You’ve gotten the price to redo it that's 16K under the National average. The price is the price. You’re not going to cut that in half without picking cardboard and aluminum foil. Or get handy and DIY. Or lower your want list, by a lot.

https://www.remodeling.hw.net/cost-vs-value/2019/

I'd be interested in knowing the size of the kitchen along with a picture or two.

Quality and shoestring are pretty much oxymoron. Find a designer who can get you Ikea, and plan it for you.

If you are gutting, re arranging plumbing, adding lighting, getting new appliances etc? It is what it is. Disruptive, and not a shoestring project. Just the labor and restrictions involved in a condo setting will up the price almost always. Logistics of dumpsters, elevators? rules, regulations, etc.

Ikea. Last spring we spend $30K and did new range, DW, MW, Ikea's more expensive cabinet line, flooring, granite countertops, backsplash, (wiring and wall repairs unexpected) plus new toilet and pedestal sink in 1/2 bath, laundry room cabinet and flooring, and painting. Aside from using a less expensive cabinet style and less expensive range and DW, we couldn't have done it for much less.

If you’re a diyer, check your area listings for good used cabinets for interim. You might find some there. Other suggestion is remove uppers and use open shelves, then focus on lower cabinets.

That is totally doable with Ikea but you need to do a to scale drawing of the space all measurements clearly marked, plumbing,windows ,doorways .. A budget , if you are keeping any appliances, There is no way for us to really help without all that info and pictures of what it looks like now. As Jan mentioned renovating in a condo building has all kinds of other issues that need to be dealt with too. Are you good at DIY or have someone who can do some for you.

As retirees who've gone condo, you've probably already downsized and decluttered. Even if you entertain a lot, you're probably just cooking for two most of the time. So your need for a full blown walls of cabinets may not be necessary.

Think about a good stretch of open shelves, which are great for retirees, where everything is visible and reachable. Then get drawer cabinets for below. You can even adapt current lower cabinets by painting them and adding Rev-Shelf drawers.

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Those numbers sound crazy to me. We are having an Amish man build ours (hard maple). Our kitchen is large (14 x21) and includes an 8.5 ft island. The total cost is $13,600. Of course this doesn’t include countertops or appliances, but we are on track for everything under $21,000. Don’t think it can’t be done. It just takes more time and effort.

Btw- we went with the Amish because we prefer solid wood, but we had quotes from Lowe’s For MDF cabinets for right in this same price range.

I didn't assume they didn't entertain and even acknowledged that they might, Patricia. Read my comment. Open shelving of dishes and glassware that are used on a daily basis isn't for everyone, but since these folks said they're on a shoestring, I put it out there. It's possible for them to have a few open shelves, paint the bottom cabinets they have, add pull-out features available at Home Depot, and park their not-everyday dishes and serving pieces in a sideboard for entertaining. They want a five-year option, not a gut job. Others suggested Ikea, so I didn't.

OP, please add a photo and dimensions of your space, which will help everyone taking a crack at your Dilemma.

Linda, We were also quoted $50k plus for cabinetry, because I wanted all of the internal organizers that for me make cooking and entertaining functional. But I got the high end look I wanted for $35k less by using IKEA boxes with custom doors from Scherr's (the company is listed on Houzz). You will find many previous discussions if you search "pros and cons of IKEA" in the search box of Discussions. This was my fourth renovation and I'd gone the custom route before. I can tell you now, a year after our reno, that I'm quite satisfied with the quality. My custom doors are solid maple. I splurged on marble backsplashes and fully integrated, paneled appliances. Here are a few photos—you can find more at my blog Renov8or.

This group on Houzz are amazingly helpful. If you will post a grid of your kitchen measurements and some "before" photos, they will help you design the best possible use for your space.

Check out Habitat for Humanity ReStore, Craigslist and Kijiji for used cabinets. A friend just for 4 year old, used cabinets for her kitchen for only $2,500.

Best is almost always overkill. If you are handy, there are other options that contributing sweat equity can provide. That is much harder to do in a condo environment though, with the restrictions on using licensed professionals and the logistical headaches.

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/5647040/white-shaker-battle-ikea-vs-the-rest-of-the-cabinet-world

Things that a kitchen remodeling budget must account for in categories.

Home protection from dust and dirt.- Plastic curtains, zip walls,ram board, cardboard, lots of air filters, rosin paper, HEPA air scrubber and HEPA vacuum. An after construction professional cleaning. Averages 1K+ on my jobs. If it’s not listed, it doesn’t happen. No one wants a filthy house.

Demolition and debris removal and disposal.- Cabinet removal for them to be used again adds a day, and expense. You’ll need a dumpster, and a place for it to sit on your drive that the neighbors don’t get upset. Portapotty has to be considered for siting too, unless you’ll furnish a bathroom for them to use. Dump fees have to be paid, and in some locations, that’s a considerable fee. If you’re doing floors too? That’s forever and filthy. And extra money. Then the subfloor has to have prep.

Rough Electrical- for added lighting, under cabinet lighting, new appliances, appliances being moved, added circuits. Adding box extenders so the outlets will pull out to the right depth after the backsplash is done.

Rough plumbing- the plumber has to show for a disconnect before the demo occurs. Cut the pipes off and cap. Then any moving done. New shut offs, drains, supply lines.

Wall repair and paint. All the new lighting, and the demo, makes for lots of repair. If you’re doing things like popcorn or wallpaper removal in the demo phase? Lots of repair.

Floor prep and floor install. Floors are never level. They have to be made so. Tiles are getting larger. Wood is being done. It’s not a 1 hour linoleum install after 1 bag of leveling compound any more.

Cabinet install. WAY harder and longer than most people think! A box has 6 sides. All 6 have to match up with all the rest of the ones in the gang. Walls and floors are never straight. Supports for counter overhangs have to be installed. Holes for the DW hose and electrical. For the MW, or vent hood. Install by itself is usually 20-30% of the cost of the cabinets. More, if they are doing built in appliances like wall ovens, and the install of the rest of the appliances too.

Counter install. See above. The better the cabinet installer is, the easier this goes. It still won’t be perfect. Perfect doesn’t exist.

Backsplash install. That means trying up the wall. Hopefully, the GC got the drywall guys to do that when that was done. If he didn’t, that still has to be done.

Finish electrical. All of those lights, outlets, and everything else get placed. Any hardwired appliances not connected via plug.

Finish plumbing. Garbage disposal, Faucet, Flanges for both. Water for fridge. Faucet. Dishwasher.

Appliances. Anything not built in or hardwired still has to be installed.

And that’s not counting for any expert design advice do you know where the lights should go, and what kind of counter support you need, or how far from the corner the fridge has to be for the door to open.

Here's just one example of many Craigslist ads for used cabinets in my area. These are lovely maple cabinets. You need to store them somewhere until you can get a good carpenter if you go this route. It's something to consider.

https://newyork.craigslist.org/wch/mat/d/scarsdale-kitchen-cabinets-solid-maple/7059334974.html

Cooks kitchen has it. NoT to mention, perhaps a place to GO. Rare is the condo with enough space to set up a temporary kitchen beyond your laundry ? A microwave in your master? Another bedroom and move the bed out?

If none above, lots of take out, and eating in restaurants. Planning is essentIal. Also the storage of items needed for the actual reno. ................ yes a royal PAIN. Unless you have your own garage.

The lists above are excellent. Don't recall seeing building permits, inspection and code compliance mentioned.

It sounds like your condo is old, which means the electrical is unlikely up to today's code. If they touch it, they need to bring it up to code. You may need a new panel box for the additional circuits.

Just changing the cabinets usually doesn't trigger the need for permits, but no one just changes the cabinets!

Where is your condo located? What type of vendor gave you this pricing? Are you intending to mostly just leave the layout the same and not do much rearranging or remodeling of the space itself? How big is this kitchen?

I'm curious because we just bought a condo/townhouse in FLA and got a quote that was much less than that.

That said, I am still most strongly considering using IKEA cabinetry.

The OP - who has not returned - did not mention needing to add electrical work or move plumbing. Perhaps that is part of the project, or perhaps not. But likely not, since the subject title is asking solely about cabinets, her post focuses on cabinets, mentions appliances in passing, and doesn't mention anything else. Having said that, when one changes out cabinets, then usually all or some of counters, sink, faucet, backsplash and appliances need to be changed too.

The Cook's Kitchen's post is a great checklist - but an all-encompassing Scope of Work with a number of things the OP's job may not need. For example, out of her list "plastic curtains, zip walls,ram board, cardboard, lots of air filters, rosin paper, HEPA air scrubber and HEPA vacuum. An after construction professional cleaning," my job had the rosin paper and cardboard, the guys cleaned up after themselves, and that's it. Yes, I had to wipe down counters and floors of dust for the next week or two as it settled. My kitchen is a separate room, not an open floor plan.

My point being, the OP has given us ALMOST NO INFORMATION to help her predict what her job will cost. She can just switch out cabinets using Ikea, and if her kitchen is small, do it for $10-15k, depending on the variables of size and who is doing the work. We have no idea if she will be doing anything else other than switching the cabinets and appliances. So we cannot advise her on that.

For all we know she's in NYC where the price of everything........triples or quadruples. Or she has "wants" she doesn't want to pay for, and/or nobody WANTS the job in a busy economy. We don't know. But does that happen? Yes, it does.

For those saying OP has not returned they posted yesterday. It’s hardly been ages.

Depending on where you live IKEA is an excellent option and they often have pseudo design/install companies attached to them that come on site and do all measurements and plan the kitchen with you. We did this for our suite and our old house kitchen and it was a phenomenal experience start to finish. Bought during the kitchen event and got 15% back in gift cards. Easy and affordable

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As you grow older in this home, you'll appreciate drawers instead of shelves and all lowers instead of uppers. Here's why.

M R,

Could you share your general location and possibly your cabinet builder?

Southeastern Michigan. I don't have a cabinet builder yet...

Sure, we’re in eastern Virginia. if you’re close by send me a message!