Kitchen - brand new or refurbish what we've got?

[swayingstreetlamp]

Trying to work out at what point it's more cost effective to replace a kitchen completely vs. just replace certain parts.

Our situation: 2 bed flat in city centre. Been living here for 1 year, previous owners were here 10+ years and fitted this kitchen as new. This is our first home, and our intention is to be here for minimum 5 more years, before buying somewhere bigger. Currently no DC, but plan to have our first while we're still living here. Ideally we will then keep this flat and let it out.

We want to change elements of the kitchen, but not all:

Things we definitely need to replace:

• Electric hob and extractor fan (broken)
• Floor tiles (broken)

Things we'd like to replace:

• Cabinet doors (dislike style)
• Worktops (warped and water damaged in places)
• Add tiles to walls (currently just a plain painted wall apart from a stainless steel splashback)

Things that we are happy to keep:

• Kitchen layout (galley, can't change much
• Structure of the cabinets (they feel solid)
• All other appliances (new or only a few years old, fitted into current cabinetry)

I've read a bit online about just refacing cabinets and worktops, so I'm wondering if doing that + the appliances and floor is an option, but given we plan to be here for a while and want to let the flat out in future I'm wondering if it would make sense to start afresh, to maximise the time we get to benefit from it and ensure it's at a high enough spec to let out. (The rest of the flat is to a good spec already, it's just the kitchen that is currently letting it down.)

Maximum budget is around £12k
Have never done any sort of kitchen refurb before, no DIY skills.

Should we start from scratch or update what we've got?

Any advice welcome please!

One other point to add is that while we're happy with the layout of the cabinets currently, they do finish 3.5 feet below the ceiling (v high ceilings) which feels like a missed storage opportunity in a galley kitchen in a flat! I have also thought about the fact that replacing the cabinets would give us an opportunity to extend higher & maximise storage space...

If general layout good and carcasses are in good condition then i wouldn’t change those, lick of paint/mouldings on the doors or new doors, new handles/tiles/worktop could have a huge impact for a fraction of 12k. x

You could add additional smaller cabinets up to roof height or baskets on top of current cupboards?

Do you need a ladder to get to the high space and, if so, how often and where would this ladder be kept?

I do get the extra storage opportunity but ease of use has value, too.

Someone I know had her current kitchen cabinets re sprayed professionally and they look amazing. She also changed the handles and it looks like a totally new kitchen.

Not sure what she paid though but it's something you could get a quote for.

I would refurbish what you have. Worktop fitters need the cabinets in place anyway so if you can remove the existing worktop then they can fit a new one. You can do the tiling yourself. It isn't a difficult job. Just make sure you don't choose porcelain or stone tiles as they are more difficult to cut.

Changing doors is also relatively easy.

And like @Jul17 says, you could add extra cabinets?

Thanks for the replies everyone, really helpful hearing everyone's views and it sounds like refreshing the existing kitchen is a valid option which is encouraging!

Re: the extra storage, we have fitted floor to ceiling wardrobes in other parts of the flat and use a step ladder to reach them so this would be the same - even with a step ladder some are too high for me to reach so I need to rely on DH for that! 😂