Realestate

Question: Potential home buyers: would you rather see white, painted kitchen cupboards, or poorly refinished and stained

(Posted by: bluearia on 2007-08-10 11:55:56)

Here's the deal: We plan on selling our house within the next year, and our kitchen cupboards are, I think, a mess. They are old (80s) style oak with fake oak (laminate) panels on the inside. We knew something needed to be done, so they are completely torn apart and sanded. However, there appears to be damage (steam?) to the bottom of several upper cupboards and around the dishwasher that I can't sand out. I propose that it would be best to slap down some white enamel paint, but my husband feels that a potential buyer would prefer wood cupboards, even if they are looking rather worse for wear. What do you think? (Our countertops are a light grey stone (?) and other comparable homes in our neighborhood go for around the 320, 000 mark)

Posted by: Heidi on 2007-08-10, 12:06:56

I would leave them like they are. Then the buyer can do what they want with them but if you paint them white, the buyer will have a harder time. A buyer might want to stain what is already there. Or they may take them out and get new cabinets that they like. Everyone has a different taste. Just try it like they are and see what the people looking at the house say. If that is a major thing that you notice everyone talking about, maybe it would be better to go ahead and paint them. I personally would just leave them like they are because wood cabinets look better than painted ones even if they have a couple trouble spots. Have a good day!!!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Posted by: atiredwing on 2007-08-10, 12:06:30

No easy answer. Depends on the buyer and how the rest of the kitchen looks. I prefer stained wood trim throughout the entire house. Painting the woodwork ruins it.