When preparing a home for sale, the right kitchen renovation can add enormousย appeal and significant value. Potential home buyers form emotional connections to aย property if they can visualise themselves living there – so how can you create a kitchenย to capture their imagination?
A new report from the Housing Industry Association estimates that aroundย 213,000 kitchens were installed in Australian homes in the last financial year.
While over-capitalisation is a risk for all home renovations, undercapitalisation canย also compromise re-sale value.ย โWhen people walk into a house, theyโre doing their sums,โ explainsย Travis Dean, a director of Melbourne kitchen design, manufacturing and installationย company, Cantilever Interiors. โIf it needs a new kitchen or bathroom, theyโre adding $20-to-$30,000 to the purchase price.โ
Cantilever Interiors believes a kitchen should have the craftsmanship and visual appeal toย take it through the decades โ no matter the budget – yet the company is often askedย to replace kitchens that are a mere five-to-ten years old.
So you can avoid making the same mistake, Cantilever Interiors has put together five tips to ensure maximum home buyer appeal.
1. Classic palette
A pared-back colour palette ensures timelessย appeal. White, for example, gives a kitchen aย minimalist and clean-lined look and can alsoย makes a space look bigger. In short, it helps aย kitchen to feel inviting, fresh, light and bright.
2. Materials matter
The choice of materials is essential to the qualityย and appeal of a kitchen. While materials shouldย always reflect the value of the property, theyย donโt always require significant investment. Re-constituted stone benchtops or quality whiteย laminate with ply edging are durable, stylishย options for different budgets.
3. Craftsmanship is key
Homebuyers have an eye for quality. Cabinetsย must be millimetre perfect and refined designย detailing, such as shadow lines, make a bigย impression on how well a kitchen does orย doesnโt sit in a space. The design process is alsoย important – off-the-shelf products donโt allow theย customisation required to fit a kitchen perfectlyย into a space.
4. Clever components
Clever, space-saving kitchen components, suchย a swing-out pantry, corner cupboard storageย systems and other organisation inserts, show theย increasingly design-savvy buyer the thought andย quality thatโs been invested.
5. Open spaces
Shadow boxes (open display shelves) are a simpleย design element that allows the new homebuyer toย express their own personal style. They can add aย touch of warmth and contrast to a kitchen throughย placement of interchangeable potted herbs,ย utensils, ornaments, crockery or cook books for aย pop of colour.
For more information visit Cantilever Interiors. ย
