Opinions on kitchen/utility

JuneBow

I need a new kitchen, but in about 3 years I will probably downsize.
So my choice of new kitchen will be influenced by how the kitchen will appeal to buyers.
At the moment I have a kitchen/breakfast room with a separate decent sized utility room which I love as it is the washing/drying room.
If it were my choice I would keep the utility room separate as I have a second living room off the kitchen without doors so the noise from the washer and dryer don't get on my nerves. Also I like the washing out of sight.
However, I need to be mindful of what other people would like,so am considering knocking the kitchen and utility into one, giving a really good size kitchen.
So my question is who would prefer the kitchen and utility seperate or all in one.

The house would likely be bought by a growing family as it has four bedrooms and three bathrooms.
S

casper_g

I would want a separate utility room, though it wouldn't need to be particularly large. The main thing would be to have an extra door between the washing machine and the open plan kitchen to reduce noise.

Cakeguts

JuneBow wrote: »

I need a new kitchen, but in about 3 years I will probably downsize.
So my choice of new kitchen will be influenced by how the kitchen will appeal to buyers.
At the moment I have a kitchen/breakfast room with a separate decent sized utility room which I love as it is the washing/drying room.
If it were my choice I would keep the utility room separate as I have a second living room off the kitchen without doors so the noise from the washer and dryer don't get on my nerves. Also I like the washing out of sight.
However, I need to be mindful of what other people would like,so am considering knocking the kitchen and utility into one, giving a really good size kitchen.
So my question is who would prefer the kitchen and utility seperate or all in one.

The house would likely be bought by a growing family as it has four bedrooms and three bathrooms.
S

It is your choice you are going to carry on living there. In 3 years time the fashion could be for really tiny rooms because of the rise in heating bills you just can't predict what will be fashionable in kitchen utility rooms in 3 years time. So do it the way you want it.

AnotherJoe

Spend the minimum now which means retaining the current structure because you are very unlikely to get back what you spend on it let alone if building work is involved.

Plus you haven't spent money to appeal to a future theoretical buyer. It may be the buyer you get prefers what you have now, or if it's one that like everything about the house except the kitchen they can spend the money to get it to what they want, not you..

Plus you've spent three years with a kitchen you like.

Tygermoth

i love my utility and would rather have a slightly smaller kitchen for one (in fact the house we bought ins a massive three bed with a weirdly small kitchen)

This didn't matter to me as the dining room and the utility mitigate this and the room sizes in the rest of the house were above average.

Having a room that you can shut away all the laundry chaos is worth its weight in gold!

AlexMac

The big variable (which you don't mention) is your budget and your attitude to spending; whether money is tight, or whether there's a bottomless purse?

But returning to the Q; do you really need a "new kitchen"?

When we moved to our current place, we simply refreshed the kitchen with a new ceramic sink (in the existing worktop) and tap, plus replacement doors on the base and wall units, at a cost of a couple of hundred pounds.

Last year, 4 years on, we did a bigger facelift; relocated the fridge and washing machine to the kitchen from a former utility room, with added units, replacement worktops, two new ovens & hob and new tiling; about £4k.

So without knowing your spec, what you plan could cost a few hundred quid, or, if structural walls have to be removed, many thousands?

Having said that, I can't see a return to the historic preference for tiny kitchens, so when prospective buyers view your place in 3 years, they will probably be impressed by a bigger one (then not realise they would have preferred a separate skullery and a laundry room til after they move in!). So if you can extend cheaply, that will probably impress the punters.

But then, so would a couple of extra bathrooms and toilets...? Or £20k off the price if that's what you save now by doing nothing, or merely a cheap makeover?

1st world problems; aren't we lucky!

saajan_12

AnotherJoe wrote: »

Spend the minimum now which means retaining the current structure because you are very unlikely to get back what you spend on it let alone if building work is involved.

Plus you haven't spent money to appeal to a future theoretical buyer. It may be the buyer you get prefers what you have now, or if it's one that like everything about the house except the kitchen they can spend the money to get it to what they want, not you..

Plus you've spent three years with a kitchen you like.

Listen to this. The difference is a matter of personal preference and so unlikely to make a big impact on the property value. If any potential increase in value is around the money you put in, then best case you're back where you started, worst case you're down the building costs. So best to do minimal work, and let the sale price be lower as a result if you find that's general opinion when you sell.

Davesnave

Viewing houses, if I see a washing machine in a kitchen, I think, "OK where else could that go?"

To my mind, a washing machine in the kitchen of a substantial house with 3 bathrooms, just doesn't compute.

PasturesNew

For me, living alone, I'd want a separate utility room - because a utility room isn't the neat/bright/smart room portrayed on the telly ... the reality is it's a dumping ground for stuff you've emptied from the car, or the dog basket/food, the gardening boots, piles of things you're sorting out, washing to do, washing that's airing, things you're scrubbing/soaking -and all those "dirty little jobs" that need to be done.

I'd imagine most people would like to go into the utility to "dump" what they've got in their hand, then close the door on it quickly and not see it.

I'm building one to put my washing machine into and have a loo/shower - but I say that I expect mostly to use it, in the first instance, as "somewhere to just drop things when I come into the house" - and to have things out that you "might be using soon". If you're sorting recycling or old clothes, it's good to know you have a space where you can put all that stuff until that moment in time you actually do it.

bouicca21

I wouldn't be trying to second guess what an imaginary purchaser might want - which might be knocking the kitchen into that second living room. For me it's a utility room every time.

But I'd also be wondering whether it's worth spending anything at all if it's only for 3 years.

trailingspouse

Not much to add - I would always prefer a separate utility/laundry room.

People have different expectations from different types of houses - if I was buying a two-bed terrace I wouldn't expect a separate utility. If I was buying a large 4-bed with three bathrooms, I certainly would.

So leave things as they are. And, if you do the kitchen at all, do it for you.