Cabinets account for about half the materal cost of the project and will have the greatest impact on your budget. Cabinets range in price based on quality, the type of material they are made of, and whether they are stock (ready made in specific sizes) or custom (produced specifically for your kitchen in whatever sizes are needed).

Rough-in materials, including lumber, plumbing, electrical wiring and devices and labor account for the next highes portion of the kitchen remodel project. Major appliances purchases can easily be the third largest portion. Materials you choose for surfaces including counters, backsplashes and floors also account for variations in price.

The budget for a kitchen project should respect not only your capacity to invest in your home but reflect an amount that is commensurate with the value of your home. According to the National Kitchen & Bath Association, a reasonable budget for a complete kitchen renovation should not exceed 15-20% of the value of your home.

After meeting in your home and discussing some ideas, we will put together both a preliminary design and pricing to help establish a starting point. We usually price several selections from one or more cabinet lines and a range of countertop possibilities along with allowances for all of the remaining selections you will need to make. It will be much easier to make selections of cabinets, countertops, etc. when you can see how much they cost and how they affect the overall project cost. Modification of the design and the scope of work can also have an impact on the budget. Now that you can see what things cost it will be easier to establish your budget and decide what you want to include in your new kitchen.

According Realtor® Magazine, the national average return on investment for a remodeled kitchen ranges from 85% to 90%, depending on several factors. In large metropolitan areas, the range may be higher.

It can really vary. The age and shape of your house, the size of your kitchen, the amount of work required and the quality and scope of the materials and details chosen are just a few of the variables.

According to Remodeling Magazine - national averages for a complete kitchen with mid-range selections run from $21,246 for a minor remodel to $56,611 for a major remodel, and the average for what is called an upscale kitchen is $110,964. Your mileage may vary. We still can do quality kitchens starting under $10,000 for a moderate size room that does not require much construction.

Make timely decisions and then avoid design changes once the project is underway. Regretting, reordering, reconfiguring—it all leads to delays, changed work orders, and tapped-out budgets.

Do your homework on the front end of the project and stay engaged with your designer. This will save you money. The estimating and design processes typically take 3 weeks, or more. The duration of the estimation/design phases is greatly dependent on the availability and preparedness of the homeowner.

Your "Kitchen Personality Quiz". Take a moment to answer these questions about the way your household uses the kitchen.

It is a long written design principle that "form always follows function". The function of the "kitchen triangle", that three-sided connection between the stove, sink, and refrigerator is practically sacrosanct to kitchen designers. But in today's family kitchens, often one triangle isn't enough. Here are two design approaches to planning the best layout for your busy kitchen:

1. The island workstation: Depending on the shape of your kitchen, an island can make the work triangle more efficient — in a large space, it can tighten the legs of the triangle to the recommended distance of between 4 and 8 feet. In a two-cook kitchen, the island can be a pivot point in a series of triangles, especially if it includes a prep sink or a dedicated workstation, as for baking. In a compact kitchen, consider a rolling island that can be tucked against a wall when not in use.
2. The zone approach: Before you settle on a layout, map out the prevalent traffic patterns in the room: for instance, from fridge to sink to stove; toaster to coffeemaker to computer desk; homework station to fridge to back door. Then set up distinct areas, or "zones," for each set of activities. For convenience and safety, try to keep zones from overlapping — the refrigerator, for instance, should be at the outer corner of the cooking zone so that kids can access it without having to pass near the stove.

"It is the pervading law of all things organic and inorganic, of all things physical and metaphysical, of all things human and all things superhuman, of all true manifestations of the head, of the heart, of the soul, that the life is recognizable in its expression, that form ever follows function."
American Architect, Louis H. Sullivan, March, 1896 "

Dependent upon the size and scope of the job, an Imperial NKBA designer could spend as little as 5- 8 hours, and upwards of 80 hours on a design project. The cost of the time and effort required to measure, engineer, and produce complete drawings for a typical kitchen project is factored into the price of the kitchen. Imperial's designers will gladly work with potential clients to provide ideas, preliminary drawings, and project estimates at no charge. Once it is established that the client wishes to hire Imperial for their remodeling project, we will request a modest retainer prior to delivering a client the finalized plans.

Why hire an Imperial NKBA (National Kitchen and Bath Association) design professional?

Choosing the right design professional is an important decision for your project's success. By selecting an NKBA Certified Designer, you will be working with a professional who:

• Has demonstrated comprehensive knowledge in kitchen and bath design, as well as construction, mechanical, plumbing and electrical systems
• Adheres to a strict Code of Professional Conduct
• Is an expert in the NKBA Kitchen & Bath Planning Guidelines & Access Standards, which recognizes the importance of consumer health, safety and welfare in kitchen and bath design
• Is a member of the NKBA, the kitchen and bath industry's leading professional organization that provides them with the training and tools needed to succeed
• Is skilled at assessing consumers' individual needs and wants and creating designs that meet and exceed these requirements
• Remains current on local building codes, safety and environmental regulations and the wealth of new products and equipment on the market

"Good fortune is what happens when opportunity meets with planning."
Thomas Alva Edison

The amount of time needed to finish a kitchen remodeling job depends on the complexity and size of the job. Another factor is the delivery schedule of the cabinets, countertops, and appliances and flooring you include in the design. Custom cabinets, for example, will take much longer to arrive than will stock cabinets.

The estimating process usually runs about 1 week. The design process takes another 1-3 weeks. The duration of the estimate/design phase is greatly dependent on the availability of the homeowner to participate in the design review sessions. The construction process takes about 6-8 weeks to order the materials and another 1-4 weeks for installation.

Every remodel is different, but there are some things that you can plan for.

The basic installation process includes these steps:

Step 1: Your old kitchen will be torn out.
Step 2: New electrical, if required, is installed.
Step 3: New plumbing, if required, is installed.
Step 4: The walls are repaired and prepped.
Step 5: The cabinets are installed.
Step 6: The top is measured and a template is made.
Step 7: The trim for the cabinets is installed.
Step 8: After the countertop is fabricated or cut to size, the top is installed.
Step 9: The final plumbing is connected and your kitchen is functioning once again.
Step 10: The new tile wall tile is installed, where applicable
Step 11: The new floor is installed, where applicable."

Plan for the Chaos

We've all seen the yellow crime scene tape ‐ "Police Line – Do Not Cross!" Your kitchen may be off-limits for several days, or perhaps weeks. Although your kitchen designer will provide an estimated timeline for your project, you don't want to be caught off‐guard when you and your family are displaced from the room in the house that everyone depends on.

What else should I expect during the installation?

Plan on it being loud at times during working hours and prepare your household:

• Without a kitchen you may not be able to prepare meals.
• You will likely have limited or no access to your refrigerator and oven.
• You may have to get your drinking water from somewhere other than the kitchen sink or refrigerator door.
• Utensils, plates, and cookware along with common cooking spices (like salt and pepper) will very likely be out of reach.
• With construction and demolition, there may be a lot of dust.
• If installers have to come through your house, chances are they'll track in some dirt.

• Do your homework
  • Prepare yourself with the knowledge you need to make the right choices when it comes time to plan and construct your kitchen
• Don't settle for a "cookie-cutter" kitchen
  • Unless you're planning to move within the next couple of years, go ahead and build the kitchen that works for you and your budget.
• Avoid over-customizing your kitchen
  • What's perfect for you today (i.e. built-in seating for the kids—who will soon be too tall to use it) may prove limiting tomorrow
• Avoid last minute changes that could lead to delays and rescheduling tradesmen
  • Regretting, reordering, reconfiguring—it all leads to delays, changed work orders, and tapped-out budgets
• Plan for contingencies in your remodeling budget
  • Expect the unexpected. It is smart to budget for an additional 10-15% to ensure that you are prepared in case any unexpected situation should occur. It is not rare especially in case of older homes to encounter existing code violations, mold, rotten pipes or structural problems.

"Remember, that time is money. He that can earn ten shillings a day by his labor, and goes abroad, or sits idle, one half of that day, though he spends but six pence during his diversion or idleness, ought not to reckon that the only expense; he has really spent, or rather thrown away, five shillings besides."
Benjamin Franklin, Advice to a Young Tradesman (1748)"

On a daily/weekly basis Imperial Home Center provides home owners, remodeling contractors, and home builders with simply cabinets, materials, and design services. We value the business we receive from "do-it-yourselfers" and General Contractors and are commited to provide to them the same high design standards as we would for our "in-house projects".

Retail ticket items" do require a down payment upon ordering and must be paid in full upon delivery or pick-up.

• Financing and budgeting
• Obtain all required permissions for your renovation project
• Decide who is responsible for obtaining permissions
• Hire professionals with solid track records
• Hire qualified trade contractors for each trade
• Have price estimate and detailed project scope in writing
• Properly manage the payment schedule to the project scope
• Understand value and avoid "over-renovation"

Financing is an important part of any project and home renovation is no exception. Some folks perform complete cost analysis of their renovation project and then decide to piece meal their renovation project over a long period of time for various reasons such as lack of financial resources at the time. It is fine to piece meal the project, just be aware that your initial calculation may have to be adjusted to include rising price of materials and labor. Also it is smart to budget for an additional 10-15% to ensure that you are prepared in case any unexpected situation should occur. It is not rare especially in case of older homes to encounter mold, rotten pipes or structural problems.

Apart from cosmetic changes, all renovation and remodeling projects that alter the structure of your home such as adding and moving walls, creating a new space or building extensions and additions, requires obtaining proper permission from the zoning or planning department in your area. Failure to obtain a proper permission for your renovation or remodeling project is against the law and you could face penalties.

Some home owners falsely believe doing things quietly is smart and saves everyone money. Not only failure to obtain permission is against the law, it could also expose you to a wide range of unpleasant circumstances such as lack of insurance coverage when you need it most, severe penalties and even lawsuits. Consider a situation where a home is burned to the ground by fire. The insurance company would inspect the property and would find that you built an extension or changed the structure of your home without obtaining proper permission. The insurance company may then refuse to pay for any damages even if your renovation had nothing to do with the cause of arson. The situation could become really ugly if you had tenants leaving in your basement. Tenants could file for bodily or personal damages against you since you did not have permission to convert your basement to a self contained unit, and thus it was not considered fire retrofit. You may also face severe penalties when the time comes for selling your property. Today, most realtors as well as lawyers scrutinize land surveys to ensure all additional work done by you was approved. If any work was not reported, it will most likely have a negative impact on the sell price of your home as the original sell price included the property and all its improvements. Also, you would not be able to sell off your property until you resolve the situation with the city.

Find out who is responsible for documenting the work and getting the required permission, you or the contractor. Applying for permission requires full understanding of building codes and regulations, and if your renovation is quite extensive it might be quite complicated to draft and document all the work. Thus, it is always best to have the contracting company apply for the permission. After all it is the contractor or the contracting company that is doing the remodeling, so they are fully aware of the complete scope of the work that needs be done and should be able to provide proper documentation to the city. See the section above to find out why it is important to obtain permission.

Therefore, ensure that the contracting company you plan to hire has ample knowledge about building codes and regulations. Ensure they are also skilled and competent to draw and document what needs be done.

Just as you won't buy your brand new car unless you have test derived it, you should not give your home remodeling project to the contractor that rings your door bell and promises big discount. Make sure that you go and see their projects and check their reference to ensure that previous clients were completely satisfied with the quality of work they received. Trust and customer satisfaction is the landmark of any reputable construction company.

Although this sounds straight forward, many home owners make the mistake of giving contracts to contractors they used for a different trade in the past.  Another word your roofer, even though he has done a superb job of installing your roof, should not do bathroom remodeling nor should your landscaper installs your hardwood floors.  Each trade should be handled by a qualified trade specialist in that trade.   It is possible that some contractors have skills in multiple trades.  For instance, a contractor may be skilled in flooring as well as framing or another contractor may be skilled in kitchen remodeling as well as bathroom remodeling.  However, make sure that your contractor is in fact skilled in those trades and has extensive experience. 

It is always in your best interest to have everything put down in writing.   Especially with larger projects, task may be overlooked or miscommunication can take place if price and work details are not committed in writing.  In case of any changes requested by you or additional work added to the original project, ensure that the contractor or the contracting company provides you with new modified price estimate and work details.  This ensures that both you and the contracting company agree to the modified price as well as new work details so that there are no surprises when the job is completed.

It is not unusual for contractors and contracting companies to ask for a deposit to pay for materials and start the renovation project. With large projects, contractors may also require that they receive payment after completing each major task. However, before making any such payment check to ensure that the renovation is progressing as discussed and you are satisfied with the quality of service.

If you are renovating your home to increase its value, understanding value engineering is an absolute must. To begin this process you have to find out what renovated properties near your home are selling for. This would give you an idea for what the ceiling is and how much room you have to benefit by renovating your home. It is not just enough to know that you have room to benefit from renovation, but to maximize your profit you have to understand what to renovate, and where to spend your money. This is referred to as Value Engineering. For instance to maximize your gain, is it best to enlarge your bathroom or build a patio? Is there any value in adding a fireplace or building a second garage? Since Value engineering varies for each area and neighborhood, you need to do research on value engineering in your area.

One major mistakes home owners and investors make is to start the renovation project without regard to these facts just to find out that after spending so much time and money on home renovation, they are unable to sell the property at the desired price

1. How many cooks usually work in the kitchen at the same time?
   • Two or more. Cooking is a social event. We love to include family, friends and the kids.
   • Usually only one person cooks at a time.
   • We hardly cook at home.
2. What's your cooking style?
   • We are serious cooks. Cooking and entertaining at home is how we unwind.
   • We are somewhat laid-back. On most nights, dinner tends to be somewhat casual. That said, for special events and on holidays we cook for a crowd.
   • Mostly quick and easy meals, or carry-out.
3. Who else hangs out in the kitchen, and what do they do there?
   • The kitchen is the heart of my home. Everyone hangs out in the kitchen.
   • Most of the time, the kitchen is the most heavily occupied room in the house.
   • The kitchen gets minimal use.
4. How important is easy cleanup?
   • I would rather have durable commercial grade cooking equipment and functional food preparation areas.
   • The room sees too much activity for surfaces to need coddling. It has to clean up fast.
   • What I really need is a recycling system for paper, plastic, and glass.
5. If you could splurge on one luxury, what would it be?
   • A heavy-duty six-burner range top, or perhaps double ovens.
   • I would like my kitchen to have multiple functions, not just cooking.
   • The kitchen is used so little it rarely needs cleaning.

3 or more A's

Think like a pro. If it's in the budget, spend the money on commercial grade cooking equipment, great food preperation areas, lots of pantries, dedicated spice storage, and a refrigerator spacious enough to accommodate platters. You may also want to consider glass-front cabinets or open shelves to display dishes and glassware. Make sure you have good task lighting and stick to a flooring material which is easy on the feet and easy to clean.

3 or more B's

Keep it functional, not fussy. Design in features that will simplify your daily routine—a self-cleaning oven, a microwave where the kids can reach it, lots of counter and storage space. Since you rarely cook labor-intensive meals, spend your appliance dollars on an energy-efficient side-by-side refrigerator, an easy-to-clean cooktop, and sturdy cabinetry with ample space for household staples. Think in advance about ways to control the inevitable clutter from all that family activity, such as an adjustable shelving system or cubbies fitted with bins.

3 or more C's

Remember resale. Spend your makeover dollars on practical, clean-lined cabinets; good-quality basic appliances; and conveniences like a built-in recycling center. Be careful not to spend too little on the kitchen: Quality counts with homebuyers, and a shoddy new kitchen is no better than a dingy old one. It will be money well spent.