kitchen reno financing

FutureMrsMerati · October 2016

I would highly recommend discussing the demolition of the wall so you're not so limited in your space! My husband and I did it during our renovation a couple of years ago and were surprised at how affordable it turned out to be (assuming cost-cutting is a part of your husband's rationale). I think the demolition and installation of the flush-mount beam was less than $5k for us, and it was a LONG beam - would have been even cheaper if we had opted for a drop-down. Might not hurt to look into it when you're collecting bids and talk about the possibilities with some contractors. You might be surprised how open he might be once he fully understands how much better your lifestyle could be and weighs that with the cost!

LillibetteV · October 2016

@FutureMrsMerati luckily we wouldn't even have to blow out a wall! I wish I could upload pictures, but basically the house is split between open living room and bar (double wide opening between them) and then the open concept dining room and kitchen/bath/laundry on the other. We have parties of 30 or more people between 5-10 times a year and so the extra entertaining space is nice. If you are standing in the living room you walk through to the bar, and then straight out to the deck through a slider which makes it feel really open. If we put the dining room where the bar is it wouldn't have the same flow so our disagreement is whether or not we're ok with that change in flow and entertaining space. I would expand the kitchen to have a second sink and bar area to make up for what we're missing but he doesn't like that as much. The rest of the time the bar has a big open space on the floor where we wrestle the dog hahaha.

The other thought it to steal space by moving the laundry to the second floor but that means pushing up the bathroom renovation up there lol. Why can't I just have $250k fall out of the sky so I can have the Property Brothers come and do my entire wish list?!

brij2006 · October 2016

@smeltter04 Honestly, yes. A ton. The flooring is a mahogany laminate. Then I painted the backsplash a deep purple and accented the rest of the kitchen with wine stuff. Image and video hosting by TinyPic

Have no clue if these pictures will show up or not, but the formatting is all funky.

LillibetteV · October 2016

also a dedicated dining room is an absolute must have for me - I despise eat in kitchens. We eat all our meals in our dining room since it's the only table we've got! And it's a brand new, freaking NICE table and chairs (although white linen dining chairs were probably dumb since we're planning on kids. what can I say I'm a risk taker lol). That's why it stays where it is or it takes over the bar.

brij2006 · October 2016

brij2006 said:

@smeltter04 Honestly, yes. A ton. The flooring is a mahogany laminate. Then I painted the backsplash a deep purple and accented the rest of the kitchen with wine stuff.

Have no clue if these pictures will show up or not, but the formatting is all funky.

Woo it worked!

Okay, so the top picture was when we bought the house. We knocked out the opening and the fridge space to the left to make it more open. Ripped up the carpet and linoleum, and laid laminate.
All of our appliances were 2nd hand with the exception of the dishwasher, but we just bought a $250 cheapie on black Friday knowing we would do a complete overhaul in 5-10 years.

The bottom picture is an older one, but I've since updated the table and chairs to an espresso counter height, and we have a microwave mounted above the stove with some primed cabinets above.

LillibetteV · October 2016

@brij2006 how did you get the pictures to work!?

brij2006 · October 2016

@LillibetteV I did it the old way. So uploaded to Tinypic.com then clicked the HTML View button in the reply and entered the HTML code. PITA, but it's finally something that worked.

smetter04 · October 2016

@brij2006 your photos attached, thanks! Your kitchen updates made a world of difference! Helps convince me to do the DIY updates even though removing wallpaper and painting around cabinets sounds dreadful lol. Another question - is your flooring the click-lock laminate? How has it held up in a kitchen environment, especially with a child?

short+sassy · October 2016

brij2006 said:

smetter04 said:

LillibetteV said:

@brij2006 does yours have yellow formica counters and a pink tile floor that's cracked? Seriously when did yellow counters and pink floors ever look good together?!

Our kitchen has pink sheet vinyl flooring with the "butcher block look" laminate countertops, and seafoam green paint with ugly brown wallpaper as the "wainscoting." We're sooo ready to rip it all out, but we don't have the funds for it right now so we're thinking about DIY-ing what we can and hoping that fresh paint and new flooring will make the cabinets and countertop less offensive-looking. I'm definitely following this thread and interested in hearing how others finance their projects.

I wish I could figure out how to upload pictures. That's exactly what we already did with our kitchen. Ripped up the carpet/linoleum, opened up the doorways, installed laminate, painted, and changed out the cabinet hardware. That was about 7 years ago now and it cost us $700 total to do it ourselves. There was no way we could afford to fully renovate it then, and we weren't willing to borrow to do so.
So the next will likely be a full on remodel.

The kitchen on the tenant side of my personal home has mauve pink tiled walls. My H hates it, but I think it's a cute "retro" look. Literally "retro", because I'm sure it is left over from a '50s or '60s rehab, lol.

@LillibetteV, I feel your pain. My home is over 100 years old though we were "sort of" fortunate in the electrical and plumbing was fairly updated when we bought it. When we got new windows installed, some of the windows still had "pulley" systems that would have been original to the house.

We have beautiful heart pine hardwood floors, but I think they are also original to the house and are on their last legs. We got them refinished before we moved in, but that was the last time it could be done. Now they're too thin to be refinished again. Oh! And there is no subfloor where those old hardwoods are. It's a raised house and there is nothing between us and the ground, except those floors, lol.

This was fun. When we redid the siding a few years ago, we discovered each corner of the house had a cypress log in the frame instead of more typical construction wood. Man, that is some good wood. We left them. They looked like they were in as a good a shape as when they were put in 100 years ago. Whereas some of the other wood framing had to be completely replaced.

We also have four coal fireplaces inside the interior wall between the two units. Two each, facing into each unit. I'm irritated at whoever walled them in, lol. The last two houses I lived in had old coal fireplaces. They are such a cute architectural feature.

brij2006 · October 2016

@smetter04 We rented a wallpaper steamer to remove it. That made things so much easier.

The flooring is from Lumber Liquidators and is the click lock type. Honestly, it's great for living spaces, but horrible for kitchens. We have it in our family room and it has done great. Also, if your floor isn't perfectly level then it will buckle and/or spread apart. We've had it installed for 6 years now and I want to rip it up when we do the full remodel.
However, it has held up pretty well in regards to a kid and a big dog. Our hardwood has not.

short+sassy · October 2016

smetter04 said:

@brij2006 your photos attached, thanks! Your kitchen updates made a world of difference! Helps convince me to do the DIY updates even though removing wallpaper and painting around cabinets sounds dreadful lol. Another question - is your flooring the click-lock laminate? How has it held up in a kitchen environment, especially with a child?

I put clickable laminate flooring in my tenant unit about five years ago. It has lived through various tenants large dogs and one tenant's three unruly children, all under the age of 9. It looks just as good as the day we put it in. I would strongly recommend at least a 10mm thickness for high traffic areas.

Well, I tried to attach a pic.

Honestly though, I also mentioned it above, wood-look tile is way better than laminate wood flooring. It looks even more like hardwood flooring, is more durable, same/cheaper price than laminate wood, and is even easier to install. Unfortunately, it is a fairly recent product and wasn't really around when I replaced the flooring in that unit. I did use some about a year ago in another duplex.

brij2006 · October 2016

short+sassy said:

smetter04 said:

@brij2006 your photos attached, thanks! Your kitchen updates made a world of difference! Helps convince me to do the DIY updates even though removing wallpaper and painting around cabinets sounds dreadful lol. Another question - is your flooring the click-lock laminate? How has it held up in a kitchen environment, especially with a child?

I put clickable laminate flooring in my tenant unit about five years ago. It has lived through various tenants large dogs and one tenant's three unruly children, all under the age of 9. It looks just as good as the day we put it in. I would strongly recommend at least a 10mm thickness for high traffic areas.
Well, I tried to attach a pic.
Honestly though, I also mentioned it above, wood-look tile is way better than laminate wood flooring. It looks even more like hardwood flooring, is more durable, same/cheaper price than laminate wood, and is even easier to install. Unfortunately, it is a fairly recent product and wasn't really around when I replaced the flooring in that unit. I did use some about a year ago in another duplex.

This is what we've priced out to replace our current flooring with.
Only way I'll do it though is if we install in-floor heating. Tile in Midwest winters is very cold.

csuave · October 2016

I second the idea of seeing what a credit union has to offer. Three years ago around the time of my wedding I noticed my CU had some kind of loan special...1.9% I think and you could use it for just about anything. I remember looking at it and thinking is this real? I just checked their site and nothing close to that now, but you never know.

Also, wallpaper steamers. H wanted to buy/rent one for some removal. I checked craigslist and there were several. I bought one and figured I could resell it without having much of a loss on it....haven't tried yet though it is still in the basement.

short+sassy · October 2016

brij2006 said:

short+sassy said:

smetter04 said:

@brij2006 your photos attached, thanks! Your kitchen updates made a world of difference! Helps convince me to do the DIY updates even though removing wallpaper and painting around cabinets sounds dreadful lol. Another question - is your flooring the click-lock laminate? How has it held up in a kitchen environment, especially with a child?

I put clickable laminate flooring in my tenant unit about five years ago. It has lived through various tenants large dogs and one tenant's three unruly children, all under the age of 9. It looks just as good as the day we put it in. I would strongly recommend at least a 10mm thickness for high traffic areas.
Well, I tried to attach a pic.
Honestly though, I also mentioned it above, wood-look tile is way better than laminate wood flooring. It looks even more like hardwood flooring, is more durable, same/cheaper price than laminate wood, and is even easier to install. Unfortunately, it is a fairly recent product and wasn't really around when I replaced the flooring in that unit. I did use some about a year ago in another duplex.

This is what we've priced out to replace our current flooring with.
Only way I'll do it though is if we install in-floor heating. Tile in Midwest winters is very cold.

Good point! That's not as much of an issue in my neck of the woods, lol. Though most people do put down throw rugs in their living areas, if it isn't carpeted.

jtmh2012 · October 2016

LillibetteV said:

@AprilZ81 I'm a little worried about dealing with the bank. We originally put down 5% (I was strategically young and broke and took advantage of a low income loan my state offers before my next raise made me ineligible) but we've paid off 10% of the original purchase price. Our equity primarily comes from the market increase and repairs we've made over the past 3 years. When we refinanced last year they said we had only 15% equity (although the 800 credit score and the fact that I didn't need to use them for my refi got me the loan w/out adding PMI anyways) and the local realtors I spoke to literally laughed and said the bank undervalued our house by at least $30k.

Sorry for being a little late to the party. Needed to look this up before I posted it.

Not sure if your bank offers this or if you have enough in savings for it to even be a possibility. My credit union offers "Shared Secured Loans" and "Certificate Pledged Loans". Essentially they use your savings account or certificate of deposit as the collateral against the loan. The money in your account still accrues interest, you just can't withdraw it, but as you pay off the loan, those funds become available to you again. The best thing is the rate is almost free at least at my credit union. Savings/CD rate + 2-3%. So right now, effectively 2-3%.

I haven't taken one out yet, but I have considered it for various things.

LillibetteV · October 2016

jtmh2012 said:

LillibetteV said:

@AprilZ81 I'm a little worried about dealing with the bank. We originally put down 5% (I was strategically young and broke and took advantage of a low income loan my state offers before my next raise made me ineligible) but we've paid off 10% of the original purchase price. Our equity primarily comes from the market increase and repairs we've made over the past 3 years. When we refinanced last year they said we had only 15% equity (although the 800 credit score and the fact that I didn't need to use them for my refi got me the loan w/out adding PMI anyways) and the local realtors I spoke to literally laughed and said the bank undervalued our house by at least $30k.

Sorry for being a little late to the party. Needed to look this up before I posted it.
Not sure if your bank offers this or if you have enough in savings for it to even be a possibility. My credit union offers "Shared Secured Loans" and "Certificate Pledged Loans". Essentially they use your savings account or certificate of deposit as the collateral against the loan. The money in your account still accrues interest, you just can't withdraw it, but as you pay off the loan, those funds become available to you again. The best thing is the rate is almost free at least at my credit union. Savings/CD rate + 2-3%. So right now, effectively 2-3%.
I haven't taken one out yet, but I have considered it for various things.

I don't know how much I like the idea of them having my savings account hostage. Part of the point of financing vs. paying cash is to have more flexibility....

labro · October 2016

@short+sassy This is so OT but if your heart pine floors get to the point where you just have to replace them definitely try and save the wood for something else. Maybe shiplap walls or something that doesn't require thick floor boards? That's so sad they can't be refinished again! What a treasure to have!

csuave · October 2016

jtmh2012 said:

LillibetteV said:

@AprilZ81 I'm a little worried about dealing with the bank. We originally put down 5% (I was strategically young and broke and took advantage of a low income loan my state offers before my next raise made me ineligible) but we've paid off 10% of the original purchase price. Our equity primarily comes from the market increase and repairs we've made over the past 3 years. When we refinanced last year they said we had only 15% equity (although the 800 credit score and the fact that I didn't need to use them for my refi got me the loan w/out adding PMI anyways) and the local realtors I spoke to literally laughed and said the bank undervalued our house by at least $30k.

Sorry for being a little late to the party. Needed to look this up before I posted it.
Not sure if your bank offers this or if you have enough in savings for it to even be a possibility. My credit union offers "Shared Secured Loans" and "Certificate Pledged Loans". Essentially they use your savings account or certificate of deposit as the collateral against the loan. The money in your account still accrues interest, you just can't withdraw it, but as you pay off the loan, those funds become available to you again. The best thing is the rate is almost free at least at my credit union. Savings/CD rate + 2-3%. So right now, effectively 2-3%.
I haven't taken one out yet, but I have considered it for various things.

This might have been the deal I saw at my Credit Union with the crazy low rate.

jtmh2012 · October 2016

csuave said:

jtmh2012 said:

LillibetteV said:

@AprilZ81 I'm a little worried about dealing with the bank. We originally put down 5% (I was strategically young and broke and took advantage of a low income loan my state offers before my next raise made me ineligible) but we've paid off 10% of the original purchase price. Our equity primarily comes from the market increase and repairs we've made over the past 3 years. When we refinanced last year they said we had only 15% equity (although the 800 credit score and the fact that I didn't need to use them for my refi got me the loan w/out adding PMI anyways) and the local realtors I spoke to literally laughed and said the bank undervalued our house by at least $30k.

Sorry for being a little late to the party. Needed to look this up before I posted it.
Not sure if your bank offers this or if you have enough in savings for it to even be a possibility. My credit union offers "Shared Secured Loans" and "Certificate Pledged Loans". Essentially they use your savings account or certificate of deposit as the collateral against the loan. The money in your account still accrues interest, you just can't withdraw it, but as you pay off the loan, those funds become available to you again. The best thing is the rate is almost free at least at my credit union. Savings/CD rate + 2-3%. So right now, effectively 2-3%.
I haven't taken one out yet, but I have considered it for various things.

This might have been the deal I saw at my Credit Union with the crazy low rate.

Navy Federal?

csuave · October 2016

Navy Federal?

No, this was a few years ago at a CU associated with my old work.

kitchen reno financing

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