Emily: Regarding the kitchen cabinets...beware! As we all know, curb appeal, kitchens and baths sell homes most effectively; however, you must know your market area and what improvement investments will realistically return. A kitchen remodel can be the most expensive action in a home. If you have a lot of equity, bought at under market value or some other value situation, a kitchen remodel can be a great return.

If you have $225K invested in the home and homes are selling (for example) at a max of $250K, you'll want to be extra careful to make the right, economical improvements to the kitchen. If you are close on profit, you may want to look at a designer color to paint them (The Color Institute forecasts blues and greens to be hot in 2008 and 2009), cut some of the doors and insert custom glass, paint hinges an oil bronze and splurge some on the pulls. It's a $1000 kitchen makeover that may make the best sense. If you have room for an island, the latest National Architects Association report shows that 4' foot islands/peninsulas rank very high in buyer preferences in new home builds. Mix and match is hot right now, design-wise, so don't be afraid to take a "furniture approach" on the island. You may have green cabinetry with a dark colored wood piece of furniture for an island. If you go urban primitive, you'll be able to save some money and possibly sell your home because of good kitchen decisions.

Best of luck!

Emily,

As long as the interior of the cabinets are in good condition (no water damage, no old sticky shelf liners, no aged/cracked finishes), then refacing can be a very good alternative. It saves you from having to remove counter tops, it's quicker with less disruption to you while you live there, and if done well, most cannot tell the difference.

If the interior of the cabinets look a little worn, check into companies that will also repaint the interiors. It adds a bit of expense, but in the end, even an expert has difficulty telling the difference.

Back on the appliances though, the manufacturers would love for you to believe that matching appliances are a must have. Sadly, not one manufacturer of appliances has had all the appliances they make in a given brand, rated at the top of any rating service, like Consumer Reports. So their entire marketing plan is designed to have you believe that you have to match appliances.

I’m sorry, but I just do not believe that I have to have the oven from the same company that makes the dishwasher. And I have walked through thousands of homes where the stainless steel double-oven is from a different manufacturer than the stainless steel microwave and I can guarantee you that less than 10% noticed the difference during the walk through, and those that did were more concerned that they look coordinated and were top of the line. I would agree that first time home buyers at the low end of the market might think that matching is better, but the important thing is not that they are from the same manufacturer, but that they appear to go together.

What would sound better to a potential buyer: “this house has stainless steel appliances that are the same brand”, or “this house has the best stainless steel appliances”? The former was lucky to have 1 appliance that was top rated, while the rest were sub-par. The latter looked very coordinated, but had the best in class appliance in each category. And sadly to all those Viking and Wolf folks, best in class doesn’t equal most expensive.

Glad the floor was a gift, then it will definitely pay off.

Regards,
Jeffrey

I also want to say that the hardwood flooring was a gift from our parents so it was free to us. The new door was something I asked to be my birthday present one year. Trust me, no one would have looked twice at our house with that old door. I agree with the kitchen and bathroom remodeling. The kitchen is our next project. What does everyone feel about refaceing cabinets verses new cabinets? We have a good layout in our kitchen already so nothing really needs to be changed just updated.

Thanks to everyone for their quick response. I have to lean towards Mr. Copeland's advice. Detail made a difference when I purchased this house. I was a first time home buyer and even though the appliances didn't match ;-) the other special touches and coordination made the difference. I would think that anyone looking for a "jem" in the middle of some of the "junk" out their would certainly appreciate some attention to detail. I will definately want matching appliances next time around. Thanks to all!!

Emily: Great question. I'm always encouraged when I see sellers thinking and asking smart questions for the future investment of their homes. It certainly makes my job a LOT easier!

Now, for your question...I'm going to have to STRONGLY disagree (respectfully) with the other opinions. If you are purchasing high-end Jenn Air or Viking appliances, matching doesn't matter as much. The buyer wants the very best for the task. A Viking stove paired with a Jenn Air dishwasher may be a buyer's dream.

When you are using Maytag, Whirlpool, GE, etc. (and other high quality, consumer-grade products), it's imperative that they match. Over the past two or less years, I've shown 100s of buyers homes (new or renovated) and virtually every time, the buyers notice unmatching name brands. In my listing situations (when the appliances do not match), one of the dominant feedback opinions is "client commented on non-matching appliances."

Competition out there is fierce and will only get more fierce in the coming years as more and more sellers (like you) start "stepping up" the showing quality. It's amazing how the smallest attention to details can lead to a quick contract and successful close.

Keep up the great work, y'all!

I agree with the other posters. All white, all black or all stainless is more important than matching brands.
Half the time the new buyers change them anyway within a year of moving in.

Emily,

In the end, if the appliances look coordinated, it is almost meaningless as to whether or not they are matching, either brand or manufacturer. Certainly, if they were all the same, say Whirlpool Gold Line, then you wouldn't be asking the question. Just be sure they look good together. For someone to say that your home is worth less because the appliances don't match is something you can file away in the "don't care" bucket.

Also, in most locales, the refrigerator is considered personal property, not realty, therefore, unless you want to convey it with the home, the buyer presumes you're taking it with you.

Now, as for your improvements impacting value, which you didn't ask about. The new door was a nice touch, but you will not get your money back out of that investment. It will help, but not for what you paid for it. Hardwood floors were a good investment, especially if they were nail down or glue down, but floating wood floors are not considered in the same light. If you paid someone to put the floors in, enjoy them, but again, it is unlikely that you will get 100% of the value you paid for them to be installed.

If in fact you are fairly certain you're going to be selling your home in 2 years, your best investments will be those that you can do yourself, and those focused on areas that tend to pay the highest return. In order of historical importance, those are kitchen remodels, new siding, bathroom remodels, etc.

If however you're going to pay contractors, sadly, none of your remodeling will return more than the cost. A kitchen remodel done through contractors will return 92.8% of the cost based on a survey from Remodeling Magazine in 2004. Link follows:

http://www.remodeling.hw.net/industry-news.asp?articleID=791…

The magazine has a regional cost model that is excellent. Check it out at the following link:

http://www.costvsvalue.com/index.html

In summary, do what you want done so that you can enjoy it. If you do it yourself, you can do just about anything and get more than 100% payback. If you pay someone else, reconsider whether it makes sense to do it or not as you will probably not get a positive return on the investment, especially in less than 2 years.

Regards,

Jeffrey

What I believe is more important than the same brands is the same overall look. My beachhouse I had all LG appliances and they looked great...in my current home I have a fridgedaire stove, Dacor Microwave, GE dishwasher and Whirlpool refrigerator...LOL!!! We live in an area with a high foreclosure rate...so we were able to get new or nearly new stainless steel appliances for next to nothing...they are all different brands but match very well and everybody comments on how great they look...not that they are different Brands.

If you are in an area that is having a high rate of foreclosures...check out craigslist...why pay retail for anything right now... good luck and have fun.