Home remodeling question(s)!!?

Question

Me and my boyfriend are getting a house here in the near future. We decided it needed the follwing upgrades:

Hardwood floors (or laminate that LOOKS like hard wood) in the living room and hallways

Laminate in the kitchen

New carpet on the stairs to the basement

New countertops

& paint.

If you know anything about this could you please give me a rough estimate? I don't know very many details obviously...just trying to see how much money we are going to have to spend on this.

Thank you so much!!

Answer 1

I would avoid the laminate in the kitchen. Some people may disagree with me, but I have it and hate it. Hardwood and Laminate aren't the best choice in areas where there is dampness or running water - it can warp and the edges split. I am experiencing that in front of my kitchen sink. For the other areas, if you can afford the hard wood instead of the laminate (no matter how nice it looks), I think you'll be happier with it. The next kitchen floor I get is called Versital Shale Slate - it is expensive, but is industrial grade. It is a linoleum type of tile that looks and even feels like slate. It is absolutely gorgeous.
As for the carpet on the basement stairs, I would recommend a tightly woven Berber in a medium tone as it will probably get a lot of traffic along with wear. As for the countertops, you don't have to go top of the line, but don't go rock-bottom cheap either. Go in a medium tone preferably with some sort of pattern. Stay away from Corian - isn't worth the money.
As for the price - have someone from Home Depot or Lowe's come out and measure and give you a quote based upon some things you have picked out. It will probably cost you about $30 to $40 to have them come out, but they will credit it back to you if you purchase the supplies from them.

Answer 2

You really have to get out into the stores and price out each individually for your market and for what you specifically want. Hardwood, laminate and carpet pricing depends on the area and the price per square foot, square yard or linear foot and the grade. There are several grades of hardwood, do you want handscraped, engineered, tongue and groove, etc.? Carpet and padding have different quality levels and are manufactured from olefin, polyester, wool, etc. all of which affect the price. Counter tops can be tile, formica, granite, concrete, even wood and each material has different grades as well. You will even find that paint depends on the area you want to cover and the brand or whether the walls require priming, prep like repairs or fill. And, it also depends on whether you intend to contract for the installation of these items or whether you intend to demo and do the work yourself. Sorry but without knowing the details, it is impossible to even guesstimate.

Answer 3

Dont get laminate youll regret it and if your a do it yourselfer you might consider doing some kind of tile for your countertop if you shop around you can do it for a third of the price of a pre-made one and if you do it right it looks awsome good luck

Answer 4

There are too many variables. Go to Lowes or Home Depot. They have staff who can give you estimates based on the materials you select and prices for labor or instructions for DIY.