Decorating & Renovating
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Our tech team has launched updates to The Nest today. As a result of these updates, members of the Nest Community will need to change their password in order to continue participating in the community. In addition, The Nest community member's avatars will be replaced with generic default avatars. If you wish to revert to your original avatar, you will need to re-upload it via The Nest.
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lets talk countertops
hi ladies - we're planning to replace our kitchen counter-tops - we had basically decided to go with granite, and even had it measured. Our estimate was $4500 (yikes!)
We've now decided we'll be selling the house and moving within the next 2 years, does anyone have any suggestions of something more affordable - or feedback of a direction we should go knowing these facts?
Thanks in advance!
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Re: lets talk countertops
Did you get multiple quotes? That's really pricey. Granite's downright affordable here. Everyone's advertising that they have the lowest prices in town and installation is almost always free.
What do homes in your neighborhood have?
Designers are over granite, but home buyers still like it. Designers have been going with quartz or other solid surface for a few years, but it's as or more expensive than granite. Depending on your neighborhood, fancy laminate may be an option. I put it in this house because it's appropriate for the neighborhood and it fools people who aren't big into design.
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Thinking of doing cosmetic updates to a dated home? These were our costs.
This...if you are not staying there long term, I wouldn't invest in granite unless you have the extra money and don't have anything else to spend it on! Highend laminate actually holds up quite well and looks great (just go for a higherend not a low end laminate).
Seriouslly how many times on House finding shows do the buyer actually have to ask if its granite and its actually not....
Personally I love quartz, but again if you are not staying in the home for more then a couple years, not worth an investment that large.
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Um...laminate is actually pretty standard in my neighborhood, and I do not know one person who has turned their nose up to it who has bought a house in the last 5 years. We had a house sell down the street in 4 days for full asking price...that house had laminate. They didn't bat an eye. There is such a thing as nice laminate, it's come a long way since the 80's. Maybe you only know people with crappy laminate from 20-25 years ago?
Sorry, no one in my neighborhood has laminate and neither does anyone I know. I'm sure laminate has come along way, but at the end of the day it's still laminate. I know my taste is far more modern/upscale than those on this site. I was just giving my honest opinion, guess it varies from region to region.....
I guess, I'm just poor and trashy then.
Wow you are really looking to make friends huh? If your taste is so modern and upscale compared to the rest of us, you probably have a designer and don't need to be here. Go to the spa and get a manicure instead. You can probably pay those people to be your friend.
Again, sorry.....nope, I don't go on message boards to make friends, I must be weird.
And if disliking laminate makes me sound snotty, I'm COMPLETELY fine with that...
It's not that your opinion of laminate that makes you snotty, I'm not necessarily a huge fan of laminate either, but I don't act like I'm above people who have it or choose it. If it makes sense for their neighborhood, situation, and budget, then great, no judging, but you're coming off as a pretentious b*tch to people who are suggesting an affordable option for someone looking to sell their house in 2 years.
That seems really high for granite, what slab did you choose? How many square feet of counter space do you have? Is that pricing for 3cm or 2cm? Also, did you offer to pay cash (like, actual bills)? We have a really large kitchen, I think our granite, cash price was $4,000 and the slab for our island (which is 7 feet by 5 feet) was a $120 a square foot, installed. We got a GREAT deal because we paid cash. Look at the layout of our kitchen..can you use remnants instead of a whole slab? That will save you a bundle as well.
If the houses in your neighborhood generally have laminate but you want to upgrade (even if you plan to sell in the next 2 years) you still have to live there for 2 years, I would recommend installing a builder's grade 2cm granite. If most of the homes in your neighborhood have laminate, then the granite will be a huge deal when you sell and could help you tell the home much faster. Time is money, yo.
Wop is right. Its the "I know my taste is more modern/upscale than everyone else on this site" that makes you sound like a pretentious snobby Beyotch. Why do you even bother coming here if we all suck so bad compared to you?
Get over yourself!
Just want to share my fabulous-ness with everyone!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It's all glitter and rainbows over here! I just want to help someones decision, who obviously has the ability to choose.
xxoxoxoxoxoxo MUAH!!!!!!
There are great high end laminates Formica 180fx being one, Wilsonart HD being another.
An updated kitchen is one of the things home buyers look for most. 'normal' formica can get some bad knocks from home buyers but it's not always a deal breaker. You need to be sure that you home price reflects the updates but if you want to sell it it needs to be competative to the neighboring houses for sale.
There are other products that can help as well. Rustoleum makes a contertop resurfacer. It all depends on if you wnt to do it yourself. Call around for laminate suppliers - chances are they are the ones who do the work for the design houses. You can knock out the middle man.
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with formica.
Do you have an IKEA near you? I know they carry Caesarstone but I don't know how the pricing is.
I'm personally not a fan of laminate at all but I'm also just so-so on granite. I like the look of some granites (but all the ones I liked when we were looking were expensive. I didn't like any of the basic options) but I do think granite is starting to look bit outdated. People still love it though and I'm confident it will still be a good selling point in 2 years. For ease of maintenance and look I really love quartz products. We had quartz in our old condo (it was there when we moved in) and it was the best countertop I have ever had so we did quartz without hesitation in our new build. We are renting while waiting to move into new build and the apartment we are in has a "high end" laminate but it's just not the same. However, it does beat a lot of laminates I've had in the past. Another option is granite tiles (which I don't like because I hate grout) but it might be a cheaper alternative if that's your style. My parents had it and loved it...
$4500 sounds normal for my area but it's a HCOL area. It really depends on the size of your kitchen and the price of your home. If your home costs 100K I wouldn't spend $4k on countertops for 2 years. If your home costs $500K I'd probably do it and hope it paid for itself by getting me a quick sale on the other end.
Hi all - Thanks for the tips! The reason that quote was higher in prices was for two reasons:
1) we have a breakfast bar - so we basically need two counter tops on the one side of our kitchen.
2) I didn't like any of the builder grade granites, the one I picked had a little higher cost.
It's such a tough decision but you all gave me a ton to think about that I had not considered! thanks!!