You need to hire a good designer. The questions you’ve asked in your OP are too big. You’re asking us to tell you the entire design scope of your kitchen. Plus the stairway and foyer. Your questions are not internetable. When you’ve met with a few designers, come back to this forum with smaller questions you might have that would help you choose which of those designers is right for you.

I assume the pics in the OP are of the actual house and not your inspiration pics, right?

The very first thing to do is to close on your purchase and then plan extensively while you are increasing your budget. Don't do these changes before you move in. That's where mistakes happen.

Thanks. I agree - a designer would certainly be helpful! But that will also cut into the budget and I'm hoping some people here might have some good thoughts on "simple" things we can do that will make a big difference!

Transitional style is between traditional and contemporary. That may be the direction you are looking for (see link below for ideas).

https://www.houzz.com/photos/query/transitional/nqrwns

Get moved in and get comfortable with the space before you decide to gut a classic house and try to make it “modern”. Why again did you choose this home if you want to rip out everything? Your list is pretty expensive so you will have to pick and choose. How does your current furniture fit into the home? Maybe you could start with painting in a color that goes with your furnishings and you want to keep long term. Also sometimes when you move in you will have unexpected repairs that quickly move to the top of the list and eat up your budget. Enjoy the new, beautiful home and take your time making it yours.

Here are a few pics from new model homes that are more our style:

Don't change anything. This is a beautiful house. Want modern? Buy a modern house (or a dumpy house that actually needs updating or repairs.)

I think you should live in the home for several months (ideally a year) before you decide what you want to change. 20-30K is not a lot of money for major changes, so you might want to wait and prioritize the items you like the least.

One of the risks you run in "modernizing" the space is that it will then appear very dated in ten years or so. It is important to do long term quality changes in case you have to move in unforeseen circumstances. You want to invest in changes that will reap the greatest benefit. I personally think the kitchen is lovely, and I think it would be so sad to rip out perfectly good cabinetry and the vent hood that was likely custom and very expensive.

Do NOT replace engineered wood with vinyl! That is like putting lipstick on a pig. Vinyl will always seem cheap compared to hardwood.

Congratulations on your new home! I think it is beautiful and you never know what you may end up liking. I hated the Brazilian cherry floors in our old house when we moved in, and by the time we moved out five years later we loved them! Don't rip out anything that is of high quality and is functional. Spend your dollars wisely on things that lack function or need repair.

Some other pics we like for example:

It has more than traditional touches, it is VERY traditional. Even the baseboard and arched doorways are traditional. I was going to say I'd either learn to like traditional or pick a different house. But getting closer to your first inspiration pick may be doable. Modern would be so expensive, finding a different house would be much easier. I think you are on the right track with changing the range hood, cabinet pulls, island legs and crown. I would hate to see that beautiful granite changed out to something that is so trendy when it seems like it is rapidly going out of favor due to every kitchen looking exactly the same now.

That may be what you had been thinking is your style, but what you've bought is a traditional home ;0) Start slow. Get some professional advice - it will be some of the best money you've spent from your budget. The last thing you want to do is make some expensive mistakes that make the details of that house not flow. Very little you've touched on other than the light fixture in the foyer are inexpensive changes....and have you priced those lately, you may be in for a surprise. The range hood in the kitchen looks to me to be custom and would likely take a custom hood of another style to change it. Those legs at your island end may be part of the support system for the stone. Get to know your house and how it feels, then decide what must be changed.

The only thing I recommend people do before they move in is refinish the floors (if they need it). It's such a messy job and everything needs to be moved out to accomplish. Engineered hardwood can be refinished (maybe twice) but I don't know that you'd get the bumpiness out. That would be a question for an experienced floor refinisher. I would NEVER rip out engineered hardwood to put in vinyl. It doesn't make any sense, and adds no value to a home. If you want lighter floors, see if they can be refinished. In terms of the kitchen, I don't think you can chop off the legs of the island. They are most likely there to support the stone. There are many things you can do with furniture and lighting to get some of the traditional out of the house, and move towards a transitional style. Remember, what's modern now, is dated in 5 -7 years. I always prefer classic.

Thanks - I definitely hear what you guys are saying. The house is in a gorgeous neighborhood. It has amazing mountain views and an amazing backyard with a pool and spa - a true resort-style dessert oasis with beautiful landscaping. Those things were HUGE selling points since we now live in San Diego and can enjoy the outdoor space all year!

Just trying to bridge the gap between what it looks like now and they more contemporary style we favor. I think we can do something transitional to help bridge that gap without gutting everything. That's why I'm looking for ideas to help us keep the costs down!

Thanks for everyone's input - keep it coming!

I think you bought a traditional house and it will take a lot to make it look "modern" Does the exterior even look modern?

I love white quartz too, but your counter top is quite beautiful Maybe change the backsplash in the inset behind oven(stainless panel?). Change the pendant lights and the fan in the family room.

Perhaps you could have the doors changed on the built in to slap or Shaker to create a more streamline look or just drywall that portion and add a big piece of art or a mirror to bounce off the light and create symmetry with the window.

Once all the prior owners' stuff is gone, it will look less traditional to your eye (all the wine references in the kitchen, eg). If your furniture is more modern/contemporary and less fussy, it would set the tone for the family room and dining area.

Congrats on the purchase of your home! I would just paint for before moving in and maybe drywall the area next to FP. Leave everything else for 6-12mo.

You bought a very nice, presumably very expensive, traditional house. Frankly, I don't know why you did that if you like a modern aesthetic. It's like someone buying a $3 mil penthouse condo and then coming here and posting about how they want to put in a yard. Chill, take a deep breath, move, and then interview designers to start the journey towards the modern house you should have bought in the first place.

Thank you for all your feedback! I totally hear what you are saying about buying a traditional house vs. a modern house. In Southern California, it's really hard to find exactly what you want and nothing is perfect unless you have an unlimited budget.

This house is gorgeous and would have cost 2-3x more if it was EVERYTHING we wanted and probably would not have had the amazing resort-style desert oasis backyard with beautiful mountain views and 20 year mature lush landscaping. We can enjoy that year-round!

All we're looking for is tips to help bridge the gap in style! The layout/floorplan and backyard are an unbelievable find in San Diego! The house is just not 100% our style. For that reason, we are trying to think of how we can make the house more "transitional" to bridge the gap.

We totally agree that going too modern would be the wrong thing to do. Looking for any thoughts that you might have to help us make it a little more modern. :)

1. All kitchen countertops definitely need to be replaced with a white quartz! No they don't.

2. Cabinets. Ideally, we'd have a more modern style cabinet (i.e. shaker) but I imagine this would cut into the budget a lot! Perhaps just replacing the hardware and/or trim at the top of the cabinets would suffice? Thoughts? Look into replacing the doors with shaker style - not the entire cabinet.

Is it crazy to consider replacing all of this flooring with vinyl though?? YES!

Best Wishes!!!

Good idea to attempt transitional vs contemporary. Now you just have to look at some more transitional style inspiration pics. After you move in, see how you use the kitchen. If you can remove the cabinets on the range wall and put in some floating shelving that could help. Talk to a carpenter about changing the profile leg of the island. The stairs will be tooexpensive to tackle on your budget and they have to be redone, the curves and spindles are definitely traditional. Look into changing your cabinet doors. The ones you have are very traditional. Good luck and congrats on the new home

congrats on your new home, the backyard view looks amazing. lucky you. I totally understand wanting the home to be closer to a more today style. I will say I am not a pro, so I don't know costs for these ideas but heres my thoughts. i thinking repainting the walls to a warm white will make a huge change. you have a lot of beige in different tones and shifting to white will help. I would reface all the kitchen cabinets, but again dont know cost. i would keep the wood floors, while the texture may not be exactly what you want, the dark color is updated. once you change other aspects, the wood to me will look great. I would change countertops and backsplash too.

Hi everyone!

The other Koz (homeowner) here. Wanted to share the ’why’ we bought this spectacular home. San Diego is a tough housing market and this really is a dream home. We just want to make it a little closer to our style but really bought the house for it’s outdoor living space.

Hi Jason- Congratulations on your new home!

The kitchen would be improved by changing the paint color to a less yellow color. (Or is it the lighting?)

Please get cool spectrum light bulbs right away.

The kitchen would look more modern if you refaced the cupboards.

You mentioned shaker which is an option.

More modern still is slab front which I like too.

If you replace the door fronts in the kitchen, you might want to replace them in the living room as well.

You might also think about changing the hardware.

Cup handles are definitely not contemporary.

As far as your island, blue is a very nice color.

Painting over kitchen cabinetry is not easy at all, and when not done properly will peel and bubble.

You do need some sort of leg there to support the edge of the island.

You can talk to an experienced finish carpenter about substituting another type of leg.

If you are going to get a white countertop, what is it about quartz that you like?

You may get the same thing in Corian with more advantages.

Why not invite a professional, Joseph Corlett, LLC into this thread and he will tell you why Corian is superior to quartz.

I like the photos of the kitchen you like, but imagine those kitchens with your floors, how much richer they would look!

Your floors are gorgeous, and with white cabinets and countertops and a blue island, dark floors might be just the right look.

Tiling is not as easy as you think.

However, you don't need as much as you have now, either.

You only need a backsplash behind the stove, and if you want a modern or high tech look, you could do stainless steel up to the hood and no tile at all.

After all, your hood will probably be stainless, right?

What looks great is a mix of metals, and you could do a stainless hood with brass "straps", and brass light fixtures over the island as you have in your photos.

I favor the ones with covered bulbs, and with non-transparent glass, because glare gives me a headache, but that's just me.

I don't know that I would remove the fireplace altogether.

You could just move the TV to the wall perpendicular to it.

The other reason to move the TV is that the TV's width is too much for the fireplace.

Generally something should be 2/3 to 3/4 the width of what it is above.

So a painting or TV should be 2/3 to 3/4 the width of the piece of furniture below it.

If you wanted to change the staircase, you could remove the vertical wooden spindles and install multiple thick metal cables with vertical metal bars periodically.

However, if you plan to have children, you will need to cover it with acrylic or unbreakable glass panels so their little hands don't get stuck between the metal cables.

You could also just do the thick acrylic or glass panels without the horizontal cables except having metal at the top and bottom.

I would save this for very last, it is frightfully expensive.

I hope you and your wife enjoy your new home in good health!

gorgeous... congrats

My son lives in Dublin and has been looking at a lot of houses. Many are even more traditional than yours with very elaborate plaster work, windows and woodwork. They are often decorated with very modern furniture and art and look great.

I was going to make The same suggestion ^^^^^^. Look at B&B Italia, especially the MaxAlto line, Roche Bobois, Ligne Roset. Forget about the redoing the interior, unless you have serious money to spend. Good modern furniture is expensive, but the juxtaposition of traditional interiors with modern furnishings is a winning combo that makes more financial sense, because unless you can afford a gut job, whatever you do will look half baked.

PS Also, add modern art into the mix for maximum impact. And by modern furniture, I mean more glamorous Italian, than MCM. The contrast is key, MCM is not quite bold enough.

Oh man, it's a great house! I'd start with new lighting, new art and paint. It will go a long ways.

I'd paint and put in new lighting first, change some light fixtures, especially that one in the entryway. Then you can reasses if you really hate the traditional millwork or if it's all the brown and beige tones. If you're still not happy I'd get new countertops, knock off the legs on the island as long as you're okay with losing that extra countertop space. I don't think the floors are bad and I tend to prefer lighter wood tones. You can also just swap the tile around the fireplace to something lighter.