3 DIY Kitchen Improvements Tips, Property Guide, Real Estate

3 DIY Kitchen Improvements

5 July 2020
When it comes to the most important room in the house, many surveys and studies have pointed to the kitchen, including recent research reported by the CheatSheet that found millennials ranked this space as a top consideration.

If you’re getting ready to put your house on the market among the Birmingham homes for sale, you’ll want your kitchen to shine which can increase its values and get more offers coming in. That doesn’t mean you need to shell out thousands for a total remodel, there are many relatively easy DIY improvements that can make a significant difference without the high cost.

Transform Your Cabinets

One of the easiest ways to give your kitchen a makeover is to paint the cabinets and drawers. It costs very little and won’t take long, but it will help increase your home’s value and make it a more enjoyable space to use. This works best on unfinished, painted, stained wood, compressed/faux wood, or any material that you can sand down with some sandpaper so that the paint will adhere. You can paint laminates but it won’t be long-lasting. Either way, be sure to use high-quality paint for the best coverage and results.

As painting your cabinets requires removing the hardware, this is a perfect time to replace that too. Go bold with hardware on white cabinets, but if you have warm tones, think bronze, black, or gold. For a cold grey, black, pewter, or silver works well. If you have cabinet doors that won’t stay closed, it’s easy to fix that by replacing the rolling latches. To finish this project off, consider under-cabinet lighting which makes it much easier to read recipes and looks attractive too.

Peel and Stick Backsplash

A traditional tile backsplash can give your kitchen a much-needed facelift, but if that project is out of your league, you can easily do it by using peel and stick tile, available in a wide range of patterns and colors. All you have to do is mark out where you want it to go, clean the surface, peel, and apply. It can give the space a whole new look in just a few hours. Does that make it the best finish for kitchen cabinets though? It can if that is what you are looking for, plus the price can be super attractive to give your kitchen an entirely new look.

Vinyl is generally the cheapest option, made with plastic backing or foam, but there are many others, like stone, gel, or glass. Although antique mirrored glass is on the higher end of the price range, around $25 per square foot as compared to $8 for vinyl, it provides a glamorous look while opening up your kitchen and making it look more spacious.

Install a Water Filtration System

Over the last decade or so, water filtration systems have become one of the most desirable features in a kitchen, often requested in kitchen remodeling projects as Consumer Reports notes. While bottled water was often the go-to option for purity and taste, all that plastic is bad for the environment and it’s a lot more expensive than installing an under-sink water-filtration system. Even if you’ve never done any plumbing, this is a project you can easily tackle. There are just two components, a compact gooseneck faucet and a plastic filter, simple for anyone to install.

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