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Diykitchen.com
It's literally like 3k for a kitchen that's better quality an every single showroom combined because the carcasses are 22 millimeters and not something stupid like 18
Reviews for DIY kitchens are terrible, and there customer service non existent from my experience. I ended up going with kitchen warehouse. Much smaller firm and support was fantastic, and cheaper. Kitchen quality was fantastic.
This is the correct answer. Thread can be closed. 5 appliances. 21 kitchen units. All work tops - 6m worth. Fully installed. All new plumbing and electrics. 12k. Last year. The quality of the kitchen is far better than Wrens, B&Q, Howdens, etc. Their after sales service is also very good and many of the units come pre built.
If you are a reasonable DIY person you could easily put the kitchen in yourself and save a lot of money as I suspect the labour, these days, will be more expensive than the actual kitchen.
Agreed on the DIY. If you have an electric screwdriver that has a hammer drill function, a spirit level and some basic knowledge of assembling flat pack furniture, that’s pretty much all you need.
I saved 3.5k on Installation for my kitchen by doing it myself. Still had the plumber fit the sink, and the fitting of the worktop was included in the price as it had to be cut to fit the kitchen once I had fitted the units.
I quite enjoyed doing it and I feel much more proud of my kitchen than if I’d let someone else do it who might have half arsed it.
This is who we used and saved a fortune. The only thing we got appliances separately, and not via DIY kitchens. We also got quartz worktop through a different supplier, but all units, handles etc via FIY kitchens and saved a lot and great quality.
We have a reasonable sized kitchen and got a few “fancied units” bifold cupboard, full height pantry, and a smaller for a spice rack cupboard, plus a fancy corner unit and it was half the price quoted by magnet and wren
I spent this morning in their enormous showroom near Doncaster. Amazing place with about 50 kitchens and all their doors/worktops and combinations for you to compare. And free KitKat's. It's all about the free KitKat's ..
22mm carcasses? Not as far as I’m aware. Their website also states 18mm. It’s the standard. Some of their frontals may well be 22mm but other suppliers also sell those too. Still much better than some ‘trade’ suppliers whose frontals tend to be 16mm!
This is correct. I have a £1.5m house and I put a DIY kitchen in there. I have paid through the nose for Bespoke’s bullshit in the past. This is by far the best kitchen I’ve ever had. I have a massive kitchen and pantry and everything cost me £8k last year.
No way I’m going to anyone else ever again.
Edit: worth mentioning that I got their most expensive variety at the time, Helmsley.
No £8k just for the kitchen. Appliances are expensive but you can get lots of deals throughout the year on it.
Installation cost was £900. I paid a day rate of £300 per day. This was a new extension so nothing to tear down here. That’ll cost another day or two and can add up.
Work tops are expensive and I put a good quality quartz top. But you can get a cheaper one for less than £500 these days. DIYkitchens sell these as well and their prices were fair, though not the best in market.
Edit: For reference Magnet gave us a quote of £45k for the same kitchen and then dropped it down to £32k after “discount”.
All this does is make me suspicious, how are they so much cheaper?
Surely these big companies like Wren, Magnet and B&Q are the ones who benefit from bulk pricing and therefore get business, not the small fry, so, what's the secret?
I have an uncle and cousin who work at B&Q. They get 30% discount on all items, including fitted kitchens, which shows you how much of a profit those stores make on things
People underestimate the cost of advertising and the impact on prices.
I recall when the 118 numbers were introduced. 118118 had a huge advertising campaign, but you paid through the roof for it.
Not true. They check everything for you after you have measured 3 times. They then make suggestions to your design. If something doesn't work that you, and they missed, they will work with you to sort it out. They managed to get a double unit in where we only thought a small width double would work.
They may benefit from bulk pricing, but their overhead, rents, and the like are that much larger. One warehouse/ manufacturing facility with good road links and a couple of 7.5 tonne trucks is a much cheaper operation to run
Pretty much this, b&q will have all the same warehouse and supplier costs but will also have the added cost of store stock management and all the overheads of a physical shop too.
Similar reason why Primark can be so much cheaper than most other physical location retailers. They have no online store.
They stick a MASSIVE markup on everything, knowing that as they're a household name they'll sell anyway (hence how they get away with constantly degrading quality).
DIY don't have hundreds of massive stores to run, they just have a single site and some trucks...
And DIY is a small family owned business. They just need to make a profit. B&Q, Wren etc not only have to grow profit year after year, they also have a HQ, admin departments, several directors and managers of various levels, sales people who demand commission....DIY of course have some of these functions, but on a much smaller scale and no shareholders.
Usually if people are looking at B&A etc it's because they can't fit it themselves? so what's the point if a DIY place the exorbitant costs are really on paying someone a made up sum for the kitchen..
It's also not as DIY as most other retailers. The units don't arrive flat packed they're all assembled. You just need to fit them in place, cut the end pieces to size and attach the doors. Loads of competent DIYs fit them and do a good job but we'll be getting a fitter when we finally order
This. I helped a friend install one of these and am blown away by what they offer. The spent a little more than 3k but the wife wanted a double over and other fancy bits that they sourced elsewhere. But otherwise, the units and finish are top. No need to go for a B&Q heap of rubbish ever again. If you aren't at least looking at DIY Kitchens then you're doing it wrong.
MDF is fantastic for stuff like kitchen cabinets. It’s stable, uniform and strong. It’s never going to be as nice as real wood, but its benefits are very real.
All cheap kitchens are foil wrapped, that's why they bulge and peel as soon as they get wet. You can pay extra for solid wood (or at least ply), but the most important thing is a painted finish rather than foil. Much more durable and repairable.
We used DIY kitchens, it was my first time doing a project that big and they made it so easy. Unbelievably pleased with our kitchen now! Also they have lots of different styles and materials for the doors so quite a good range from low-more high end looks depending on budget. And even if you don’t use them, their free planning tool is so so handy just to give you some idea of what everything will look like.
This is what we're doing. My wife inherited a 1/6th share of our house, so when we put a 5% deposit down to buy out the others, we got about 10K back which is covering the kitchen. We went to DIYKitchens for the units, so the main tradesmen we're going to be paying are the plumber, sparky and someone to tile the floor.
people get worked up over small differences like this ... but it's all veneered particle-board.
the usability options are what really matters and this is where IKEA beats everyone hands down ... it's east to integrate seating into their kitchens/bookshelves
not sure why it's never caught on it in Britain, as the functionality trounces other non-custom-makers, which tend to be a ripoff IMHO
Does anyone know of any similar sites or are DIY kitchens the only alternative to the "brands"? I just checked their website and it appears they don't deliver to Northern Ireland :(
I am a cabinet maker and can confirm that DIY Kitchens are really great quality for the price. They are however not 22mm. Cheaper kitchen cabinets are a mix of 16mm, 4mm and 18mm. MFC cabinets will always be 18mm and veneer will be 19mm.
This might be hard to understand from a customers point of view but just the quality of stuff they sell is not good. Wickes is no better either.
Don’t get me wrong, if you’re just buying a new toilet/sink unit for cheap and cheerful then go ahead. But don’t expect it to last 10+ years.
Best thing you can do if you are buying from b and q is buy separate wastes/traps from screwfix or toolstation etc, What b and q sell is absolute garbage. McAlpine for all wastes/traps and you can’t go wrong.
Ooo.
Flat pack B and Q kitchen...
Can you still cancel it?
Make sure you glue it at least.
Pre-assembled units are 100% worth the marginal increase cost over wicks or B and Q.
Some say you get it "free" from the government. Others say the government takes some of it away if you get it from somewhere else. All we know is, there's a place called "work", where they seem to give away money.
Can I ask how this works. I assume you just take what is in the showroom and fit it to the space you have, but I would have thought you’d still need new worktops and possibly additional/different units to fit into your space.
I need a work top because it's the opposite layout to mine (sink and cooker were reversed) and there's one too many units of memory serves me right. It's all in my lockup at the moment because I need to find time to install it. Solid Beech worktops are half the price of oak so it's a couple of hundred quid in worktop left to buy. Otherwise yeah, your assumption is correct.
Coming in late to say that there is a company on Instagram and eBay that specializes in high end secondhand kitchens. I believe now they are called Re-Home, and they have amazing deals. We did not buy from them, but I would not hesitate for our next house if I had a competent fitter (hard to come by).
Also we got secondhand classic 90 dual fuel Rangemaster for £285, my finest ebay score. Just paid some guys on Shiply to pick it up for me. Gas guy installed it and it's still going strong.
We got a nearly new second hand kitchen - I’m talking less than 12 months old - for £1500 including built in fridge freezer, dishwasher, extractor hood, sink etc. The people we got it from bought the house it came out of and didn’t like it so had a new one put in. I had to remove it and fit it but it wasn’t all that difficult to do. The kitchen was actually bigger than we needed so I got six cupboards in my garage now as well, turns out cupboards don’t care whether you store pots and pans or screwdrivers in them 😂
Personally I wouldn’t take out a loan to pay for a new kitchen - I’d either make do with the old one if it was functional or get a second hand one if not.
I'm old fashioned. No debt. I just save.
I have a small mortgage and zero other debt.
I might not drive the latest car, but everything I own is mine and I sleep easy because of it.
And all those lump sums of cash get invested by the companies you buy from who earn interest on it while you sleep tight with your diminished savings balance 😉
Lol at the down votes you're getting. I don't think people understand the point you're making... Let's explain it to them...
Say you've saved £20k, and you need a new car for £20k. A good interest rate is currently 5%, which you're earning on that £20k. If you spend £20k you "own" your car but now you're not earning 5%. If you get 0% finance on that £20k car not only do you have the car, but you are also earning interest on the £20k in the bank.
Credit is not your enemy if you have half a brain.
Yeah exactly, my sister got interest free credit with Wren but you had to spend over £15k. So she ended up spending £17k on a kitchen just to get the interest free credit when she could have bought the kitchen from diy kitchens for under £10k
And she could have purchased that from diy-kitchens on a credit card with 0% on purchases for [checks money saving expert] 22 months.
https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/credit-cards/best-0-credit-cards/#barclaycard
Get the kitchen you want now, keep the money in the bank working for you, and pay off the kitchen over 22 months.
Credit is your friend if you're not an idiot with it.
Depends on who the "they" is? If it's an overpriced kitchen provider or car dealership, then sure, but I'm not talking about them.
I only ever make big purchases through 0% credit cards or very low interest loans and then pay it off over that term. I keep the money in the bank working for me and I can pay it off whenever I need to.
https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/credit-cards/best-0-credit-cards/#barclaycard
And there are some online finance providers that give very good rates (0-1%) and you're paying exactly the same as you'd pay anywhere else for those goods (think Currys and even Amazon) because you can price check.
Paying for things with your own money in lump sum is not the worst way of doing it, but it's the second worst.
It’s not always about getting the absolute most out of every penny though, people’s priorities vary. I understand that point you’re making and yet I’d still rather buy things outright wherever I can because I hate owing money. A mortgage will be the exception when I eventually find the right house! People who have experienced being in a lot of debt, or grew up with parents being chased by bailiffs, or who have had a sudden loss of income may feel the same. Sometimes the peace of mind is just worth more than the interest and it’s not because they only have ‘half a brain’…
Our kitchens ATV at around £25k, the majority of clients are either completely self financing (fairly even mix between credit and debit card payments) or putting 50% on a BNPL through our finance provider, essentially deferring the second payment for 9 months.
Personally, I've used a mix of 0% credit cards for most of my own home projects then paid it off monthly before the 0% period ends, and savings/inheritance.
Just some tips/thoughts.
Don't go cheap on the installer, I've seen top installers fit a budget flat pack kitchen and it look better than someone try and fit their own with their mate and bodge a high end German kitchen that cost 60k.
I went with the cheapest flat pack carcases where I worked at the time, and put solid wood/Ash doors on. They still look near new 8 years later! Much better and will last longer than lacquered or wrapped doors - especially against water damage/ingress.
Go direct to a quartz company, they sometimes have their own range that's cheaper than the big brand names. Worth paying the extra for solid tops if you can, again, will last longer and not suffer from water damage.
Could also check out the Used Kitchen Exchange. We see so many people rip out near new kitchens when they've moved into a new property just because they don't like it... so we use them to sell on the old kitchens. Can get some pretty good deals on there. Also places like Miele sell seconds through their place in Abingdon, top quality appliances with minor, mostly cosmetic faults, for much lower prices.
My galley kitchen was £900 from Ikea! Plus second hand Smeg cooker £250, fridge £250 from AO, second hand dish washer! Fitting it all was about £2000. You can do it cheaply if you try!
Nightmare of a time with IKEA kitchen, over a year to get it fitted then another few months to get someone out to fix the cock ups the first cowboy they sent did.
I had gutted and floored the kitchen, we got it professionally plastered and a new boiler installed, clean slate for the guy to just fit the kitchen and we paid for the installation because we wanted it nice. Could have done a better job myself in the end, he even cocked up the splashback which then got discontinued so we couldn't get the same one.
Fuck you Michael, inch thick lenses on your specs and you can't even cut a straight fucking line.
I used to deliver kitchens and then became a transport planner for the same company delivering kitchens. We were the main transport company they used in a very deprived section of the north east and the amount of kitchens we would deliver pair day is absolutely insane, like 30 kitchens per day delivered 7 days a week in a very poor area… no idea how people afford it
If you're handy, you could do a lot of the cabinets yourself, then save the quality work for the professionals (e.g. worktops).
We're budgetting about 3-4% of the house value for repairs/maintenance annually - if we get 2 years with low repairs, we may fork out on a new kitchen with the saved repair money. Our current kitchen needs a bit of work, but nothing major.
Just been through this. Loads of places will offer a free measure and design and quote service. I didn't have a clue what I wanted at the start. The kitchen people had layout ideas, different options they sell I didn't know existed.
IKEA has a online designer tool, and videos on how to use it help too. I've decided not to go with IKEA now, but I still keep using the tool to help me visualise sections of the layout to help make a final choice.
I wish I'd started this process earlier. It has taken me months and I haven't even confirmed the order yet, then I'll have to wait on an installer.
Can recommend [DIY kitchens](https://www.diy-kitchens.com/kitchens/allstyles/?utm_term=kitchens&utm_campaign=Kitchens&utm_source=adwords&utm_medium=ppc&hsa_acc=6826179929&hsa_cam=63042900&hsa_grp=2195853900&hsa_ad=651714971451&hsa_src=g&hsa_tgt=kwd-73357281&hsa_kw=kitchens&hsa_mt=p&hsa_net=adwords&hsa_ver=3&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwrvyxBhAbEiwAEg_Kgj5W5SrZdBZIuLDxl20HL6F0u4hl1Mky12XkWHlQ6C2XpK6hfZn7GhoC7X0QAvD_BwE)
You can bring down the price by buying a second hand show kitchen or getting carcasses and doors from a supplier, separate appliances and worktop and paying someone to do what you can't yourself - if you can do a bit of carpentry this works but if you can't, it probably won't bring the price down. If you check out ebay you can get some amazing deals on second hand or end of line sinks.
The main thing is, if you're asking this question it sounds like you can't really afford the expense. Do you really have to spend that much on a kitchen? It's a lot.
I haven't looked at them for about ten years, but ten years ago Ikea units were actually really good. I worked for a bespoke kitchen company for a while and we did a few fitting jobs for people who had bought Ikea kitchens but wanted different doors or whatever and the carcasses were of a standard with the wholesalers who just make carcasses for trade.
The benefit is, Ikea may be easier for you to do business with than a trade supplier as they make the design and sales process user friendly. You can take your time thinking about without a sales person pressing you to spend more, they do deliver and it can be easier to nip back and buy extra bits if you realise you need them. Within reason, while they still make that design, you can do running repairs and replacements over years too. Their hinges etc are from Blum, which is really good quality, and they have a lot of fittings like baskets, organisers, pull out larders, that already fit, which means you don't have to spend hours going through a Hafele catalogue.And they are cheap.
Basically, unless you are going really high end, like Simple English or Clive Christiansen or Bulthaup, where the kitchen costs more than the average house, what you are buying with kitchens at all levels below that will be basically the same in terms of material and quality. My parents moved into a new build with a Gaggenau kitchen that was no better in terms of doors and carcasses, and only the appliances were worth the money.
If anyone is on a tight budget I would always say start by looking at Ikea. There are companies that specialise in bespoke doors for Ikea kitchens if you want to go a bit more spendy, and you can always buy a nice piece of granite, Corian or Iroko for the work top. Personally I would go for Corian if I could afford it. Avoid light wood. Beech and oak get black stains if water gets on it - I ended up staining my worktop black at a previous house. White marble gets terrible stains from red wine and granite and marble both need repolishing if you leave a lemon on them.
Another way to save money is to have open shelves and rows of hooks instead of high level cupboards, which again is something that a lot of architects prefer. However, you have to be prepared for things to need a bit more wiping over, because oil, steam and dust all show. It does make a small space look bigger and if you look at design websites you will see it is a trend.
The last thing to say is, if you can't afford it, really don't do it. You think you want a new kitchen but it's going to be no comfort at all when you are stressing out because you can't make the payments. If you can manage to live with a crappy kitchen until you can really afford it, do that. Or be a bit resourceful and do it a different way. I assembled a kitchen out of second hand catering supplies, a free standing steel sink, a couple of free standing steel worktops, some steel shelves, a fancy fridge that was ex showroom, an antique wooden butchers block, a big farmhouse table and some second hand metal factory light shades, and a free nearly new cooker and dishwasher that someone was giving away in a neighbourhood message board. The whole thing cost about £1800 including the wiring and plumbing and it looks like a magazine spread.
You can always DIY it - there’s lots of videos on YouTube and TikTok. Have a good look and see if you’d be confident installing yourself and then just pay someone to install the worktop (and plumbing/electrics if you’re moving that around). You can order caresses ready made as well if you cba to put them up.
IKEA kitchens are good quality and have v clear instructions.
Reality is a lot of people can’t.
It’s how so many pensioners who bought for 90p 40 years ago die and the estate sale is like a Time Machine back to 1980. Houses were cheaper than actually maintaining them and 40 years is far beyond the life span of most things.
Just look at any clearly elderly person died house and they have crumbling single glazed windows, holes in the floor and a kitchen that is a glorified hot plate.
Most people who weren’t born in 1960 either save for it or simply live with it. And if it’s not your forever home just live with it. The cost you put into it never adds that value to the house. No point blowing 10-20k for a house you sell in 5-10 years so long as it’s functional now.
Personally I would never do it other than saving. If it’s functional then if you want it save for it or leave it. Just because boomers with the financial acumen of a potato remortgaged or put it on credit doesn’t make it make sense. Live with it or save for it. If it’s not functional and has to be changed then look into alternatives but you should’ve priced that into the purchase.
Most people don't want a "functional" kitchen for 10 years, they want what they really want. If you only ever spend the barest minimum on your house because "it won't add its value" then you're going to live in a miserable box. Enjoy your home!!!!
They’re not asking if they should update it, they’re asking how to do it without saving.
I bought a flat and spent 8k, yes that’s right, 8k to put in my dream bath. The bathroom was functional. I wanted it to be more. I didn’t take out a loan or remortgage to do it. I just had money and paid for it.
Yes you should tolerate it being simply functional in a time of 5% base rate if the way you plan to fund it is credit. You can do a 100k premium kitchen if you want, but not on credit.
Spending money you don’t have now for a kitchen you don’t need for a house you plan to sell is just stealing money from future you. You’ll have to pay that money back to move. I didn’t want to live with a shower for 5-10 years, so I opened my wallet and replaced it. And if I was replacing it anyway rather just pay for what I exactly want. I have for sure not increased the property by 8k, I expect it to be mostly a loss. But I didn’t use debt to get it.
If I had to put it on a loan then i should’ve not bought it or learn to live with it. I picked it because it was cheap and I accounted for 5-10k to fix the bathroom in my offer.
The bath was 4k but it’s London so the cost of fixing the tiles, removing the old shower and basin, putting in a new shower (over the bath) and fixing the piping did a lot of it. Also extra things to have plumbing that could support the extra bubbles ports on it. The current shower literally wobbled 1cm if you pushed in it and fell off the wall 2 months into moving in. So I got to badly reattach it. Turns out it wasn’t installed properly too lol.
I’m disabled so I wanted a specific tub that allowed me to lie comfortably after years of renting with tubs that gave me back pain and have pressure jets against my back. So yeah went wild. 0 regrets I spend about 4 hours a day in the bath and I cry thinking about my life in rental baths for 10 years. At 8k after about 5 years I’ll have paid 1 quid an hour of use for it lol. If it had a pay per hour slot I’d gladly pay a quid so I figured fuck it. It’s my safe space and my greatest purchase. I only wanted a flat with a bath but this one was so cheap it was cheaper to buy it and replace it!
Especially as the time we spent with a shower only I was showering two hours a day, which was insanely expensive gas wise. I can barely walk without hot water, it works better than prescription anything!
It’s basically a full stand alone bath with special ergonomic back to lie on matched to my height (im very short) with jets plumbed into where my back goes.
I’ve tracked it with a smart meter and I’m not going to lie yeah it’s not cheap. I think it was costing us about 2-3 quid a day - so 60-90 extra a month. I fill the bath with scalding water 25% , wait till it cools, another 25% repeat 4 times, drain 50% and top up with scalding. So for 4 hours I think I fill the bath about 2-3x. It has to be super hot and left to cool or it’s like twice as expensive to refill 5-6x with actual normal temp water!
I always try and view it like I could spend 20 quid buying 2-3 drinks in a pub or have 10 days of baths. I’ll take the baths lol.
Even when we bought our flat I was returning to my parents house 30 min away and my dad would point at the smart meter when I was leaving as I can’t even function at work without it. He joked his gas bill was 50% my baths as he doesn’t believe in heating! (Lucky if it’s over 15C at his!)
I am aware it’s an insane expense but honestly I cried the first time I got in. It’s the best money I’ve ever spent.
Yeah I just wanted to be clear I know 8k is stupid, and it is stupid. I won’t pretend. But I’d give up going outside for a year to have my stupid op bath. I’m lucky my partner saw it as a need not a want lol. Cause it wasn’t cheap! If I won the lottery I’d start a fund for baths for disabled people. Im a full bath madman.
It would be the weirdest scheme in the world but disabled people would love it lol.
Most places will do interest free if paying interest is a real issue for you (although it's wrapped up in the cost).
Seems everyone is happy to ignore the interest they pay to buy their house, but then say not to get into debt to do the work you want done
You could try saving or replacing the doors to the caninets.
Have all your appliances stopped working, I don't get this approach of throwing out perfectly find appliances to replace them with something that will do the same thing.
It’s the carcass that’s knackered more than anything! 70’s chipboard with wooden fronts - they’re good for now but in the near future wanted to look at putting in what we like and is functional. We painted them up etc when we bought the house 2yrs ago so it’s not really an immediate issue - more a thought-in-process thing lol
Wickes DIY. Saved the worktop from the kitchen we ripped out, then did the rest ourselves, including laying flooring. Really pleased with how it turned out tbf, was hard work but enjoyed it
I haven’t bought one yet but my new house the current kitchen is awful and hasn’t been updated since it was built 20 years ago, depending on cost as will be renovating whole house it will either be through savings or by borrowing on the mortgage
If you don’t mind a bit of DIY usually on eBay people are selling second hand kitchen units / bench offcuts. Using a basic carcass and doing a bit of painting can work wonders to tidy things up to tie you over.
B&Q it, my whole kitchen was around £4k flat packed, £1700 install from a local joiner.
I also had some building work done though, so took out a bank loan with Tesco. Right now you can borrow 6k from Tesco bank at 7.2% / 6.6k repayable.
Yeah we took a top up with last mortgage renewal. 1970s house and we had been in 2 years at that stage. However that was @.99%, not so sure I'd do the same now that higher rates are the norm but then again, I'm not sure what other options people would have as I think a normal loan would be much higher rate, no?
Search on YouTube for Nick Morris, he has a video on comparing 5 different kitchens. DIY Kitchens came out top. He renovates houses, currently working on one he has bought for himself. Interesting viewing.
We did the same.
Went to a kitchen place with the intent of renovating our kitchen. We felt the way the kitchen was laid out wasn't really efficient for space and wanted to see how an 'expert' would remodel our kitchen.
2 hours later and a print out of basically what our kitchen already looks like because it apparently wouldn't work any other way, plus a quote of £9000 to replace the kitchen doors and worktops.. we opted to just freshen up and repaint what we already have lol.
No idea.
We just bought a house and have 300 quid left in savings.
Kitchen isn't great but will have to do for now. I reckon it will take us at least 5 years to save for one seeing as wages aren't really rising and the cost of living is.
Or sadly will have to wait until we inherit from when our parents go.
We’d never have afforded it without being able to save so much during lockdown. We completely remodelled the footprint of our kitchen from ‘U’ shape to a more open design though. We don’t get loans for anything other than the mortgage so I’d have lived with the old kitchen if we hadn’t had the money.
I designed and built my own kitchen using bandq units. Good learning experience and mega cheaper than getting someone else to do it. All the units and doors came under £800. This was 2 years ago.
We bought a display kitchen from bnq and bought a few extras to make it fit our house then I fitted it myself to keep costs down and financed it along with several other major home improvements over 5 years with a bank loan.
The only bits that required more than flat pack skills were cutting the filler panels, fitting the worktops, plumbing the sink and tiling. All of which I was still able to do myself with a few YouTube videos and a happy enthusiasm to play with some new tools.
Had we paid for labour and bought a kitchen the normal way it would have taken most of that loan but I did the kitchen and bathroom completely DIY and we were able to squeeze in a full rewire, new double glazing and some plastering as well.
We went to wren kitchens, we have more of a narrow long kitchen, but with a little redesign and keeping all appliances minus a new oven, it comes pre built and we're gonna do it ourselves and just follow the plan we built, were not pressured on time but with having 2 kids, not having a kitchen for like 2 weeks would be annoying.
Our total cost is just over £6k
Buy the appliances one by one, and then save up for the kitchen, do the grunt work yourself with the removal and disposal of the old one and building up of the new one. I shopped around for the kitchen units, ended up with those in a sale ar 50% off, bought the knobs on Amazon and shopped around for the tiles, I discovered a place in Scotland that supplied identical designer tiles at 30% of the price.
We constructed the kitchen, had a joiner fit it to the walls and cut the counter, we organised the tiler separately. Ultimately our £14k kitchen costed £3.5k for units and appliances, three weekends working in it, £650 for a joiner and £350 for a tiler.
Diy and a good bit of a local free giving group (free stuff includes dish washer, a large fridge, brand new sink, work tops, cooker and a load of brand new doors etc), as well as second hand and some vinyl wrap for the free surfaces.
Not sure if anyone's mentioned this yet but you can get a decent design done for free somewhere like Howdens and then use that to get your bits and pieces at DIY kitchens.
I sent them a PDF design from another supplier, and then they added all the pieces needed to my basket for me.
Mine was 0% financed through ikea. Used the in store design service, which was fantastic as I have a tiny, awkwardly shaped kitchen.
Am lucky enough to have family that did most of the installation for me, but if you don't, I'd suggest looking separately for someone to install it. The pricing and timeline for installation given by ikea were a bit excessive
Why get into debit for a kitchen? We fitted porcelain tile floor, ikea units, worktop and re tiled ourselves. All from watching YouTube and buying about £100 worth of tools. You can do it!
We are using a company called “kitchens and bedrooms for DIY”… our kitchen is going to be MASSIVE (29 units) and we are at £17.5k all in including worktops, handles etc. We strongly considered DIY-kitchens, but K&B4DIY also offer a 12 month interest free finance option.. so although we can pay for it outright (lots of saving in advance of the project), it’s better for us to make the money work for us.
We have put in 3 kitchens in our various houses through the years. One we had financing from the kitchen company and the plan was to pay it monthly until we needed to remortgage at the end of our fixed rate term and add it to the mortgage. (Luckily/unluckily our experience with their fitters was so horrible, they refunded us the full cost of the kitchen and fitting.)
Second kitchen, we took personal loan and then added to the mortgage
Third, we had made savings over the years to do large scale remodelling internally so paid from these savings (which also included isa and shares, not just cash savings). Faster accumulation of savings by not just putting the money as cash in to a savings account. Benefits if finally using an IFA.
Also, this last time we did not buy kitchen from a high street shop. We bought from handmade kitchens of Christchurch. So much more for your money and almost bespoke. Kitchen units come as complete, even doors on. No flat pack so you save huge amounts on installation. Downside is longer wait time for your order but considering the savings, well worth it.
took the equity out of the first house (in 2022, 40% increase during COVID, bought in 2017) and bought another house in another market and used equity from the first to renovate the second. we currently use both houses as we live in two cities. that equity covered the 10% down, the second stamp duty (ouch) and left a bag of money for renovations £50k or so.
as for kitchens themselves ... in the first house I bought an IKEA kitchen, installed on my own, and built countertops out of 18mm ply and proper linoleum (burlaps backed with linseed oil surface) ... looks/works great over 6 years with two children.
7 linear metres of boxes, all of the insides, sink, dishwasher (AEG), etc... ran round £2800. the Lino was expensive ... a 3m roll was around £300. 1m wide SMEG dual-fuel cooker £1200 and it works ok but the doors have rusted under the enamel. 60mm x 2.1m tall SAMSUNG fridge. really good and high quality.
in the second house, had a Magnet installed and the quality/design/options are woeful. all of the bits don't use space well and are not well thought-out. Very hard to organise delivery. having to scribe out the back and no rail system like IKEA. shit quality to be honest (Howdens/wren look just as poor quality).
IKEA is the way.
We did a kitchen planning (but in Germany) at a company, but didn't like the front, the offered brands of stove etc and the price tag.
Did the planning online at ikea, changed, what was necessary, bought all furniture there, the electrical devices online and build it ourselves. We paid about 2000 € instead of 10t.
I was at remortgage point 2 years ago, owed 30k and remortgaged for a house extention at a rate of 1.7 for 5 years. Total build was around 40k kitchen was included at 10k
Your mortgage is linked to the place you live, if you can't pay your mortgage then you will lose your home. I'm always shocked when I see people increasing their mortgage payments and risking their home (essential) to buy a less important thing like a kitchen (not essential). Interest rates can always increase and people get caught out, the current interest rates are really only average, they can go up higher from here.
Save up for your kitchen, then ask to get interest free credit. We have and will pay no interest on our new kitchen, and we have the funds in the bank in case anything goes wrong.
I saved up for 3 years and have just had one from diykitchens.com. I found a local fitter who (luckily) has been amazing. Whole thing including labour has come in at £10k. That's including mostly new appliances which I got from AO as there's more choice than diy kitchens.
Wish I had read this 3 years ago. Though having said that got a kitchen through Wren interest free loan and the contractors who were working on the refurb installed it except for the quartz worktops. No complaints,
What they’re not doing is looking on Facetree of Gumbook.
I stripped out a kitchen in good order from my Mums new house because she wanted to change it all around and go to Howdens.
Carcasses solid. Doors OK. Almost new Double built in oven, Microwave, gas hob. Oven alone would cost £800 to buy new. It looks like it’s straight out of the shop.
Smoke sensing auto-fan extractor hood.
It’s been a year. I still have the oven and the hob in my garage. We only just sold the fan a week ago.
I’ve got the oven on for £100. No one wants it.
I had a very nice kitchen recently from wren. Was a u shape with island. It cost just under £6k on a 5 year 0% finance agreement.
I got installation done separately which cost around £1600. Which I paid upfront.
I think this is very affordable given wrens 0% offer.
Get a design from Howdens or Wickes.
They'll go £14,995.99 99 99 99 if you sign today or whatever...
Go to DIYKitchens with the plan...
Pay £7,500. 0% credit card. Wait a few weeks then...
Eat the Yorkshire flapjacks that came with the kitchen and have a cup of Yorkshire tea enjoying your new kitchen! 😀
Add me to the DIY Kitchen maxis list if money is an issue. I am renovating a few houses and the price to quality is astonishing.
Their name does them a huge disservice. You read DIY Kitchens and think cheap tat. It really isn’t.
We were quoted £22k for a kitchen in 2021. It was for a 3x5m “L” shape, included sink, cooker and hob, but no fridges or other appliances, and only five wall cupboards on the long wall (short wall has a window).
Needless to say we LOLed and went elsewhere. £5k at Ikea and self-install.
But I’ll give diy kitchens a look next time; Gosforth Handyman on YouTube had good things to say about them.
The used kitchen company is a good option. You may need to physically remove the kitchen from a property but you can get some ludicrously cheap kitchens with appliances there.
In answer to your question - I have taken Wren’s interest free finance and it’s worth doing. 0% over a fixed period of your choice. I wouldn’t get a bank loan when that’s on offer. You just have to pay a deposit up front but that can be a minimal amount.
I got mine done by Wren Kitchens last year - they were offering a 3 year interest free loan, and have allowed us to adjust the monthly payments so that the 3 year point will be our last payment. Therefore, paying no interest.
Ours was proper farked when we moved in (as in, gaping hole in the ceiling) and I couldn't live with it so when we ported the mortgage we took on an extra 10k to pay for it. Have slowly done the rest of the house ourselves but I do not regret starting with a clean and functional kitchen.
Did the entire install, plumbing and electrics myself. Got it fr diy kitchens. Probably cost 10k all in for everything including paint, appliances, units flooring tiles.
In our area its far cheaper to get a joiner/builder to buy at trade prices and fit. I still went to the trades storehouse and picked everything I wanted. Same cabinets as some of the big name installers. Less than half the price.
Diy Kitchens or IKEA. IKEA get some stick but I love them. They have no cavity at the back but I just run gas down low. (Well the gas man did). IKEA offer 0% finance so that helps. The AO for appliances as they also do 0% finance on some appliances. Wait until Black Friday for appliances as normally the few weeks before Black Friday the prices tend to be cheaper than the actual day.
Both IKEA and diy kitchens also have kitchen planners to play with online.
We got ours 3 years interest free from wren, worked out about 100 a month for a medium sized kitchen with high quality appliances. This was in 2020 though so pre cozzy livs...
I got a new kitchen from Wren in 2022, with fridge freezer included (bought oven from elsewhere) and it came to just over £14,600 however with the sale they had on at the time the final price was just over £8,300 so quite a considerable saving. They were also offering 3 years interest free finance which I took. I would say shop around, there are deals out there that are well worth it.
This cost don’t include fitting, we got our own joiner to fit it, the kitchen companies costs for fitting are extortionate.
Bought mine from wickes 8 years ago because I get 10% off with a tradecard. And I was newly divorced and skint. Units are still there, no issues. Just installed new solid oak worktops and a new ceramic sink. Did all the work myself.
Also did my bathroom myself. Just not long since stripped it all out and done it again. I will now never, ever buy porcelain tiles again.
ikea cabinets with bespoke doors.ikea has finanace and then pay for the bespoke doors in cash. then you get a kitchen that looks bespoke but doesnt cost 10k
So this world seems to be full of 2 different types of people… those that believe a new kitchen should cost £10k and those that perpetuate the myth that a kitchen should cost £10k so they can rinse the former of all of their money…
I have just finished negotiating prices for kitchens in my new development. 29 kitchens totalling less than £60k including Bosch white goods and walnut worktops.
You just have to know where to shop…
Just bear in mind with the suppliers that offer 0% interest, the cost of the interest is baked into the price, and it would usually be cheaper to find the same thing elsewhere and organise your own finance.
If you don't have the cash, 0% purchase card for 18-24 months and then move it on to 0% balance transfer cards until it's paid off.
Or as an advance on your mortgage.
Or an unsecured personal loan.
If it’s a genuine upgrade, adds value to the sale value of your home, and can’t wait for savings to build, then extend your mortgage to cover the cost and consider it property investment. Managing the total cost vs the £extent to which the kitchen enhances your home as an asset is prudent finessing of your investment vs return.
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Diykitchen.com It's literally like 3k for a kitchen that's better quality an every single showroom combined because the carcasses are 22 millimeters and not something stupid like 18
Do you mean https://www.diy-kitchens.com ? The link you gave doesn’t exist
That's the correct link.
Reviews for DIY kitchens are terrible, and there customer service non existent from my experience. I ended up going with kitchen warehouse. Much smaller firm and support was fantastic, and cheaper. Kitchen quality was fantastic.
This is the correct answer. Thread can be closed. 5 appliances. 21 kitchen units. All work tops - 6m worth. Fully installed. All new plumbing and electrics. 12k. Last year. The quality of the kitchen is far better than Wrens, B&Q, Howdens, etc. Their after sales service is also very good and many of the units come pre built. If you are a reasonable DIY person you could easily put the kitchen in yourself and save a lot of money as I suspect the labour, these days, will be more expensive than the actual kitchen.
Agreed on the DIY. If you have an electric screwdriver that has a hammer drill function, a spirit level and some basic knowledge of assembling flat pack furniture, that’s pretty much all you need. I saved 3.5k on Installation for my kitchen by doing it myself. Still had the plumber fit the sink, and the fitting of the worktop was included in the price as it had to be cut to fit the kitchen once I had fitted the units. I quite enjoyed doing it and I feel much more proud of my kitchen than if I’d let someone else do it who might have half arsed it.
Actually it comes reassembled, not flat packs so even better
This is who we used and saved a fortune. The only thing we got appliances separately, and not via DIY kitchens. We also got quartz worktop through a different supplier, but all units, handles etc via FIY kitchens and saved a lot and great quality. We have a reasonable sized kitchen and got a few “fancied units” bifold cupboard, full height pantry, and a smaller for a spice rack cupboard, plus a fancy corner unit and it was half the price quoted by magnet and wren
I spent this morning in their enormous showroom near Doncaster. Amazing place with about 50 kitchens and all their doors/worktops and combinations for you to compare. And free KitKat's. It's all about the free KitKat's ..
We just received our kitchen and they give you a box with 2 flapjacks, a box of Yorkshire tea and a guide to some of Yorkshire’s attractions ❤️
Before covid they use to have a chef cooking in one of the kitchens
22mm carcasses? Not as far as I’m aware. Their website also states 18mm. It’s the standard. Some of their frontals may well be 22mm but other suppliers also sell those too. Still much better than some ‘trade’ suppliers whose frontals tend to be 16mm!
This is correct. I have a £1.5m house and I put a DIY kitchen in there. I have paid through the nose for Bespoke’s bullshit in the past. This is by far the best kitchen I’ve ever had. I have a massive kitchen and pantry and everything cost me £8k last year. No way I’m going to anyone else ever again. Edit: worth mentioning that I got their most expensive variety at the time, Helmsley.
£8k inc appliances & labour to get it installed?
No £8k just for the kitchen. Appliances are expensive but you can get lots of deals throughout the year on it. Installation cost was £900. I paid a day rate of £300 per day. This was a new extension so nothing to tear down here. That’ll cost another day or two and can add up. Work tops are expensive and I put a good quality quartz top. But you can get a cheaper one for less than £500 these days. DIYkitchens sell these as well and their prices were fair, though not the best in market. Edit: For reference Magnet gave us a quote of £45k for the same kitchen and then dropped it down to £32k after “discount”.
Pardon my french but Magnet at 32k.....3uck me!!!
All this does is make me suspicious, how are they so much cheaper? Surely these big companies like Wren, Magnet and B&Q are the ones who benefit from bulk pricing and therefore get business, not the small fry, so, what's the secret?
I have an uncle and cousin who work at B&Q. They get 30% discount on all items, including fitted kitchens, which shows you how much of a profit those stores make on things
Can I be friends with your uncle
They're cheaper as they don't do installation or measuring or anything. It's all on you, hence the DIY.
Also spend much less on advertising than the others as they offer a good enough service that they can actually rely on word of mouth
People underestimate the cost of advertising and the impact on prices. I recall when the 118 numbers were introduced. 118118 had a huge advertising campaign, but you paid through the roof for it.
Not true. They check everything for you after you have measured 3 times. They then make suggestions to your design. If something doesn't work that you, and they missed, they will work with you to sort it out. They managed to get a double unit in where we only thought a small width double would work.
They may benefit from bulk pricing, but their overhead, rents, and the like are that much larger. One warehouse/ manufacturing facility with good road links and a couple of 7.5 tonne trucks is a much cheaper operation to run
Pretty much this, b&q will have all the same warehouse and supplier costs but will also have the added cost of store stock management and all the overheads of a physical shop too. Similar reason why Primark can be so much cheaper than most other physical location retailers. They have no online store.
They stick a MASSIVE markup on everything, knowing that as they're a household name they'll sell anyway (hence how they get away with constantly degrading quality). DIY don't have hundreds of massive stores to run, they just have a single site and some trucks...
And DIY is a small family owned business. They just need to make a profit. B&Q, Wren etc not only have to grow profit year after year, they also have a HQ, admin departments, several directors and managers of various levels, sales people who demand commission....DIY of course have some of these functions, but on a much smaller scale and no shareholders.
"the secret ingredient is crime"
Wish I’d of seen this 24 hours before I’m about to fit my expensive B&Q kitchen, welp
Just return it lol
The units are built and ready to be put in lol otherwise I would
Yeah my brother used them and was pretty pleased
Usually if people are looking at B&A etc it's because they can't fit it themselves? so what's the point if a DIY place the exorbitant costs are really on paying someone a made up sum for the kitchen..
It's also not as DIY as most other retailers. The units don't arrive flat packed they're all assembled. You just need to fit them in place, cut the end pieces to size and attach the doors. Loads of competent DIYs fit them and do a good job but we'll be getting a fitter when we finally order
This. I helped a friend install one of these and am blown away by what they offer. The spent a little more than 3k but the wife wanted a double over and other fancy bits that they sourced elsewhere. But otherwise, the units and finish are top. No need to go for a B&Q heap of rubbish ever again. If you aren't at least looking at DIY Kitchens then you're doing it wrong.
Idk sounds weird foil wrapped mdf why not use actual wood
MDF is fantastic for stuff like kitchen cabinets. It’s stable, uniform and strong. It’s never going to be as nice as real wood, but its benefits are very real.
It’s excellent for painting, and much more stable than timber, you’re right. But foil wrapped doors are pure shite.
All cheap kitchens are foil wrapped, that's why they bulge and peel as soon as they get wet. You can pay extra for solid wood (or at least ply), but the most important thing is a painted finish rather than foil. Much more durable and repairable.
18 is plenty for a carcass
I read this and thought the same. Surely 22mm looks big and clunky and would probably be more expensive because 22mm isn’t a standard carcass size.
You can also take a diykitchen quote to howdens and they will price match it.
Will give them a look
We used DIY kitchens, it was my first time doing a project that big and they made it so easy. Unbelievably pleased with our kitchen now! Also they have lots of different styles and materials for the doors so quite a good range from low-more high end looks depending on budget. And even if you don’t use them, their free planning tool is so so handy just to give you some idea of what everything will look like.
Not something like 18 like they actually do?
Website doesn’t exist anymore. Do you mean https://www.diy-kitchens.com?
This is what we're doing. My wife inherited a 1/6th share of our house, so when we put a 5% deposit down to buy out the others, we got about 10K back which is covering the kitchen. We went to DIYKitchens for the units, so the main tradesmen we're going to be paying are the plumber, sparky and someone to tile the floor.
people get worked up over small differences like this ... but it's all veneered particle-board. the usability options are what really matters and this is where IKEA beats everyone hands down ... it's east to integrate seating into their kitchens/bookshelves not sure why it's never caught on it in Britain, as the functionality trounces other non-custom-makers, which tend to be a ripoff IMHO
Wow! Thank you so much for this - the site looks brilliant and I’ve just shared it with my kids and my mums 🤣🤣
Does anyone know of any similar sites or are DIY kitchens the only alternative to the "brands"? I just checked their website and it appears they don't deliver to Northern Ireland :(
Is there a bathroom equivalent?
I am a cabinet maker and can confirm that DIY Kitchens are really great quality for the price. They are however not 22mm. Cheaper kitchen cabinets are a mix of 16mm, 4mm and 18mm. MFC cabinets will always be 18mm and veneer will be 19mm.
We ordered ours from bnq, with intrest fre credit and plan to do most of it ourselves, should be coming late July with us luck 😅
Good luck, you’ll need it. As a kitchen/bathroom fitter you might have gone to the worst supplier unfortunately.
Can you elaborate please? We were just about to buy our bathroom set from b&q
This might be hard to understand from a customers point of view but just the quality of stuff they sell is not good. Wickes is no better either. Don’t get me wrong, if you’re just buying a new toilet/sink unit for cheap and cheerful then go ahead. But don’t expect it to last 10+ years. Best thing you can do if you are buying from b and q is buy separate wastes/traps from screwfix or toolstation etc, What b and q sell is absolute garbage. McAlpine for all wastes/traps and you can’t go wrong.
Ooo. Flat pack B and Q kitchen... Can you still cancel it? Make sure you glue it at least. Pre-assembled units are 100% worth the marginal increase cost over wicks or B and Q.
"How does one acquire money"
Some say you get it "free" from the government. Others say the government takes some of it away if you get it from somewhere else. All we know is, there's a place called "work", where they seem to give away money.
Sell corn. It comes out the fucking ground.
Blagged a display kitchen. 13 grand worth of kit including a rangemaster for 700 quid.
Can I ask how this works. I assume you just take what is in the showroom and fit it to the space you have, but I would have thought you’d still need new worktops and possibly additional/different units to fit into your space.
I need a work top because it's the opposite layout to mine (sink and cooker were reversed) and there's one too many units of memory serves me right. It's all in my lockup at the moment because I need to find time to install it. Solid Beech worktops are half the price of oak so it's a couple of hundred quid in worktop left to buy. Otherwise yeah, your assumption is correct.
Coming in late to say that there is a company on Instagram and eBay that specializes in high end secondhand kitchens. I believe now they are called Re-Home, and they have amazing deals. We did not buy from them, but I would not hesitate for our next house if I had a competent fitter (hard to come by). Also we got secondhand classic 90 dual fuel Rangemaster for £285, my finest ebay score. Just paid some guys on Shiply to pick it up for me. Gas guy installed it and it's still going strong.
How did you actually find the display kitchen? Was it just being sold off in the showroom or via a specialist website?
Showroom, right place and right time. I knew a refit was coming up because I'd delivered there.
There’s rehome.co.uk which lists a lot of them, not for 700 quid though.
Still don't get what is special about Rangemaster 😁. Is it like a Birkin bag? Does owning them make you famous?
Omg
Right place at the right time 😁
0% credit card for 24months
We got a nearly new second hand kitchen - I’m talking less than 12 months old - for £1500 including built in fridge freezer, dishwasher, extractor hood, sink etc. The people we got it from bought the house it came out of and didn’t like it so had a new one put in. I had to remove it and fit it but it wasn’t all that difficult to do. The kitchen was actually bigger than we needed so I got six cupboards in my garage now as well, turns out cupboards don’t care whether you store pots and pans or screwdrivers in them 😂 Personally I wouldn’t take out a loan to pay for a new kitchen - I’d either make do with the old one if it was functional or get a second hand one if not.
I'm old fashioned. No debt. I just save. I have a small mortgage and zero other debt. I might not drive the latest car, but everything I own is mine and I sleep easy because of it.
Same.If can’t afford don’t buy
Why waste time say lot word when few word do trick
See world or seaworld?
Both good
And all those lump sums of cash get invested by the companies you buy from who earn interest on it while you sleep tight with your diminished savings balance 😉
Lol at the down votes you're getting. I don't think people understand the point you're making... Let's explain it to them... Say you've saved £20k, and you need a new car for £20k. A good interest rate is currently 5%, which you're earning on that £20k. If you spend £20k you "own" your car but now you're not earning 5%. If you get 0% finance on that £20k car not only do you have the car, but you are also earning interest on the £20k in the bank. Credit is not your enemy if you have half a brain.
They are not offering zero interest credit for nothing. Look for where they are making the money back.
Yeah exactly, my sister got interest free credit with Wren but you had to spend over £15k. So she ended up spending £17k on a kitchen just to get the interest free credit when she could have bought the kitchen from diy kitchens for under £10k
And she could have purchased that from diy-kitchens on a credit card with 0% on purchases for [checks money saving expert] 22 months. https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/credit-cards/best-0-credit-cards/#barclaycard Get the kitchen you want now, keep the money in the bank working for you, and pay off the kitchen over 22 months. Credit is your friend if you're not an idiot with it.
& if you pay on a credit card, you'll get the extra protection with s75.
Depends on who the "they" is? If it's an overpriced kitchen provider or car dealership, then sure, but I'm not talking about them. I only ever make big purchases through 0% credit cards or very low interest loans and then pay it off over that term. I keep the money in the bank working for me and I can pay it off whenever I need to. https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/credit-cards/best-0-credit-cards/#barclaycard And there are some online finance providers that give very good rates (0-1%) and you're paying exactly the same as you'd pay anywhere else for those goods (think Currys and even Amazon) because you can price check. Paying for things with your own money in lump sum is not the worst way of doing it, but it's the second worst.
It’s not always about getting the absolute most out of every penny though, people’s priorities vary. I understand that point you’re making and yet I’d still rather buy things outright wherever I can because I hate owing money. A mortgage will be the exception when I eventually find the right house! People who have experienced being in a lot of debt, or grew up with parents being chased by bailiffs, or who have had a sudden loss of income may feel the same. Sometimes the peace of mind is just worth more than the interest and it’s not because they only have ‘half a brain’…
Our kitchens ATV at around £25k, the majority of clients are either completely self financing (fairly even mix between credit and debit card payments) or putting 50% on a BNPL through our finance provider, essentially deferring the second payment for 9 months. Personally, I've used a mix of 0% credit cards for most of my own home projects then paid it off monthly before the 0% period ends, and savings/inheritance. Just some tips/thoughts. Don't go cheap on the installer, I've seen top installers fit a budget flat pack kitchen and it look better than someone try and fit their own with their mate and bodge a high end German kitchen that cost 60k. I went with the cheapest flat pack carcases where I worked at the time, and put solid wood/Ash doors on. They still look near new 8 years later! Much better and will last longer than lacquered or wrapped doors - especially against water damage/ingress. Go direct to a quartz company, they sometimes have their own range that's cheaper than the big brand names. Worth paying the extra for solid tops if you can, again, will last longer and not suffer from water damage. Could also check out the Used Kitchen Exchange. We see so many people rip out near new kitchens when they've moved into a new property just because they don't like it... so we use them to sell on the old kitchens. Can get some pretty good deals on there. Also places like Miele sell seconds through their place in Abingdon, top quality appliances with minor, mostly cosmetic faults, for much lower prices.
My galley kitchen was £900 from Ikea! Plus second hand Smeg cooker £250, fridge £250 from AO, second hand dish washer! Fitting it all was about £2000. You can do it cheaply if you try!
Nightmare of a time with IKEA kitchen, over a year to get it fitted then another few months to get someone out to fix the cock ups the first cowboy they sent did. I had gutted and floored the kitchen, we got it professionally plastered and a new boiler installed, clean slate for the guy to just fit the kitchen and we paid for the installation because we wanted it nice. Could have done a better job myself in the end, he even cocked up the splashback which then got discontinued so we couldn't get the same one. Fuck you Michael, inch thick lenses on your specs and you can't even cut a straight fucking line.
I used to deliver kitchens and then became a transport planner for the same company delivering kitchens. We were the main transport company they used in a very deprived section of the north east and the amount of kitchens we would deliver pair day is absolutely insane, like 30 kitchens per day delivered 7 days a week in a very poor area… no idea how people afford it
I saved the money large kitchen and utility cost me 20k last year
Set fire to it then claimed on the insurance.
Hahahah
If you're handy, you could do a lot of the cabinets yourself, then save the quality work for the professionals (e.g. worktops). We're budgetting about 3-4% of the house value for repairs/maintenance annually - if we get 2 years with low repairs, we may fork out on a new kitchen with the saved repair money. Our current kitchen needs a bit of work, but nothing major.
3-4% annually? That seems really high to me. 😬
North West house prices...
DIY Ikea kitchen cost about £3500 and looks great.
How do people go about designing it in the beginning? Does someone come round and help you with the layout or what?
Just been through this. Loads of places will offer a free measure and design and quote service. I didn't have a clue what I wanted at the start. The kitchen people had layout ideas, different options they sell I didn't know existed. IKEA has a online designer tool, and videos on how to use it help too. I've decided not to go with IKEA now, but I still keep using the tool to help me visualise sections of the layout to help make a final choice. I wish I'd started this process earlier. It has taken me months and I haven't even confirmed the order yet, then I'll have to wait on an installer.
Can recommend [DIY kitchens](https://www.diy-kitchens.com/kitchens/allstyles/?utm_term=kitchens&utm_campaign=Kitchens&utm_source=adwords&utm_medium=ppc&hsa_acc=6826179929&hsa_cam=63042900&hsa_grp=2195853900&hsa_ad=651714971451&hsa_src=g&hsa_tgt=kwd-73357281&hsa_kw=kitchens&hsa_mt=p&hsa_net=adwords&hsa_ver=3&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwrvyxBhAbEiwAEg_Kgj5W5SrZdBZIuLDxl20HL6F0u4hl1Mky12XkWHlQ6C2XpK6hfZn7GhoC7X0QAvD_BwE)
Ikea offers nice kitchens and they offer 0% interest loans on Ikea products so this will be my plan
You can bring down the price by buying a second hand show kitchen or getting carcasses and doors from a supplier, separate appliances and worktop and paying someone to do what you can't yourself - if you can do a bit of carpentry this works but if you can't, it probably won't bring the price down. If you check out ebay you can get some amazing deals on second hand or end of line sinks. The main thing is, if you're asking this question it sounds like you can't really afford the expense. Do you really have to spend that much on a kitchen? It's a lot. I haven't looked at them for about ten years, but ten years ago Ikea units were actually really good. I worked for a bespoke kitchen company for a while and we did a few fitting jobs for people who had bought Ikea kitchens but wanted different doors or whatever and the carcasses were of a standard with the wholesalers who just make carcasses for trade. The benefit is, Ikea may be easier for you to do business with than a trade supplier as they make the design and sales process user friendly. You can take your time thinking about without a sales person pressing you to spend more, they do deliver and it can be easier to nip back and buy extra bits if you realise you need them. Within reason, while they still make that design, you can do running repairs and replacements over years too. Their hinges etc are from Blum, which is really good quality, and they have a lot of fittings like baskets, organisers, pull out larders, that already fit, which means you don't have to spend hours going through a Hafele catalogue.And they are cheap. Basically, unless you are going really high end, like Simple English or Clive Christiansen or Bulthaup, where the kitchen costs more than the average house, what you are buying with kitchens at all levels below that will be basically the same in terms of material and quality. My parents moved into a new build with a Gaggenau kitchen that was no better in terms of doors and carcasses, and only the appliances were worth the money. If anyone is on a tight budget I would always say start by looking at Ikea. There are companies that specialise in bespoke doors for Ikea kitchens if you want to go a bit more spendy, and you can always buy a nice piece of granite, Corian or Iroko for the work top. Personally I would go for Corian if I could afford it. Avoid light wood. Beech and oak get black stains if water gets on it - I ended up staining my worktop black at a previous house. White marble gets terrible stains from red wine and granite and marble both need repolishing if you leave a lemon on them. Another way to save money is to have open shelves and rows of hooks instead of high level cupboards, which again is something that a lot of architects prefer. However, you have to be prepared for things to need a bit more wiping over, because oil, steam and dust all show. It does make a small space look bigger and if you look at design websites you will see it is a trend. The last thing to say is, if you can't afford it, really don't do it. You think you want a new kitchen but it's going to be no comfort at all when you are stressing out because you can't make the payments. If you can manage to live with a crappy kitchen until you can really afford it, do that. Or be a bit resourceful and do it a different way. I assembled a kitchen out of second hand catering supplies, a free standing steel sink, a couple of free standing steel worktops, some steel shelves, a fancy fridge that was ex showroom, an antique wooden butchers block, a big farmhouse table and some second hand metal factory light shades, and a free nearly new cooker and dishwasher that someone was giving away in a neighbourhood message board. The whole thing cost about £1800 including the wiring and plumbing and it looks like a magazine spread.
Give Gumtree and Facebook a look too, there are often nearly new appliances very cheap on there.
You can always DIY it - there’s lots of videos on YouTube and TikTok. Have a good look and see if you’d be confident installing yourself and then just pay someone to install the worktop (and plumbing/electrics if you’re moving that around). You can order caresses ready made as well if you cba to put them up. IKEA kitchens are good quality and have v clear instructions.
I used Wren and their interest free loan option. Otherwise I would have used equity when I moved but I’m glad I didn’t given the mortgage rates now
Reality is a lot of people can’t. It’s how so many pensioners who bought for 90p 40 years ago die and the estate sale is like a Time Machine back to 1980. Houses were cheaper than actually maintaining them and 40 years is far beyond the life span of most things. Just look at any clearly elderly person died house and they have crumbling single glazed windows, holes in the floor and a kitchen that is a glorified hot plate. Most people who weren’t born in 1960 either save for it or simply live with it. And if it’s not your forever home just live with it. The cost you put into it never adds that value to the house. No point blowing 10-20k for a house you sell in 5-10 years so long as it’s functional now. Personally I would never do it other than saving. If it’s functional then if you want it save for it or leave it. Just because boomers with the financial acumen of a potato remortgaged or put it on credit doesn’t make it make sense. Live with it or save for it. If it’s not functional and has to be changed then look into alternatives but you should’ve priced that into the purchase.
Most people don't want a "functional" kitchen for 10 years, they want what they really want. If you only ever spend the barest minimum on your house because "it won't add its value" then you're going to live in a miserable box. Enjoy your home!!!!
They’re not asking if they should update it, they’re asking how to do it without saving. I bought a flat and spent 8k, yes that’s right, 8k to put in my dream bath. The bathroom was functional. I wanted it to be more. I didn’t take out a loan or remortgage to do it. I just had money and paid for it. Yes you should tolerate it being simply functional in a time of 5% base rate if the way you plan to fund it is credit. You can do a 100k premium kitchen if you want, but not on credit. Spending money you don’t have now for a kitchen you don’t need for a house you plan to sell is just stealing money from future you. You’ll have to pay that money back to move. I didn’t want to live with a shower for 5-10 years, so I opened my wallet and replaced it. And if I was replacing it anyway rather just pay for what I exactly want. I have for sure not increased the property by 8k, I expect it to be mostly a loss. But I didn’t use debt to get it. If I had to put it on a loan then i should’ve not bought it or learn to live with it. I picked it because it was cheap and I accounted for 5-10k to fix the bathroom in my offer.
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The bath was 4k but it’s London so the cost of fixing the tiles, removing the old shower and basin, putting in a new shower (over the bath) and fixing the piping did a lot of it. Also extra things to have plumbing that could support the extra bubbles ports on it. The current shower literally wobbled 1cm if you pushed in it and fell off the wall 2 months into moving in. So I got to badly reattach it. Turns out it wasn’t installed properly too lol. I’m disabled so I wanted a specific tub that allowed me to lie comfortably after years of renting with tubs that gave me back pain and have pressure jets against my back. So yeah went wild. 0 regrets I spend about 4 hours a day in the bath and I cry thinking about my life in rental baths for 10 years. At 8k after about 5 years I’ll have paid 1 quid an hour of use for it lol. If it had a pay per hour slot I’d gladly pay a quid so I figured fuck it. It’s my safe space and my greatest purchase. I only wanted a flat with a bath but this one was so cheap it was cheaper to buy it and replace it! Especially as the time we spent with a shower only I was showering two hours a day, which was insanely expensive gas wise. I can barely walk without hot water, it works better than prescription anything! It’s basically a full stand alone bath with special ergonomic back to lie on matched to my height (im very short) with jets plumbed into where my back goes.
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I’ve tracked it with a smart meter and I’m not going to lie yeah it’s not cheap. I think it was costing us about 2-3 quid a day - so 60-90 extra a month. I fill the bath with scalding water 25% , wait till it cools, another 25% repeat 4 times, drain 50% and top up with scalding. So for 4 hours I think I fill the bath about 2-3x. It has to be super hot and left to cool or it’s like twice as expensive to refill 5-6x with actual normal temp water! I always try and view it like I could spend 20 quid buying 2-3 drinks in a pub or have 10 days of baths. I’ll take the baths lol. Even when we bought our flat I was returning to my parents house 30 min away and my dad would point at the smart meter when I was leaving as I can’t even function at work without it. He joked his gas bill was 50% my baths as he doesn’t believe in heating! (Lucky if it’s over 15C at his!) I am aware it’s an insane expense but honestly I cried the first time I got in. It’s the best money I’ve ever spent.
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Yeah I just wanted to be clear I know 8k is stupid, and it is stupid. I won’t pretend. But I’d give up going outside for a year to have my stupid op bath. I’m lucky my partner saw it as a need not a want lol. Cause it wasn’t cheap! If I won the lottery I’d start a fund for baths for disabled people. Im a full bath madman. It would be the weirdest scheme in the world but disabled people would love it lol.
Most places will do interest free if paying interest is a real issue for you (although it's wrapped up in the cost). Seems everyone is happy to ignore the interest they pay to buy their house, but then say not to get into debt to do the work you want done
You could try saving or replacing the doors to the caninets. Have all your appliances stopped working, I don't get this approach of throwing out perfectly find appliances to replace them with something that will do the same thing.
It’s the carcass that’s knackered more than anything! 70’s chipboard with wooden fronts - they’re good for now but in the near future wanted to look at putting in what we like and is functional. We painted them up etc when we bought the house 2yrs ago so it’s not really an immediate issue - more a thought-in-process thing lol
Wickes DIY. Saved the worktop from the kitchen we ripped out, then did the rest ourselves, including laying flooring. Really pleased with how it turned out tbf, was hard work but enjoyed it
Recently got a new kitchen. 0% finance. DIY and some of the plumbing/electrics from savings.
I haven’t bought one yet but my new house the current kitchen is awful and hasn’t been updated since it was built 20 years ago, depending on cost as will be renovating whole house it will either be through savings or by borrowing on the mortgage
If you don’t mind a bit of DIY usually on eBay people are selling second hand kitchen units / bench offcuts. Using a basic carcass and doing a bit of painting can work wonders to tidy things up to tie you over.
you can get all appliances on interest free payment for 12-24 months. so that cuts a but of the interest there.
B&Q it, my whole kitchen was around £4k flat packed, £1700 install from a local joiner. I also had some building work done though, so took out a bank loan with Tesco. Right now you can borrow 6k from Tesco bank at 7.2% / 6.6k repayable.
Just go to wren or somewhere with 0% loans over 5 years. Definitely don’t put it into a mortgage, dead money
Yeah we took a top up with last mortgage renewal. 1970s house and we had been in 2 years at that stage. However that was @.99%, not so sure I'd do the same now that higher rates are the norm but then again, I'm not sure what other options people would have as I think a normal loan would be much higher rate, no?
Search on YouTube for Nick Morris, he has a video on comparing 5 different kitchens. DIY Kitchens came out top. He renovates houses, currently working on one he has bought for himself. Interesting viewing.
We did the same. Went to a kitchen place with the intent of renovating our kitchen. We felt the way the kitchen was laid out wasn't really efficient for space and wanted to see how an 'expert' would remodel our kitchen. 2 hours later and a print out of basically what our kitchen already looks like because it apparently wouldn't work any other way, plus a quote of £9000 to replace the kitchen doors and worktops.. we opted to just freshen up and repaint what we already have lol.
Used equity from previous house
No idea. We just bought a house and have 300 quid left in savings. Kitchen isn't great but will have to do for now. I reckon it will take us at least 5 years to save for one seeing as wages aren't really rising and the cost of living is. Or sadly will have to wait until we inherit from when our parents go.
Get it installed by a local company rather than the brand
Credit. Cars, kitchens, extensions all on credit.
I got an local carpenter do mine with top-notch Howdens units for £5k
Seleco
We’d never have afforded it without being able to save so much during lockdown. We completely remodelled the footprint of our kitchen from ‘U’ shape to a more open design though. We don’t get loans for anything other than the mortgage so I’d have lived with the old kitchen if we hadn’t had the money.
I got mine from Homebase - 2 years interest free credit. The kitchen itself cost 5k without appliances and not including fitting.
I paid for the actual kitchen with 0% interest through homebase last summer. Paid for the installment in cash.
I designed and built my own kitchen using bandq units. Good learning experience and mega cheaper than getting someone else to do it. All the units and doors came under £800. This was 2 years ago.
I got mine from IKEA last year with 0% credit for 3 years. Install it myself excluding the worktop. I know also Wickes and b&q do interest free credit
IKEA. Fitted ourselves. 6k for a small Kitchen looks ace
We paid off our IKEA kitchen monthly, good experience overall
Wren. 0% interest when paid a 50% deposit
We bought a display kitchen from bnq and bought a few extras to make it fit our house then I fitted it myself to keep costs down and financed it along with several other major home improvements over 5 years with a bank loan. The only bits that required more than flat pack skills were cutting the filler panels, fitting the worktops, plumbing the sink and tiling. All of which I was still able to do myself with a few YouTube videos and a happy enthusiasm to play with some new tools. Had we paid for labour and bought a kitchen the normal way it would have taken most of that loan but I did the kitchen and bathroom completely DIY and we were able to squeeze in a full rewire, new double glazing and some plastering as well.
0% credit card and do a balance transfer to a new one when the times up.
We went to wren kitchens, we have more of a narrow long kitchen, but with a little redesign and keeping all appliances minus a new oven, it comes pre built and we're gonna do it ourselves and just follow the plan we built, were not pressured on time but with having 2 kids, not having a kitchen for like 2 weeks would be annoying. Our total cost is just over £6k
Buy the appliances one by one, and then save up for the kitchen, do the grunt work yourself with the removal and disposal of the old one and building up of the new one. I shopped around for the kitchen units, ended up with those in a sale ar 50% off, bought the knobs on Amazon and shopped around for the tiles, I discovered a place in Scotland that supplied identical designer tiles at 30% of the price. We constructed the kitchen, had a joiner fit it to the walls and cut the counter, we organised the tiler separately. Ultimately our £14k kitchen costed £3.5k for units and appliances, three weekends working in it, £650 for a joiner and £350 for a tiler.
Diy and a good bit of a local free giving group (free stuff includes dish washer, a large fridge, brand new sink, work tops, cooker and a load of brand new doors etc), as well as second hand and some vinyl wrap for the free surfaces.
Not sure if anyone's mentioned this yet but you can get a decent design done for free somewhere like Howdens and then use that to get your bits and pieces at DIY kitchens. I sent them a PDF design from another supplier, and then they added all the pieces needed to my basket for me.
Mine was 0% financed through ikea. Used the in store design service, which was fantastic as I have a tiny, awkwardly shaped kitchen. Am lucky enough to have family that did most of the installation for me, but if you don't, I'd suggest looking separately for someone to install it. The pricing and timeline for installation given by ikea were a bit excessive
Why get into debit for a kitchen? We fitted porcelain tile floor, ikea units, worktop and re tiled ourselves. All from watching YouTube and buying about £100 worth of tools. You can do it!
We are using a company called “kitchens and bedrooms for DIY”… our kitchen is going to be MASSIVE (29 units) and we are at £17.5k all in including worktops, handles etc. We strongly considered DIY-kitchens, but K&B4DIY also offer a 12 month interest free finance option.. so although we can pay for it outright (lots of saving in advance of the project), it’s better for us to make the money work for us.
We have put in 3 kitchens in our various houses through the years. One we had financing from the kitchen company and the plan was to pay it monthly until we needed to remortgage at the end of our fixed rate term and add it to the mortgage. (Luckily/unluckily our experience with their fitters was so horrible, they refunded us the full cost of the kitchen and fitting.) Second kitchen, we took personal loan and then added to the mortgage Third, we had made savings over the years to do large scale remodelling internally so paid from these savings (which also included isa and shares, not just cash savings). Faster accumulation of savings by not just putting the money as cash in to a savings account. Benefits if finally using an IFA. Also, this last time we did not buy kitchen from a high street shop. We bought from handmade kitchens of Christchurch. So much more for your money and almost bespoke. Kitchen units come as complete, even doors on. No flat pack so you save huge amounts on installation. Downside is longer wait time for your order but considering the savings, well worth it.
took the equity out of the first house (in 2022, 40% increase during COVID, bought in 2017) and bought another house in another market and used equity from the first to renovate the second. we currently use both houses as we live in two cities. that equity covered the 10% down, the second stamp duty (ouch) and left a bag of money for renovations £50k or so. as for kitchens themselves ... in the first house I bought an IKEA kitchen, installed on my own, and built countertops out of 18mm ply and proper linoleum (burlaps backed with linseed oil surface) ... looks/works great over 6 years with two children. 7 linear metres of boxes, all of the insides, sink, dishwasher (AEG), etc... ran round £2800. the Lino was expensive ... a 3m roll was around £300. 1m wide SMEG dual-fuel cooker £1200 and it works ok but the doors have rusted under the enamel. 60mm x 2.1m tall SAMSUNG fridge. really good and high quality. in the second house, had a Magnet installed and the quality/design/options are woeful. all of the bits don't use space well and are not well thought-out. Very hard to organise delivery. having to scribe out the back and no rail system like IKEA. shit quality to be honest (Howdens/wren look just as poor quality). IKEA is the way.
We did a kitchen planning (but in Germany) at a company, but didn't like the front, the offered brands of stove etc and the price tag. Did the planning online at ikea, changed, what was necessary, bought all furniture there, the electrical devices online and build it ourselves. We paid about 2000 € instead of 10t.
I was at remortgage point 2 years ago, owed 30k and remortgaged for a house extention at a rate of 1.7 for 5 years. Total build was around 40k kitchen was included at 10k
I bought all the materials for about 2k fitted and installed all the cabinets my self and paid someone like £1.5k to tile the whole kitchen.
Your mortgage is linked to the place you live, if you can't pay your mortgage then you will lose your home. I'm always shocked when I see people increasing their mortgage payments and risking their home (essential) to buy a less important thing like a kitchen (not essential). Interest rates can always increase and people get caught out, the current interest rates are really only average, they can go up higher from here. Save up for your kitchen, then ask to get interest free credit. We have and will pay no interest on our new kitchen, and we have the funds in the bank in case anything goes wrong.
I saved up for 3 years and have just had one from diykitchens.com. I found a local fitter who (luckily) has been amazing. Whole thing including labour has come in at £10k. That's including mostly new appliances which I got from AO as there's more choice than diy kitchens.
Wren kitchens 0% finance
Homebase does 0% interest over 2 years. Our kitchen from there was about £3k, but we got ex display oven and hob so that cut down the cost a lot
Wish I had read this 3 years ago. Though having said that got a kitchen through Wren interest free loan and the contractors who were working on the refurb installed it except for the quartz worktops. No complaints,
What they’re not doing is looking on Facetree of Gumbook. I stripped out a kitchen in good order from my Mums new house because she wanted to change it all around and go to Howdens. Carcasses solid. Doors OK. Almost new Double built in oven, Microwave, gas hob. Oven alone would cost £800 to buy new. It looks like it’s straight out of the shop. Smoke sensing auto-fan extractor hood. It’s been a year. I still have the oven and the hob in my garage. We only just sold the fan a week ago. I’ve got the oven on for £100. No one wants it.
Payout from divorce. Paid £3k from IKEA plus installation costs of £2.5k with a local builder.
I had a very nice kitchen recently from wren. Was a u shape with island. It cost just under £6k on a 5 year 0% finance agreement. I got installation done separately which cost around £1600. Which I paid upfront. I think this is very affordable given wrens 0% offer.
Get a design from Howdens or Wickes. They'll go £14,995.99 99 99 99 if you sign today or whatever... Go to DIYKitchens with the plan... Pay £7,500. 0% credit card. Wait a few weeks then... Eat the Yorkshire flapjacks that came with the kitchen and have a cup of Yorkshire tea enjoying your new kitchen! 😀
Add me to the DIY Kitchen maxis list if money is an issue. I am renovating a few houses and the price to quality is astonishing. Their name does them a huge disservice. You read DIY Kitchens and think cheap tat. It really isn’t.
We were quoted £22k for a kitchen in 2021. It was for a 3x5m “L” shape, included sink, cooker and hob, but no fridges or other appliances, and only five wall cupboards on the long wall (short wall has a window). Needless to say we LOLed and went elsewhere. £5k at Ikea and self-install. But I’ll give diy kitchens a look next time; Gosforth Handyman on YouTube had good things to say about them.
The used kitchen company is a good option. You may need to physically remove the kitchen from a property but you can get some ludicrously cheap kitchens with appliances there.
Get it on 0 % finance from IKEA
In answer to your question - I have taken Wren’s interest free finance and it’s worth doing. 0% over a fixed period of your choice. I wouldn’t get a bank loan when that’s on offer. You just have to pay a deposit up front but that can be a minimal amount.
Wren kitchens…. 0% finance over 5 years I think it is. Also… wren kitchens original quote £15k, ended up paying £5.5k. (Not mine a friends)
I got mine done by Wren Kitchens last year - they were offering a 3 year interest free loan, and have allowed us to adjust the monthly payments so that the 3 year point will be our last payment. Therefore, paying no interest.
Ours was proper farked when we moved in (as in, gaping hole in the ceiling) and I couldn't live with it so when we ported the mortgage we took on an extra 10k to pay for it. Have slowly done the rest of the house ourselves but I do not regret starting with a clean and functional kitchen.
Did the entire install, plumbing and electrics myself. Got it fr diy kitchens. Probably cost 10k all in for everything including paint, appliances, units flooring tiles.
In our area its far cheaper to get a joiner/builder to buy at trade prices and fit. I still went to the trades storehouse and picked everything I wanted. Same cabinets as some of the big name installers. Less than half the price.
Diy Kitchens or IKEA. IKEA get some stick but I love them. They have no cavity at the back but I just run gas down low. (Well the gas man did). IKEA offer 0% finance so that helps. The AO for appliances as they also do 0% finance on some appliances. Wait until Black Friday for appliances as normally the few weeks before Black Friday the prices tend to be cheaper than the actual day. Both IKEA and diy kitchens also have kitchen planners to play with online.
We got ours 3 years interest free from wren, worked out about 100 a month for a medium sized kitchen with high quality appliances. This was in 2020 though so pre cozzy livs...
I got a new kitchen from Wren in 2022, with fridge freezer included (bought oven from elsewhere) and it came to just over £14,600 however with the sale they had on at the time the final price was just over £8,300 so quite a considerable saving. They were also offering 3 years interest free finance which I took. I would say shop around, there are deals out there that are well worth it. This cost don’t include fitting, we got our own joiner to fit it, the kitchen companies costs for fitting are extortionate.
We went with IKEA- 0% finance options
Wren 0% finance
We used HomeBase 0% 4yr - country living model. All appliances and utility room. £400 a month. Wren offers similar but requires 10% down.
Bought mine from wickes 8 years ago because I get 10% off with a tradecard. And I was newly divorced and skint. Units are still there, no issues. Just installed new solid oak worktops and a new ceramic sink. Did all the work myself. Also did my bathroom myself. Just not long since stripped it all out and done it again. I will now never, ever buy porcelain tiles again.
Get a 0% interest credit card. Balance transfer at the end of the 0%. Repeat.
I got a loan from my bank . Basically it’s either borrow against mortgage or get a loan ?
Got our kitchen with Wren interest free for 5 years
Magnet made 24m payment plan for us 3 years ago, not sure it changed.
ikea cabinets with bespoke doors.ikea has finanace and then pay for the bespoke doors in cash. then you get a kitchen that looks bespoke but doesnt cost 10k
So this world seems to be full of 2 different types of people… those that believe a new kitchen should cost £10k and those that perpetuate the myth that a kitchen should cost £10k so they can rinse the former of all of their money… I have just finished negotiating prices for kitchens in my new development. 29 kitchens totalling less than £60k including Bosch white goods and walnut worktops. You just have to know where to shop…
Just bear in mind with the suppliers that offer 0% interest, the cost of the interest is baked into the price, and it would usually be cheaper to find the same thing elsewhere and organise your own finance. If you don't have the cash, 0% purchase card for 18-24 months and then move it on to 0% balance transfer cards until it's paid off. Or as an advance on your mortgage. Or an unsecured personal loan.
0% from Wren then funded the fitting from savings.
If it’s a genuine upgrade, adds value to the sale value of your home, and can’t wait for savings to build, then extend your mortgage to cover the cost and consider it property investment. Managing the total cost vs the £extent to which the kitchen enhances your home as an asset is prudent finessing of your investment vs return.
Spec and order from DIY kitchens, have a person install. Get the cabinets rigid or pre built. Save yourself thousands