fixtures and add additional lighting, under cabinet and/or more led recessed lights. A counterdepth fridge would be a cheaper update than new counters and will improve the look too.

One nice feature of Corian is that it is easy for a competent installer to cut off the peninsula portion and reprofile the edge to match without removing the countertop. Quality carbide tooling and a careful user and the countertops can be modified onsite.

Re-paint, ditch your lighting and get pot lights for the ceiling and under cabinet lights. If you can swing it, get a counter-depth refrigerator and add a side panel to cover that open side. Leave everything else alone. In 5-7 years, the new owners will probably be ready to gut the kitchen and make their own choices. The Corian is fine and SO easy to keep. I would not add a backsplash - just paint the room a nice color that goes with the countertop and paint the backsplash the same. Shutters on the windows are fine. It's a nice kitchen and will serve you well for this time frame. If you end up staying longer, then at that point redo the kitchen.

I would change the lighting and add a backsplash (but be sure to remove the mini 4" splash first).

Putting in can lighting and eliminating the ceiling fan would be the first changes I would make followed by under-cab lighting and a new chandelier.

Is that a trash compactor...that might be a candidate for removal and replacement with a pullout garbage cab.

Do I see a cut off microwave cab in the picture? My second change would be moving the over stove micro and putting in a stainless hood.

The major countertop repair person here (Joe) loves Corian. He says it is the easiest to repair of the stone / stone like countertops, and he can rejuvenate old Corian so it looks like new.

I agree that my first fix would be the lighting - and I love my under cabinet lighting.

It's a pretty kitchen, as is, but some of the suggestions above (new lighting, paint, hardware, counter depth refer some day with end panel) will make it very nice. I've never cared for Corian, but it looks quite nice in your room.

I would never remove the counter return with the glass lower cabinets. That would likely be the best place to set food for gatherings, where I'd be rolling pie dough, kneading bread, etc. And the glass front cabinets will make display of some pretty things very easy (or practical storage of china and glassware.