Can you have the cabinets refaced? I am going to bet you will have a hard time selling this house if you don't replace or reface the cabinets. You might as well do it now and enjoy the new look. Although you don't plan on staying too long in this home, you never know for sure.

Its clean and in very good condition. It is a bit outdated, but, paint isnt going to take care of that problem. However, you dont just throw some kilz on them, and put a couple coats of paint on them. Painting cabinets yourself, can be done, but, it is a very time consuming project, that requires a lot of cleaning, a lot of sanding, and a lot of prep work. Then you need the proper primer, and you need paint meant to paint cabinets with (its not cheap). You are better to leave it and let the next owners decide what they want done with it, than to throw kilz and a coat of paint on them, and the buyers end up with all the chipped paint, to deal with, especially since they are now maintenance free, and paint will not make those cabinets look up todate.

Maybe just replacing the knobs would help, agree with not going thru the whole painting process, the next person in there may like it.

I really dont find it ugly. But I might have to lose that backsplash and paint the walls a light warm white. Maybe change the hardware and call it a day. Clean neat, black white and wood. Throw in some colorful accessories like mixer, bowls, etc. Or go heavy with natural accesories, baskets, wooden cutting boards, etc.

If you replace knobs, make sure they coordinate with the current hinges. It's not really that bad. I think the white appliances is what throws it off the most.

The kitchen is not ugly. It is just dull. New hardware; new backsplash; some doses of bright colors in countertop appliances/ accessories/ floor runner/ window treatment.

Nonsense that the house will be hard to sell without a new kitchen. It just sold to you, didn't it? And if you did much house hunting, I'm sure that you saw some truly atrocious kitchens out there on the market. This one is clean, neat, a little dull but in no way is it obnoxious.

Depending on budget, I would consider replacing the flooring (just because I don't like it) but some cheery runners will do nicely to disguise it.

Those cabinets would look amazing in white, the detail trim would pop.

If I was on a tight budget and tis was my kitchen (and I do have an older wood kitchen) I would start by changing the gray wall paint to white, cream or a sage green. Gray is a bit dull with warm wood cabinets and doesn't play well with the floor. Warmer tones are back in style, so while your cabinets are older, you can take advantage of the return to warmer styles.

I would remove the over the range micro and put in a hood - personal preference - I can not comfortably reach an over the range micro and they crowd up the cooking space too much for me too. I also really need a reasonable vent hood when I cook. Then, I would put in a cream subway tile backsplash.

When possible I would get a fridge that fits the space better. That is just cosmetic and can wait till the fridge dies. I am not well versed in it, but some do sell gently used appliances on Craig's List or Nextdoor.

Those cabinets are not oak so may be smooth enough to paint. The question is will you do a good job or make the situation worse. Badly painted cabinets do not sell homes and are more of a drawback then simply older cabinets. Painting cabinets does not increase the home value (despite what HGTV might try to say) because the cabinets are still older. If the job is well done, the home might show better, but just a day ago there was a post from a buyer who does not like the freshly painted older cabinets - not fond of the color, and she was correct as it did not best work with the rest of the home. So attempting to paint to help sell is a gamble. Do whatever you do to enjoy the kitchen for yourself. Consider a color like a green / gray cabinet color to pull all the different surfaces together.

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This is my wood kitchens idea book which has new and older, refreshed kitchens:

https://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/75202366/list/wood-kitchens

It is not that bad of a kitchen. I like a cottage style and can often get older kitchens to look pretty by going cottage / vintage - but if you don't like that style then keep in mind you wont be in the home long:)

I also think the appliances are the biggest problem -- especially the fridge. I would sell them and put the $ towards new appliances. Then I would paint the back-splash -- or try the stick-ons to cover it, replace the hardware, throw down a few rugs and call it a day. I think a properly fitting fridge would do wonders for the space.

Leave cabinets alone minus changing hardware. Sell appliances and buy new ones (SS and fridge that fits). If it's "easy" to switch microwave for hood, then do that. Floor runner/rug for color.

Can you show the rest of the kitchen? Is this all the storage you have? If you have other places to store things, you could change out two cabinet doors for glass doors if it's not too pricey. Then arrange matched light colored dishes and pretty glassware inside. Oh, and add under cabinet lighting.

Open shelving is very popular, though only for those who use the display dishes daily and organize them in a pleasing way. Thick wood shelves in the same finish as the cabinets could work or all white shelves with maple braces would make the white appliances less prominent.

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I love white appliances, but the black door and top on the stove make it look really really old and unnecessarily dark. And it just doesn’t jive with the wood tone. Looks like a rental/bachelor pad. And the over the stove microwave is bad too, too much hanging over the stove. I really hate black counters esp. in already dark kitchens, but that is just me. Maybe you could get a colourful rug to break up the beige. The handles on the cupboards are ugly, but you have exposed hinges too, not sure if you are going to win much with that battle. I really don’t mind the wood tone, it is just all the stuff they surrounded it with.

Just how much money is burning a hole in your pocket? That will determine what can be done. Since you don't plan to stay long in this house, are you absolutely sure that you can't live with a fully functional kitchen with new appliances? Maybe you should save the short term fixes and save for your next abode.

While I know the cabinets are dark, I actually think the wood looks really pretty! If it were my kitchen, I'd repack the cabinet hardware with something bushed nickel / stainless.

I know you didn't want to replace the appliances because they are new, but I do think stainless would make a huge difference. You could see how much you could get for re-selling the appliances and see if it's within budget. It may not be worth it, but I do think it would make a dramatic difference.

Finally I would look at swapping out the backsplash. What is there isn't bad, but it's not very up to date. From the photos it seems to have a pinkish hue. I would replace it with crisp white, which would go both with your current appliances or stainless appliances.

Are those walnut cabinets? If so, I'd definitely keep them, as it's my favorite wood. The problem is the backsplash and the appliances, which clash with the cabinets and counters. Change those (plus the cabinet hardware) and you may feel entirely different about your kitchen.

I find the floor to be the biggest offender. Could you replace it with wood or wood-look LVP? What type of flooring abuts the kitchen? Then as was said, new appliances are a must. There is nothing wrong with your cabinets!

Wow this has been great! So for those asking, even though the general consensus seems to be that they aren't that bad, a big problem is the way it looks with the rest of the house. The rest of the house is cool grays and whites, the rest of the flooring is brand new gray hardwood and trim is white. So the kitchen is just such an eyesore because even if it isn't inherently awful, it doesn't match anything else because it's so brown.

I worry about messing with the tile on the backsplash because I have no idea what is behind it, I don't want to trap myself into a $1000+ repair if the drywall is destroyed. Can you put stick on backsplash over tile?

Also the hinges keep getting mentioned. Are these going to be harder to change than the handles for some reason?

I agree that the appliances are the worst offenders, and filling in the fridge would do wonders. I might consider just painting the backsplash with a oil-based paint (we did this 4 years ago and it's held up beautifully) that matches the wall color (are you painting the walls?). I would not in a million years paint it a gray color with the warm wood, as a previous poster suggested via photo - unless it has a LOT of brown in it. The undertones clash terribly with warm wood and cool paint. I'd also switch the appliances to stainless, as black would be too dark and the white is too crisp for the other colors in the room.

No matter what you do, make sure all the undertones match. The earthy floor is bossy and pulls pink which clashes with the crisp white of the (outdated) appliances, thereby making the space look dingy.

If you want the kitchen to be cool and gray like the rest of the house, you'll have to change the brown cabinets and tan flooring. It isn't worth it for a short stay, clearly.

What you can do is find what's gray in the kitchen already, then emphasize it and use gray accessories (canisters, towels, throw rug). Looks like the gray backsplash could have some extra undercabinet lighting added to show its colors. Have the floor tile professionally cleaned, then use an off white grout paint to make the tile floor look new again.

Some additional sparkle could come from changing the lighting (probably fluorescent tubes) to some new LED lighting with 3500-4000K color temperature.

Hi there, I see a lot of interim potential until you're able to do a big scale remodel.

I would paint the cabinets white. I just painted my baseboards white and thought I had to sand them down and prep them for the primer. Lazy me went and scoured home depot and found a primer that actually went on so easy (no sanding required) and it really allowed me to put on a coat of paint with no issues at all. I swear by this stuff now and was so upset I didn't know about it sooner.

I would paint your walls a greige color that leans more of a warm grey.I personally have benjamin moore revere pewter kitchen walls with metals and grey accents and countertops. It actually looks pretty decent and flows well. Then paint your current backsplash a high gloss white to give it a little more depth so it stands out against the white cabinets.

I would change the hardware on the cabinets as everyone's suggested. I found my hardware very inexpensive at Amazon. I would use black hardware since the cabinets and backsplash will be white. It will also tie in to your countertop. You can find those current cabinet door hinges anywhere. I'd get them in black for some more contrast and to tie in to the hardware and counters.

Hope this helps!