Switching a Kitchen/Dining Room (flooring, how much, countertops, stove)

[Forehead]

I have a question for folks with more experience concerning this stuff. This is something my wife and I are pondering in conjunction with a potential move down the line. How much does it cost to move a kitchen? There's a house that may be available to us in a few years in a nice area in Northern Virginia(belongs to family who are leaving the area) but one major issue is the kitchen...it is not large, and completely walled in besides the entrance from the dining room.

One option would be expanding, but it is bordered (behind walls) by a bathroom on one side, a stairwell going down on another, the back entrance/deck on side three, and the entrance to the dining room on the fourth, so expansion might be difficult.

Barring that, how much would it cost to, in effect, switch the kitchen and dining room, which has much more space. We're talking move the cabinets, the applicances, re-wire as necessary, run the gas line for the stove to the new room, whatever venting and permits are needed, etc. The whole shebang. I'm just looking for a ballpark guess as to how much something like that would cost, so we can determine if this might be a worthwhile option to pursue.

I don't know if you need specifics. As I said before, it's in Northern Virginia, and the house is a brick exterior, if that matters.

Thanks in advance.

[Big George]

Honestly, the answer is probably "too much." If you're going to hire it done, plan on spending $25,000. If you're doing it all yourself, plan half that.

That's an "out of the blue" guess, and probably sounds shockingly high, but kitchens & bathrooms are the most expensive rooms in houses.

You won't just be moving your cabinets and cupboards. You'll be replacing them. Your wife will probably want new appliances in the new kitchen (I'm not saying that in a smart alec way. Just being honest.). You'll also need to deal with new flooring in both rooms.


To me, the bigger question would be whether moving the kitchen would add to, or subtract from, the resale value of the house.

[Forehead]

Thanks for the quick reply, though I'd like others to chime in as well. The answer as far as resale value goes is that I doubt it would be affected much. The house is a 1950's rambler on a decent lot, very standard for the area, but the big thing is folks buying these houses, then tearing them down and building a McMansion in it's place. So in that regard, whatever we did inside the house probably wouldn't matter. We won't be doing a tear down/rebuild, but whoever the next owner is likely would. Value is in the location, etc.

[K'ledgeBldr]

Originally Posted by Big George

...plan on spending $25,000.

Laughable!
Try somewhere around 40k.

The good point George made-
It's about the value. Resale value! And the place you'll get specifics for your area will be a RE agent familiar with the immediate area.

[Big George]

Originally Posted by Forehead

Thanks for the quick reply, though I'd like others to chime in as well. The answer as far as resale value goes is that I doubt it would be affected much. The house is a 1950's rambler on a decent lot, very standard for the area, but the big thing is folks buying these houses, then tearing them down and building a McMansion in it's place. So in that regard, whatever we did inside the house probably wouldn't matter. We won't be doing a tear down/rebuild, but whoever the next owner is likely would. Value is in the location, etc.

Then honestly, I probably wouldn't do it.

Any reason you couldn't take out the wall - or part of the wall - between the kitchen & dining room? In one of my investment houses, I removed a non-load bearing wall, put in cabinets and a peninsula counter-top. It made an entirely different house out of it.

[Big George]

Originally Posted by K'ledgeBldr

Laughable!
Try somewhere around 40k.

That depends on where you live, but more than that - what materials you expect to install. If the OP wants absolute top-end everything (which doesn't seem to be the case) he could sink $75,000 or more into it. The sky is the limit.

[K'ledgeBldr]

George-
The OP stated NVA ( and I'll assume that would include the DC area).
Pie in the sky can apply to anything!
I was merely suggesting the least amount of cost.

OP-
If you'd like to see average cost check this out-

Remodeling Magazine: Home remodeling, kitchen and bath design, renovation, and building products for the professional remodeler

[Forehead]

Thanks for the input guys. Yes, this is in Northern Virginia; I can't do much about the cost of living here. As for materials, I don't need the highest end applicances or things like that, just reliable. I'll take a look at the link.

[desertsun41]

I feel you are all a bit high on estimates. While this involves nothing more then moving each item from one room to another, assuming these items (cabinets - countertops etc.) are salvageable, the real cost is in moving the utilities. Assuming you have no basement but rather a slab, moving of the electric, gas line and water feed line can go up into the attic but the waste line can not. If the distance is not too great, I have seen waste lines run outside the home but that looks horrible though bushes can be planted in front of it. Code may not allow it either.

No way will moving a kitchen improve value of a home. In the end the home still has a dining room and a kitchen. In fact there really is nothing anyone can do to improve the value of a home today as homes are nothing but depreciating assets. Probably will be for years to come. Perhaps the few isolated areas in this country where homes are not falling are right where you are in the DC suburbs.

Don't drop useless money into this home. Sell it as it is. As you said, it's common in your area that buyers are just bull dozing it down to build a giant house in it's place. These buyers will not be impressed by your kitchen and it's placement nor size.

[BirdieBelle]

Would this switch put the kitchen on the front of the house?

Not exactly a popular floor plan these days...