Hit $15,000 in kitchen reno supplies before we even started demo

I was adding up plywood, drywall, and all the little hardware for our kitchen flip in Bonnie Doon and I almost dropped my coffee. Just the cabinets and countertops came to $8,200 alone after we went with a quartz remnant from a local supplier. Then you add tile backsplash, the sink, faucet, under-cabinet lighting kit, and suddenly I'm staring at a receipt that's more than my first car cost. My wife asked why we didn't just paint the old ones and I had to explain that the plumbing was rusted anyway. Has anyone else had their budget balloon before swinging a single hammer?

2 comments

2 Comments

noahchen1mo ago

Respectfully, @price.alice, I think that "oh wait we need that too" pile is just part of doing the job right. You can't cheap out on plumbing that's already rusted or you'll be ripping the whole wall out again in two years. $15k sounds steep for a flip but if the cabinets and countertops are solid and the tile isn't from a bargain bin, that's basically the baseline for something you don't want to redo next season. Sometimes the budget balloon isn't a mistake, it's just reality for a kitchen that actually functions.

price.alice1mo ago

Lmao did you guys actually budget for the "oh wait we need that too" pile or did that all sneak up on you during the supply run?