Budget Friendly Kitchen and Bathroom Renovations
Design Dreams vs. Reality
If you know me, you know that I have a constant itch for style and design. I used to spend mass amounts of money on clothing and home decor every month after I landed my first job out of college. (Budgeting was not a big focus back then for me). I am not someone who excels at design like the experts, but I like to think I’m above average most days, and I find joy in it so it’s a scratch that always wants itching.
This is probably how I found my way into real estate. My love of numbers, return on investments and architecture + interior design seemed to be the perfect match. Jumping into this business though causes temptations every day. I am constantly creating renovation ideas in my head with every home I see. Removing walls, applying paint colors, applying wainscoting…you name it and I want to tackle each and every room I see!
Unfortunately and fortunately, I have a goal of living financially independent by the age of 45. What does that mean you ask. It means that I would like to have enough money set aside, with subsidized income being generated, to be able to live off of my investments and not forced to work. Knowing me I most likely would still work, but having the option to do what I want when I want sounds pretty nice to me. Travel for 6 months out of the year, yes please!
Investment Property Renovations
So why am I sharing all of this with you? Well, when it comes to owning and living in a rental property, I’ve had to constantly fight my interior design urge. Instead of treating it like my personal home and doing whatever I please with it, I understand that I will soon move out and renters will move in. Therefore, every inch of my duplex that I renovate needs to be long lasting, price conscious and somewhat timeless. Things like a chevron brick floor in the kitchen (love), or a completely gutted and remodeled bathroom would not have been a good financial investment. Instead I chose an on trend hex tile for my kitchen floor and updated the lighting and hardware for the bathroom. These small tweaks help elevate the unit without breaking the bank.
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Rate of Return
Why renovate it at all you might ask? Rate of return! You see, by applying cosmetic updates while I live in the property, I know I will see a larger return on my investment through monthly rental rates once I move out. Instead of renting out my unit for $1,900 per month like I am for the downstairs unit, I plan to charge $2,200 for my updated unit. That’s an additional $300 per month, $3,600 per year, and $108,000 over the life of the loan (30 years) in rental income! A pretty good return on investment if you ask me.
2016 Duplex Kitchen Before Renovations
2020 Duplex Kitchen After Renovations
Budget
With projects like mine, your budget can be somewhat of a moving target. There are a lot of unknowns thanks to different variables coming into play when renovating a home. I typically plan for a 20-30% cushion when leveraging any contractor and it allows helps level set your expectations up front.
With that being said, I love transparency and wanted to share with you the initial estimates I received, as well as my final numbers for my kitchen + bath renovations. Like anyone, I am guilty of adding on a few things here and there, so you will see my overall spending creep up a bit. This is mainly due to adding new countertops, a sink and plumbing to my main floor unit that wasn’t originally planned. If you were to remove those additions, my total would have come to $9,241 vs. the initial estimate of $8,150. All remaining variances were misses on my General Contractors (GC) end which were later taken out of the GC 25% fees thanks to my negotiations and ongoing relationship with them.
Estimates vs. Final #
Note: Original estimates did not include work for main floor unit that was added.
High Level Details:
Demo - Included kitchen floors, mounted microwave, cabinet above stove, fridge nook, plaster in bathroom, kitchen countertops, and plaster under kitchen sink.
Plumbing - Install new sink, including new trap assembly and dishwasher hook up.
Bathroom Hardware - I installed my bathroom faucet and new light fixture.
Sheetrock - New sheetrock on kitchen ceiling, fridge nook, and bathroom walls. The bedroom closet was added after demo began because the fridge nook was connected to the bedroom closet and needed to be demoed for scale.
Countertops - 2cm white quartz countertops
Painting - I took on myself
Floors - Originally quotes were for sanding and staining hardwood floors. After ripping up the laminate floors and determining the wood wasn’t in great shape, I decided to tile the floors. I did 75% of the tiling and grouting to save on costs, and leveraged a contractor to help me lay the hardie board and cut some of the harder tile cuts. (Final numbers include materials; original tile estimate was $3,000 for hex, less for squares/rectangles).
Misc - Containment, floor protection, R&R fixtures etc
General Contractor Fee - 25% of actual costs is the general rule of thumb. However, this was not applied on my project as stated above.
2020 Budget Friendly Kitchen Renovation
By sharing these figures with you, it is my goal that if you decide to do a project of your own you have a general sense of what costs can look like. By taking on a few of the renovations myself, I was able to save a bit. I find that there is value in doing both depending on your strengths and stress management. All that matters is that you like the finished product.
That being said, I don’t think I’ll be tiling floors again any time soon. Maybe if it is for a small room like a bathroom. Props to all of the contractors out there that are on their hands and knees for days at a time. My back does not idolize you guys and instead appreciates you!
Cheers!
Jen
