AIBU to ask how much a kitchen should cost?

MichaelaS · 2012-12-15T21:57:09+00:00

WI could spin you a tale about cowboy builders and being terribly ripped off and being left with half a kitchen and no money, but it would be a lie. I just want to find out how much kitchens cost. We have a medium sized kitchen (big for London, normal for everywhere else. We want a new kitchen. With appliances (dishwasher, cooker, fridge). and a sink. and some worktops and cupboards. We would like it to look like it isn't entirely made out of chipboard. We spent today going around several kitchen designers and getting quotes. I was a bit [fshock] at the price. AIBU to ask how much you would expect a kitchen to cost, including fitting? I know there is probably a section for this, but there has been some alcohol involved tonight and I can't be bothered to find it. I know IABU about that bit. [wink]

HollyBerryBush · 15/12/2012 21:58

Mine is 12 foot by 15, so really depending on the quality of the units, the electrics, the replastering, tiling, plumbing, flooring, I wouldnt expect any change from 20K

mercibucket · 15/12/2012 22:09

If you're not changing the layout, and want it done cheap, look at replacing the doors and worktop or even getting the door sprayed for a gloss look

We spent 2 grand all in on our kitchen inc tiling but without new oven or fridge, but I shopped around a lot for that and organised fitting separately. Quotes came in between 4 and 8 grand inc fitting for our kitchen, to give you an idea of price. If you go with the fitters from the company, you will pay more for electrics etc as well when they come to look at the kitchen. I was given a right load of cobblers about size of wires etc.

Guess it depends where you ask. I just went to homebase, b/q, magnet etc, nothing too fancy

mercibucket · 15/12/2012 22:09

If you're not changing the layout, and want it done cheap, look at replacing the doors and worktop or even getting the door sprayed for a gloss look

We spent 2 grand all in on our kitchen inc tiling but without new oven or fridge, but I shopped around a lot for that and organised fitting separately. Quotes came in between 4 and 8 grand inc fitting for our kitchen, to give you an idea of price. If you go with the fitters from the company, you will pay more for electrics etc as well when they come to look at the kitchen. I was given a right load of cobblers about size of wires etc.

Guess it depends where you ask. I just went to homebase, b/q, magnet etc, nothing too fancy

RainbowsFriend · 15/12/2012 22:11

My last kitchen cost £8000 not including appliances, we fitted it ourselves but got someone in to do the worktops. It wasn't the cheapest looking -wood doors etc....

apostrophethesnowman · 15/12/2012 22:16

yabu to ask, because the answer is "it depends".

It really depends on what type of kitchen you want, whether you want appliances, flooring etc.

There are too many variables to get a price this way.

You can spend as little or as much as you want to/can afford really.

hermioneweasley · 15/12/2012 22:17

Mine cost £8k for units (with wood doors) and appliances. Another £2k ish for granite work tops. You can spend as much or as little as you want - we looked at one place where one cupboard was £5k!

We have 7 double units, one single, one tall larder one half width tall larder plus 7 drawers.

Original poster

MichaelaS · 15/12/2012 22:23

thanks all. We dont have the luxury of just changing doors and surfaces because the kitchen looks like a tribute to 1950s caravaning. the units are currently a) nasty and b) unsafe.

we would like something "non budget" style but that was before i heard the prices so we might go for more cost effective suppliers now.

from the replies so far "not much change from 20k" is the closest. infact more like 30k. we do want a range cooker though which is 2k. again that idea might be revisited now....

its all our own fault for moving to a fixer upper. should have worked out cost estimates for big ticket items before buying the house i think. gah! still, its the recession and we are very lucky to have a roof over our heads let alone be buying a kitchen.

OP posts:

BellaVita · 15/12/2012 22:25

We have just had a new kitchen, not large but by no means small.

Granite work tops, oak cupboards, new appliances, range cooker, utility done too. We also had our floor tiled from the hall to the utility.

Originally when we went looking, DH asked me how much I thought it was going to cost... I said oooh about £10,000. WRONG!! All in all it came in at around £20,000 with £2,000 of that being the cost of fitting.

WelshMaenad · 15/12/2012 22:27

I honestly read this as 'how much should a kitten cost' and was preparing my plea for you to consider adopting an adult cat from a rescue centre because they are so much harder to rehome.

I'm such a dork. I'll see myself out.

BellaVita · 15/12/2012 22:29

BUT I am in LOVE with my deep pan drawers... range cooker... built in microwave that no longer takes up space on my work surface... glass splash back... I could go on all day

WelshMaenad · 15/12/2012 22:30

Have you thought about freestanding kitchen units, like off of Ikea?

ViperInTheManger · 15/12/2012 22:35

Mine is a kitchen diner so about 5m square but not fitted all the way around IYSWIM, island unit, granite worktops, karndean floor. Total, including all the plastering, electrics, fitting, etc was between £30-35k

Shocking amount but worth it for how lovely it has made the house and how we live in it.

emsyj · 15/12/2012 22:36

How long's a piece of string, really... We've just done ours (2nd coat of paint on the ceiling today so it's all shiny and lovely). We had other work done at the same time (extension to both kitchen and dining room, wall put up to make separate rooms etc) and in total for a 10' by 12' extension with Velux window, plus kitchen extended by about 4 feet also with massive Velux window, plus installation of kitchen (cost of units including oven & hob and extractor and sink/taps but nothing else about £4k) price was £10k. Flooring in extension and kitchen Karndean £1400. Electrics and plastering a bit more. FIL did the wall tiling and DH has done the painting. So for less than £20k we have a new (Howden's) kitchen plus an extension which has given us a new dining room, leaving us with the old dining room as a new living room...

You can get something nice for a good price if you have time to spend to shop around and do bits yourself. If you want to go to a shop and say, 'design and fit me a kitchen' and have it be hassle-free then it will cost more, although obviously tis more convenient that way.

mercibucket · 15/12/2012 22:40

Wow to some of these prices! Where do you shop to get those kinds of kitchens? (Genuine q not being snidey). Am more a bargain basement kinda girl :) Ikea kitchens look lovely to me, and wren were also v cheap although I"m not convinced by their quality. Have you looked at independents for quotes? Some small companies have really lovely quality units and do great designs as well.

mercibucket · 15/12/2012 22:40

Wow to some of these prices! Where do you shop to get those kinds of kitchens? (Genuine q not being snidey). Am more a bargain basement kinda girl :) Ikea kitchens look lovely to me, and wren were also v cheap although I"m not convinced by their quality. Have you looked at independents for quotes? Some small companies have really lovely quality units and do great designs as well.

golemmings · 15/12/2012 22:42

We've just paid 700 for a new range cooker. It's only 1m wide rather than 110 though.

Having our kitchen done at the moment. The kitchen, utility and shower room cost 13k which includes fridge, microwave, over 5m long run of cupboards, island unit, design etc. It excludes electrics and tiling because they were part of the build.
its coming next week and whilst it won't be finished before Christmas we will have a functional kitchen and heating for the first time in weeks and that is very exciting!

Loshad · 15/12/2012 22:45

have clearly had too much wine, initially read this as how much kittens should cost my answer was going to be free but there you go......

WelshMaenad · 15/12/2012 22:46

links arms in solidarity with loshad

Tizwozliz · 16/12/2012 00:31

3.5k for units, appliances, worktops, flooring, electrics, knocking down a wall, plastering etc.

We did do the vast majority of it ourselves though which obviously has a huge impact on costs

<a class="break-all" href="///www.flickr.com/photos/83246699@N00/7184253602/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">/www.flickr.com/photos/83246699@N00/7184253602/

Kitchen is mostly from Ikea, they were 50% cheaper than the next nearest quote we had (homebase)

30 grand on a kitchen would be ridiculous when our house only cost 100!

Oh, and this is the board you want www.mumsnet.com/Talk/property

Tizwozliz · 16/12/2012 00:32

One day I'll get these links to work first time

www.flickr.com/photos/83246699@N00/7184253602/

Primrose123 · 16/12/2012 00:39

I thought it said kittens too.

sausagesandwich34 · 16/12/2012 00:48

if you are buying froma shed, play the quote game

they all price match and offer further discount to a greater or lesser extent

find a kitchen you like, get that company to quote, then take it to another place, get them to quote it and if it's cheaper go back to the place you like the units the best with the quote and ask them what's the best price

in terms of the cost of the kitchen, it really is as long as a piece of string

general rule of thumb
drawers cost more than standard units
pullout units etc fab -but also drive the cost up
match the brands on any visible appliances (range and hood)
any integrated appliances don't need to match -go for the ones with the best rating for their category
carcasses are all the same, it's the doors that dictate the cost of the kitchen
don't feel like you have to buy the whole thing from one place
if you source a private fitter rather than getting the kitchen company, you will get the fit cheaper however if there are any issue during the fit, the fitter damages part of the kitchen etc, it will be difficult to resolve and potentially time consuming
buy the best worktop you can afford -it makes a huge difference to the look of your room

if you are arranging your own fitter questions you need to ask...
do they have liability insurance
what qualifications do they hold
do they subcontract work to other trades, will they co-ordinate this
do they have the correct tools/experience for mitre joints?
how long do they anticipate the job to take
can they provide references
what guarantee do they offer
have they ever fitted a kitchen made by the supplier

Loveweekends10 · 16/12/2012 01:00

I've got a 4m by 6 m kitchen and cabinets and worktop cost £2500 from ikea. Fitting £500 as builder did it. It's cheap and it's fab.

TheCatIsEatingIt · 16/12/2012 12:26

Mine is teeny-tiny. I had quotes from £3000-£8000 excluding appliances, for all other parts/decorations and the fitting of it.

roses2 · 16/12/2012 12:58

Have you looked on ebay? You can buy some lovely ex display kitchens there half price. A range cooker there will cost ~£1k instead of £2k.