Shall I get a free standing kitchen?

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We're hoping to sell next year but don't have a lot of money to do up the house.

The kitchen is awful, whoever moves in will definitely have to tear it out but I can't afford to by a new fitted kitchen and have it installed. Plus it'd be a gamble, the new people might want to rip it out anyway.

WIBU to just rip it all out, paint it a nice colour and put a freestanding kitchen in? I was thinking this could be a good solution as I think I could afford it, it'd look much nicer than what we have there s o hopefully increase saleability and if they're just going to rip it out anyway then we could sell it on - or leave it there if they want it.

The current kitchen is a tatty, falling apart 80s number! I always meant to replace it but it's (just about) functional so it never reached the top of the priority list.

A free-standing seems like a straightforward solution that I think I can afford. What am I missing?! Will it put buyers off?

It's a galley kitchen which already has a freestanding range oven. (Which is probably overkill for the size of kitchen by we love it!)

FWIW my house will likely either be bought by a property developer or a young family who want to be near the good schools and can live with this house's off putting quirks to get more space for their money. (That's why we bought it, anyway. Most people moving round here are young families)

... dealing with bad walls, I mean.

Yes, making good the walls could really add to the cost and you won't know what you're dealing with until you pull out the units, the whole job could snowball. 👎

@PresentingPercy

Well it wasn’t me who didn’t want to have a developer buy it. I have no politics. I would just want the best money and not talk down potential buyers because of some anti landlord beliefs. I don’t care either way and I would worry about what else you hadn’t maintained. A developer wouldn’t.

You don’t have a great property by your own admission. It’s had leaks, you have warped a unit, bits are hanging off it and a cupboard door is missing (Why not put it back?) plus it’s obviously as old as the hills if it’s 500mm. I guess you don’t have the money to do anything about making it look like the kitchens above. But it’s not me with the problem and no money.

Erm, are we on the same thread?

Please point to where I have said I don't want to sell to a developer? (I've said more than once I'm planning to sell to them).

Or, where I've expressed anti-landlord sentiment? (A tip - you won't find it, I was a landlord myself for some years).

You're making stuff up and then admonishing me about it, it's quite bizarre!

Apologies OP, I assumed you'd be taking the kitchen with you .
Anyhow, if you haven't got much money to spend then you are not going to achieve the look of the kitchens you've posted. They are beautiful, but complemented by lovely flooring, perfect walls, expensive lighting etc. If you're doing it on a shoestring it just won't look like that.

Not a fan. I get put off just by free standing ovens nevermind whole kitchens

@Darkestseasonofall

Apologies OP, I assumed you'd be taking the kitchen with you . Anyhow, if you haven't got much money to spend then you are not going to achieve the look of the kitchens you've posted. They are beautiful, but complemented by lovely flooring, perfect walls, expensive lighting etc. If you're doing it on a shoestring it just won't look like that.

Well, I thought I could if they don't want it, or leave it if they do.

I don't think I'll reach the look if those kitchens (especially the bespoke one! That was just an example for those who are imagining freestanding as rustic and mismatched to show what's possible).

But I think we could do a fairly decent job. My kitchen in my old flat looked brilliant when I'd done it up to sell on a tight budget.

@CoronaIsWatching

Not a fan. I get put off just by free standing ovens nevermind whole kitchens

Our oven's already freestanding but it's a brilliant large range oven, it'll help sell the kitchen whatever we do.

I'd look again at getting replacement doors; we had some from this company made to measure for not a lot.

It's not going to be worth your while replacing a functional though tired and tatty kitchen. Lots of people actively want to put a new kitchen of their own choosing into their new home despite the cost. Lots of people are prepared to do it themselves on a budget and would rather have what they want and what suits them than what you choose to do cheaply. Save your money for your new place. See if you can find a replacement door and drawer front to fit and put some fablon over the damaged cupboard interior so it's at least hygienic and easy to wipe down.

Don't include your oven unless you know it definitely won't go in your new place - a buyer may be prepared to pay you extra for it. Honestly, the things you are worrying about are unlikely to put buyers off.

You also might want to think about pipe work. Freestanding kitchens look great in a catalogue when they are placed flat against the walls, but wonky walls and protruding pipes might mean they don’t touch the walls. You might have to saw channels and holes.

This is what the tiny kitchen in my old flat looked like before we sold. This is the level of finish I'm imagining. Nothing amazing but clean and functional.

The whole thing cost us £2.5k including labour, materials, units and oven.

FWIW I went back about 3 years later to talk with the nice people we sold it to and they'd kept the kitchen. They were first time buyers too.

(It looks bigger than it is in the pic because if the fisheye lens.)

Sorry the image is probably tiny, I'm on my phone.

Nice work op, I like a person who finishes to a high standard, that looks fab for the budget.

@ChickensMightFly

Nice work op, I like a person who finishes to a high standard, that looks fab for the budget.

Thanks!

It was the Wickes seriously budget range. I think they were called "take away kitchens" or something like that.

And the wall tiles were from a shop called "Al Murad", they were great - a wide selection and great prices. I shopped round loads to find decent tiles that didn't cost the earth, the big name shops seemed a total rip off to me!

These guys, I can highly recommend them - or, I could 10 years ago anyway!

www.al-murad.co.uk/

The kitchen in the flat looks lovely, tbh you either need to do it to that finish or not at all. A half measure will just be seen as that.

As others have said, low budget spruce up of the kitchen as it is. Possible new handles, new tap, fresh paint, curtain on the open cupboard etc.

Have you a picture of the current kitchen? It might help to put things in context?
I'm a great fan of cheap and cheerful make overs but I still would not bother with that much improvement to sell the house, unless it was really letting the rest of the house down and you were sure you would make it back on your asking price. Everyone has said a freestanding kitchen would put buyers off.

When you say 50cm wide units is that the front to back dimension? Those are quite old!

reminded me of this
www.apartmenttherapy.com/before-amp-after-a-townhouse-kitchen-brightens-up-227830

We got a mortgage on an old decrepit Victorian house once all it had in the kitchen was a massive old coal aga and a manky freestanding sink.so not really a functional kitchen.

Lender didn’t even mention it.

Surely an Ikea freestanding kitchen is actually more expensive than an Ikea fitted kitchen?

It will make it un-mortgage-able so I would steer well clear. Just really clean it and declutter when you come to sell. People like a project more than a new poor quality one they'll feel bad about ripping out.

@Mnuser1584

It will make it un-mortgage-able so I would steer well clear. Just really clean it and declutter when you come to sell. People like a project more than a new poor quality one they'll feel bad about ripping out.

It won’t make it unmortgageable. We got a mortgage. Our kitchen was made up of one freestanding gas cooker and a sink. Lender didn’t even mention it.

I still would not bother with that much improvement to sell the house, unless it was really letting the rest of the house down and you were sure you would make it back on your asking price.

Yes, I do think if I can find a way to make the kitchen better for a budget price, it'll make it back on the asking price. But also, I think it'll make it a consideration for people with not a lot of money, who are stretching themselves to buy something right at the bottom of the market and who just don't have the spare cash to be buying new kitchens. I think they're my market (plus property developers, before a certain poster jumps down my throat! . )

We'll be putting it on the market for about £200k, and that's right at the bottom of the price range for a 3 bed house round here. I'm not selling a pretty house. I'm selling an ugly (from the outside) house with large living space for the budget, in a desirable location, but with a tiny bathroom and back garden. It's a practical choice for people with not enough money to make aesthetic choices!

I want it to be a consideration for families who want to be able to just move in, even if there are plenty of things things they'll change over time, they need to be able to live in it from day 1.

I'm worried if it's not in move-in condition, I simply won't get any offers from families who don't want to do work up front.

People who have the money to be doing work, will simply buy a property down the road that's better. Unless they love doing work I suppose!

That's my reasoning anyway.

[quote NotMeNoNo]Have you a picture of the current kitchen? It might help to put things in context?
I'm a great fan of cheap and cheerful make overs but I still would not bother with that much improvement to sell the house, unless it was really letting the rest of the house down and you were sure you would make it back on your asking price. Everyone has said a freestanding kitchen would put buyers off.

When you say 50cm wide units is that the front to back dimension? Those are quite old!

reminded me of this
www.apartmenttherapy.com/before-amp-after-a-townhouse-kitchen-brightens-up-227830[/quote]
I'm too chicken to post a picture of it! I'm ashamed of it tbh

I know that's ridiculous.

Perhaps I'll have a word with myself and do it at some point.

@Knittedfairies

I'd look again at getting replacement doors; we had some from this company made to measure for not a lot.

That website's great! And it's cheaper than I (vaguely) remember when I looked into this before. Perhaps that's the solution. Hmmm... I'll have a think....

Thanks Knittedfairies, that's a serious consideration.