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Old 06-29-2015, 03:08 PM
 
Location: Florida
7,233 posts, read 7,027,251 times
Reputation: 17781

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FYI, I heard the same when we bought our first house, that we wouldn't stay five years.

It was twenty.
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Old 06-29-2015, 03:39 PM
 
Location: Canada
167 posts, read 358,357 times
Reputation: 306
I would not finance anything right now. I remember when we moved into our first home, everything ended up being more expensive than we had estimated and unexpected expenses came up. the first few years ended up being very tight financially. I think the kitchen you have looks nice. If the drawers aren't sliding well, I'd just repair them.
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Old 06-29-2015, 05:48 PM
 
3,484 posts, read 3,183,374 times
Reputation: 6503
Quote:
Originally Posted by JessicaLynne View Post
My husband and I bought a house about 5 months ago. It was move in ready, but had some cosmetic issues. We painted and moved all of our stuff in.

We're considering replacing the cabinets. The ones that are there have been painted over so many times that the paint is chipping and every time a plate rubs against the cabinet wall, paint chips off. The cabinets and drawers look very shotty and seem cheaply made. There is an island in the kitchen that is brand new. It's very nice.

My husband and I went to Home Depot and they have this thing where you can get all new cabinets installed for $5000 and pay it off over time. Sometimes they have 0% financing. We just have to wait until they have a good deal.

When we were buying this home, our realtor said, "Don't do too much work on the house because it's your first and I'm sure you'll be moving in 5 to 10 years. There is no need to put so much money into your first home."

My husband and I really like this house and the neighborhood. We don't plan on moving any time soon. Why shouldn't we fix things up? We want the house to be nice while we're here and hope that our upgrades could raise the price of this house when we do go to sell it. IF we do.

What do you think?
Don't base your plans on just one comment from one realtor. But you ought to find out as much as possible why he made that comment. Is this a changing neighborhood? Is something "up" in that area that could change the desirability - specifically, things that make that area desirable to you? Just saying, because one comment could have been a hint. I'd look into it. And look into it good. Chat with people around the neighborhood if possible - go for walks. Because, that is NOT a typical comment from a realtor.

Then, just decide yay or nay, if you'll be satisfied to stay there for 5 or more years. If you will, get new cabinets if you can afford it. If you plan to stay 5 or more years, may as well just consider it "your house"...make it just the way you want it. Just remember the rule: Live in it at least 12 months before you make any decisions on renovations. Anything before that may be just a gas pain (bad idea; not important, passing thought, etc.).

Some people are still in this "flipping houses" mode. Many are realtors. But it's over with, at least for now.

P.S. Please...no ugly colonial cabinets. Keep it sleek and simple. Gewgaw cabinets in kitchens are a detriment if you ever want to sell these days.

Last edited by TwinbrookNine; 06-29-2015 at 06:28 PM..
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Old 06-29-2015, 07:51 PM
 
Location: Portland, OR
424 posts, read 380,258 times
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$5000 seems over priced for that job, I would look somewhere else.
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Old 06-29-2015, 07:58 PM
 
6,506 posts, read 4,909,973 times
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Not only did our realtor tell us this was our "starter" home, we also planned on buying a place with more land within 10 years. That was in 1990. I was laid off 3 months later and out of full time work for 18 months. Divorced in 1993. Long story short, I'm still here. And I WISH I had dome some things to the house for ME and not for a potential future owner. I am currently planning on ripping out a small half bath that was installed in the 80s that I haven't used in 10-15 years except as storage. It used to be a back porch and will now be a porch/mud room. I'll keep the plumbing there and capped of so if the next person wants it, they can put it back in.

That said, I like your cabinets. I don't like the counters or stainless steel appliances though. I'd refinish them if it was an issue. To each their own.
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Old 06-29-2015, 09:42 PM
 
5,075 posts, read 11,040,632 times
Reputation: 4664
Quote:
Originally Posted by kab0906 View Post
FYI, I heard the same when we bought our first house, that we wouldn't stay five years.

It was twenty.
Of course Realtors are going to plant the "you will need to move" seed. Commissions aren't made on people settling down for a couple of decades in one house.
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Old 06-30-2015, 05:07 AM
 
Location: UpstateNY
8,612 posts, read 10,729,200 times
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I like the kitchen, IMO I would sand and repaint.
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Old 06-30-2015, 06:01 AM
 
Location: City Data Land
17,156 posts, read 12,912,897 times
Reputation: 33164
Quote:
Originally Posted by bande1102 View Post
Quite frankly, I like your kitchen. I think it looks really cute.

To answer your question, No, I would not take out a loan so early in home ownership. I would shore up my savings for unexpected expenses, which will surely happen. $5,000 is a lot of money to put into a home that you have little equity in, particularly if you plan to sell in a few years anyway.
This. However, OP says she doesn't plan on moving any time soon. Thus, OP's realtor's opinion that she shouldn't do home improvements because she will move in a few years is irrelevant. I agree with headingtoDenver that your kitchen looks really cute and doesn't look like it needs an overhaul to me. My wife is a certified home inspector and she prefers older homes over new ones because she says older homes have "good bones," meaning they are made of better quality materials than newer homes in most cases. $5000 cabinets from Home Depot will net you a lot of debt you don't need and overpriced cabinets that are worse quality than the cabinets in the home now.
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Old 06-30-2015, 06:23 AM
 
Location: Eastern Oregon
983 posts, read 1,051,531 times
Reputation: 1875
If you replace the cabinets you would also have to replace the counters which would add to the cost.

Your existing counters appear to be good quality - granite I think. So the cabinets are probably also decent quality. Why mess with a good thing? You could replace the hardware maybe and touch up the finish for not much money.
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Old 06-30-2015, 10:48 AM
 
Location: garland
1,591 posts, read 2,398,903 times
Reputation: 2003
Quote:
Originally Posted by JessicaLynne View Post
The only thing I notice is when I pull out a drawer and it wobbles out of the slot. I can wait until we've saved more money. Admittedly, I am a spender.
You can just buy a nice set of retrofit self closing drawer slides for $25. To satisfy your spending urge, upgrade all 5 drawers and you have spent a whopping $125
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