Thanks so much! I was quoted that price ($30-$35K) for just the kitchen--which is a very small galley kitchen--7'x10'--by the building contractor.

I would not give the above comment much regard. There are options.

Thanks.

30-35K for a small gallery kitchen. That is your answer as to why the contractor whats to supply his own kitchen. White shaker, most likely ”house flipper” quality import RTA cabinet not even 5k his price.

That's what I figured. Thanks for your candor.

Have you talked to “Traemand” ikea’s outside installers. I’m pretty sure they are in NYC. They would most likey have that insurance if they work in the city.

Yes it's time to watch the diy install vids for Ikea cabinets. Your floors can be covered with Luan like other renos. Have a party for friends and everything will be fun.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqe5c52otNY&t=1s

Why don't you just choose your contractor and offer to pay the additional insurance premium yourself?

THanks, jdesign_gw. Will do. And I suspect the way to go is to have the building contractor do part of the kitchen and have someone via Traemand do the cabinets. He'll be making his nut on the floors and bathrooms (he's getting $20K for each bathroom and the materials costs are less than $3K for all including new fixtures).

And fun idea, dan1888, but that's, unfortunately, against the board-rules in the building. Otherwise, I DEFINITELY would do that!

Good idea, Mrs. S. I'll discuss with my broker (who knows the building very well) and see how much that might run.

We are in the end stages of finishing an Ikea kitchen that started in mid- February. I designed the kitchen with the online planner, made an appointment with Ikea and their designer to go over the plan with a fine tooth comb and create a shopping list of items in stock/out of stock. The majority of items were available and we set up an initial order & delivery. An out-of-stock list was created automatically by the Ikea system and working off that list I searched every couple of days on Ikea's website for replenishment of stock and placed orders for those items as they came in. We had to cut down several Sektion boxes to fit our needs which was not hard to do.

It was a giant PIA and a time waster but I was committed to finishing in a reasonable time frame. There is no way to do it any faster and you are at the mercy of Ikea's production & shipping delays. In the end the savings was worth it to us and we still have a functional kitchen for less $$ and in probably less time than any other avenue we researched.

Thank you so much, mihelene! Incredibly helpful. And, interesting re: cutting down some of the Sektion boxes. Can you elaborate? Meaning, did you, say, purchase a 30" base and cut it down to a 24" box which wasn't available?

I waited two years for my final ikea cabinet. Ikea’s supply chain was a mess pre covid but since 2020 it is pretty much terrible. Order from another RTA company if you need your kitchen and all parts this year!

THanks, roarah! Any suggestions for an RTA company that does modern=type cabinets? I'm looking for modern cabinets that look like this-->

All of the Sektion base cabinets were in stock when we placed our initial order. We had a straight run on one wall that didn't have any size constraints so I was able to be flexible (chosing a 30" base where I might have put in a 36"). The only cabinet that was unavailble that I changed mid-design was a tall pantry/micro cabinet. I deleted that and subbed in a base and an upper. But you can modify any of the Sektion bases. Might have to drill new holes to accomodate rails for drawers though.

Where we ran into trouble was with the wall mounted cabinets. We stacked a 20" high on top of a 30" to take them up to our 9' ceilings. The 30" x 24" uppers were in stock but not the 20" x 24". I waited 2 months for the 20" to come in and then just ordered the 30's and my installer cut them down to fit. He is finishing on Monday with the last "Frankesteined" Sektion box and putting up the trim at the ceiling.

We have counters, appliances, sink, etc. No toe kick yet as our flooring is on back order until early June. It has been a challenging remodel for sure. In the past I never would have ripped out a kitchen without all products on order/to hand but these are unusual times. Just remember to keep and sense of humor and above all be flexible about choices as you might have to make modifications to your original plan mid reno.

I've carried $2,000,000.00 in liability insurance for a decade; it's no big deal to get more.

Homeowners get what, where, why, and when; contractors keep who and how. The selection of IKEA is clearly "what". Everyone has to stay in thier own lane.

Barker has solid slab doors in multiple finishes. Sizes are custom too! https://www.barkercabinets.com/Wood-types-and-Finishes-s/122.htm

THanks for the reply, Joseph Corlett, LLC. Out of curiosity, how much would it cost you to up your insurance to $5M for one job?

Thank you so much, mihelene, for all the detail! Incredibly helpful. I'm getting a lot of great ideas from this thread, which is making the entire thing less overwhelming.

Wow! roarah .Thank you! These might be just what I'm looking for! And even though they might be similiar quality to Ikea, since it's not the name, the contractor might work with them!

The only thing that I can offer is that your new floors can be easily protected during the kitchen work, and also, you can ask your contractor to rig up a temporary sink (could probably use the one that you will be pulling out) and temporary counters (plywood, or cheap prefab formica type from a discount retailer, or even a couple of cheap Ikea tables) while you wait for any backorders to come in. OH, and the kitchen work area can and should also be curtained off to keep flying dust/dirt from the rest of the apartment. So sayeth the voice of experience!

Wren, kitchens is another RTA. It is an English company so might have more modern offerings but honestly I think they are inferior to Barker.

https://www.wrenkitchens.com/us/?gclid=Cj0KCQjwyYKUBhDJARIsAMj9lkEgWVyjVVoEGgOLLloRU-cKUsF_pEx6XYwVhbkS_Z_dDFNV1AYydHIaAiByEALw_wcB

Thanks, roarah!

Thank you so much, raee_gw zone 5b-6a Ohio!!

"Out of curiosity, how much would it cost you to up your insurance to $5M for one job?"

I don't know, but my customer would pay it.

Thanks, Joseph Corlett, LLC

Is the GC refusing to do any kitchen other than with white Shaker doors?

I would clarify because there are many cabinet lines with frameless doors and modern looking doors. Many of them are actually more aesthetically pleasing than IKEA.

Also the actual cost of having an IKEA kitchen isn't that much of a bargain unless one is DIY because the boxes have to be assembled which is a labor cost. Also there is I understand a particular way of installing them to the walls which is DIY friendly but not generally how most cabinet installers work.

I live in a high rise condo with a small kitchen and honestly you might be better off not using IKEA because you can find a cabinet line that offers more sizing and style options. With a small kitchen every inch matters more and you want to be able to eke out every inch and not have too much fillers,

There is much to be said for finding a GC that knows the building - knows how it operates - and what the construction quirks are in terms of how the plumbing and electrical systems are set up.

I wound up using a GC and designer who had done work in the building and most of the people who do remodels wind up using the same few GC's - because they are recommended and because they know the building. Again there is a LOT to be said for peace of mind knowing that the GC is competent and not a flake.

I am not particularly shocked by the price you are being quoted for a kitchen. NYC is a HCOL area and there are additional costs for working in a condo and a multifamily as well. I was just looking over my GC contract which was pre-pandemic. The cost of demo and hauling out the demo was $5200. There was also an addiitonal line item of $2500 for protection of the common areas since all of the areas had to be covered every morning and taken up each night which was a cost of materials plus labor. Not to mention the cost of hauling everything up and down in an elevator.

Regarding the additional cost of insurance - I don't know how much the additional insurance costs but I have an "umbrella" policy of a few million dollars which covers me for lawsuits above and beyond my auto and homeowners liability. The cost for the additional $2 or $3 million isn't really significant - maybe a $100 or $200 because it is unlikely that I would ever need coverage beyond my regular policy which is not the minimum FWIW.

If there are problems caused by renovation in a multi-unitl building the damages and liabilty can easily run into the millions because it impacts many other units. There have been a few floods in higher floors that have caused damage to every single apartment down to the lobby. The cost for that has run into the millions since some apartments had to be gutted and redone and the owners had to move into temporary rental while all of that is being done.

THank you SO much, Helen, for your in-depth response. The GC actually lives in the building and does most of the renovations there/is fully recommended by the board. So I do think working with him would present the least amount of headaches for me. I think the GC just feels Ikea is substandard. That said, I found Barker Modern, which does very nice modern RTC cabinets and I suspect he'll be ok with them--or might have something comparable. Barker has everything I'm looking for, with one exception and I'm calling them tomorrow to see how much they'd charge for a modification.

Again, thanks so much for your response.

Why are you focused on RTA? There is a huge world of assembled cabinet brands out there that will give you what you are looking for, and you’ll only have to wait 6 months, not a year or more. Look at Kitchencraft, Ultracraft, or Durasupreme.

I agree that using RTA cabinets makes no sense if one is having a GC do your kitchen.

As I posted, the savings for RTA is when a homeowner is doing the assembly since they are saving on labor costs. If your GC is assembling them you are paying a lot of money for that and you would be better off purchasing a better middle of the road cabinet line,

In my experience, the factor that drives up remodeing costs especially in a high cost of living area like New York City area is LABOR. With a small kitchen or bathroom the cost of the materials is less significant and is one of the positive aspects of having a small space - one can splurge on higher end finishes because the incremental cost is relatively insignificant and labor is more or less the same for nicer or even luxury finishes. I realized this when I priced out tile and the cost between the tile I loved and the tile that would have been a compromise was minimal and the cost of labor remained constant.

Also as I posted the cost for doing a small kitchen in a multi-family condo is going to be vastly more expensive than doing the identical kitchen in a single family home even in the same area because there are all kinds of costs that are added. Not to mention that many GC will not work in a condo/coop although there are probably more with that kind of experience in a place like NYC where there are more multi-family condos.

Thanks. Will check out and will see the next time I speak with the GC.

Ikea has bonded installers and as for the ordering time I know right now is a PITA but I have lived with no kitchenjust appliances and work horses and a sink plywood on the work ghorses so IMO design the kitchen order as much as you can now Ikea usually has the boxes so one you get the boxes install the kitchen and BTW no way would that contractor go near an Ikea install . I would want to see his work in some other units even for the flooring.I have done Ikea kitchens in every imaginable space sometimes the condo baird can be an issue but usually conforming to the rules is not horrible. BTW Ikea id a whole step above the cabinets mentioned above and IMO still the best bang for your buck,

Thank, Patricia Colwell Consulting. Will definitely consider. I have seen his work in multiple apartments and he does EXCELLENT work--just not my taste whatsoever.

And you think Barker is worse than Ikea? Because I was pretty impressed with what they had--especially the fact that their cabinets are fully customizable. And their lead time works for me. Have you had experience with them?

THanks again for your input.

Presently Barker has the advantage of source ability and custom sizing over ikea. Here is fair side by side comparison of the two brands. https://talkradionews.com/the-barker-cabinets-vs-ikea-comparison/

THanks, roarah. And yes, I was very impressed with Barker Modern. Exactly what I am looking for--especially like the ability to customize the sizes and the (relatively) short lead time for ordering. I already ordered some samples in the veneers I'd like.

Only thing I'm not crazy about is the 5-year warranty.

I'm now waiting to see if I get the apartment. If so, will definitely discuss with the contractor. At minimum, this is an alternative he might work with or can present an alternative that matches the price.

Thanks again!

In a small kitchen custom sizing is more critical than it would be in a large or even *normal* size kitchen. The price of cabinets is not going to be what drives up the price in a small kitchen.

ETA - You need to clarify whether the GC just doesn't want to do IKEA cabinets or whether he insists on a particular brand that you must use. Honestly his taste level is irrelevant because my GC didn't design anything in my remodel - he just executed my designs flawlessly and competently. Once in a while he would offer an opinion on something he especially like.

If he insists on your using only a particular brand of cabinets that is strange because within reason a GC will generally leave those decisions to the homeowner within reason. You would also probably be relying on the kitchen designer for the store you use to make sure that the measurements and the cabinets are correct. Sometimes the store has recommended installers and they might install in coordination with the GC. My cabinets were custom by a local shop and installed by the cabinet maker who worked closely with my GC.

I have done 100s of Ikea kitchens and honestly with the proper planning and design they have all looked like custom designs it takes a lot of time to design an Ikea kitchen but IMO still the best designs and choice of soft close , interior organizing and price you can find. Not to mention avery good warranty . No I have not used Barker I usually use a cabinet maker I have dealt with for 20+ yrs if a clinet wants trully high end and custom cabinets . That cabinet maker has hids own installers and theu both work with me for the best possible design. I will say that that system ususlly costs 3 x what Ikea would so how big is the money tree

Thanks Patricia Colwell Consulting. Appreciate your input.