Improving your home’s value helps you get the best price if you want to eventually sell and move. Renovating your kitchen is one of the major ways to boost your property’s value. As one of the most-used rooms of the home, improving your kitchen can have one of the biggest impacts on your property’s value. It also gives you a nicer place to live. However, it can be hard to know where to start. Here are some good kitchen renovation ideas to inspire you. To fund the work you could use a home improvement loan, your savings, or other forms of finance.
Add accent pieces
Accent pieces are important to make your kitchen stand out. Nowadays, people don’t want a bland kitchen without character. Accent pieces can help your kitchen stand out. One of the simplest choices you can make is an accent wall, whether that’s with paint, kitchen-safe wallpaper, or coloured tiles.
If you’re feeling a bit more adventurous, you could consider repainting some of your cabinets as an accent area or installing accent lights to help highlight some of your kitchen’s best features. The great thing about these changes is that they don’t require huge amounts of building work, making them quick and easy.
Add a kitchen island
Kitchen islands are popular these days for convenience. Whether you use them primarily for preparing or serving food, or simply as a space for enjoying your meals. They can also help to break up the space in large kitchens and can be ideal for boosting your productivity in the kitchen as well as your home’s value through this modern and popular upgrade.
Keep your kitchen style consistent
One of the big things to consider while planning your kitchen renovations is the overall style you want to go for. While stainless steel appliances and black-white contrast are popular at the moment, this won’t go as well in a cottage-style kitchen. This leaves you with two main choices – either you can keep renovations to the style of your current kitchen, or you look at renovating your entire kitchen in the new style. If your kitchen is looking a bit tired, the latter can be a great choice but b it does come with increased costs and longer work time.
Give your walls a makeover
Let’s be honest, we often neglect our kitchen walls. The main focus of the room is obviously on the appliances and cabinets, but having neat and tidy walls is important to help keep the value of your property high. This can be as simple as a fresh coat of paint in a good modern colour. Or, you could look at the tiling or wallpaper options. You could even look at putting up shelves in order to make the most of any blank wall space.
Update your worktops
When we’re in the kitchen, we spend a lot of time at the worktops, so this is another big area where you can add value to your property. Granite and marble are popular worktop materials and often add the most value, but you could also look at options such as wood. Try to stick to these hard-wearing choices so that you don’t have to worry about upkeep or replacing them too often.
Tile backsplash
Tile backsplashes are popular both for the slick and modern look they give, as well as the convenience of being able to wipe them clean. While it might seem easier to just repaint walls every so often, adding a tile backsplash can add a good amount of value to your property. Plus, it gives you a chance to try decorative tile patterns. This is one of the top small kitchen renovation ideas, as it lets you enhance the area without having to worry too much about space.
Add additional storage
Another idea for renovating small kitchens is adding more room for storage. Extra storage is a surefire way to add value to any property. In the kitchen, more cabinets or a pantry space will always be a popular choice. Hanging pots and pans has become more popular recently and can also add a feature look. It’s also worth trying to make the most of forgotten space, such as the area between corner cabinets, or space above the fridge. Consult with a joiner to see where you might be able to make extra storage space in your kitchen.
Extending out
If you want to go for the biggest kitchen renovation ideas and the biggest added value, an extension could be a good idea. This will let you create more space for a breakfast nook, a kitchen-diner area, or a separate space for a utility room. Whatever you feel your kitchen is lacking, you can use an extension to create space. This is one of the most expensive renovations, but it can also add the most value.
How to pay for kitchen renovations
The cost of kitchen renovations can vary. Adding a feature wall or adding extra storage might be a relatively cheap project, but large renovations such as adding an island or having your kitchen extended can be more costly. You should always weigh up the potential gains and the reason you want to renovate your kitchen against the cost of the project.
If you’re unsure how to afford the cost of these renovations, there are a wide range of different options, including:
- Using personal savings
- Taking out a personal loan
- Using a credit card
- Take out a home improvement loan
- Remortgaging your home and releasing some of the equity built up in it
Read more about how to afford an extension, or how to use a home improvement loan to help you get the kitchen you want. Remember, it’s always worth getting professional advice on the kinds of improvements you’re looking to make as well as how best to finance the renovations.