How much time do you spend in your kitchen? Have you ever thought about it, and added up the hours per week? Most people spend about 30 minutes in the morning in their kitchen, preparing and eating breakfast. If they’re home for lunch or dinner, they’ll spend about 45 minutes in the kitchen each meal, adding some extra minutes if they have to clean and/or wash dishes. So, all in all, most people spend between 2 and 3 hours in the kitchen daily. For those days when there’s a big meal to be prepared and served, that number increases to 6 to 8 hours.
Since people spend a lot of time in the kitchen, it makes sense that kitchen remodels are a worthwhile endeavor. Why remodel the kitchen? For starters, it’s always good to bring it “up-to-date” in form, function and style.
More Space Means More Convenience
Do you currently have enough cabinet space to store things? If you’re like most people, you don’t, but wish you did. During a kitchen remodel, it’s prime time to add more cabinet space and utilize spaces in the room in a better way. Functionally, you might need more space such that a wall gets knocked down between the kitchen and living room, opening up the room more. Is it time for new appliances or lighting fixtures? If what you’ve got is old and “almost obsolete,” then maybe it’s time for a remodel.
Today’s appliances are simply more energy efficient than older models. Therefore, when you replace older appliances with newer ones, you’re apt to reduce energy costs. Those old refrigerators and dishwashers and lighting systems from another era often suck up a lot of power. Newer ones don’t. During a remodel, you can opt for “little changes” that will mean a lot, such as having low-flow water faucets installed.
New Kitchens Can Help Increase Your Property’s Value
Ideally, you want to make your kitchen a more comfortable place to be, right? A remodel allows for improved ventilation, attractive new flooring, the addition of things like an “island” so you’ll have more countertop space, and even larger windows to let more natural light inside, brightening up the room.
Is a kitchen remodel worth it if you want to improve the home’s overall value? It sure is! Most people find they’ll recoup up to 70 percent of their kitchen renovation costs. Meanwhile, if you’re thinking of selling your home anytime soon, can you guess the room that will most likely help sell the house if it’s updated and looking fabulous? If you guessed the kitchen, you’re right. It’s the heart of a home and one of its main gathering places.
The Look of a Modern Kitchen
Old kitchens of a bygone era focused on having the fridge, sink and stove close to one another. Today’s kitchens, though, expand that thought, by opting for more open layouts, with added islands and even “cooking stations.” Oftentimes, couples with kids choose to remodel their kitchen in order to make it have a more “open” feeling. They want their kids to be able to run around and they don’t want to feel cramped in a poorly lit, small, old-fashioned room.
In the old days, people didn’t have so much stuff. Today, however, there are so many items available at affordable prices, so kitchens end up getting filled with all sorts of gadgets, from coffee makers to bread machines and then some. Where are all the “kitchen toys” going to go? When you find yourself asking that question aloud, it’s time to consider a proper kitchen remodeling job, in order to gain much needed counter and tabletop space, as well as more cabinets and shelves to store things.
Interestingly, the kitchen, over time, has morphed from being a place to prepare food to a place to hang out. One family member might sit at a desk and work on a laptop computer while the other watches TV from a sofa in the kitchen! Meanwhile, one family member is cooking pasta on the stove while another is talking on the phone, looking out the big window at the backyard. In essence, the kitchen is where a lot of life happens. Therefore, it needs to be one of the best rooms in the entire house. After all, it’s where family, friends and guests gather– pretty much everyone who enters the house ends up seeing the kitchen and spending time there.
Reynolds Home Builders of Tallahassee, Florida, specializes in kitchen remodeling. If you’d like to modernize the space to make it more stylish and efficient, with better appliances, a nicer layout/arrangement, improved surfaces, etc., please contact Reynolds Home Builders today at 850-508-5076.