Sold our East York semi in February and wanted to share real numbers on kitchen ROI since there’s a lot of speculation online.
What we spent (2024 renovation):
- Cabinet refacing (not replacement): $9,400
- Quartz countertop (3cm Calacatta Nova): $5,800 installed
- Tile backsplash (subway, 40 linear ft): $1,900
- New faucet, hardware, under-cabinet LED lighting: $780
- Pot lights (4 new, existing wiring): $680
- Total: $18,560
What the agent attributed at sale:
- Her estimate: the kitchen added $25,000 to $30,000 to list price vs comparable unrenovated units
- We listed at $999,000 and sold at $1,031,500 (February market was decent)
- Comparable 3 doors down with original 1990s kitchen sold for $978,000 six weeks earlier
Analysis:
Rough estimate of kitchen’s contribution: $28,000 to $53,000 above comparable. ROI: 150% to 285%. Obviously can’t isolate the kitchen perfectly, but these are real numbers from a real sale.
What I’d skip in hindsight:
The pot lights were the weakest ROI — we had good overhead lighting already. The countertop and cabinet refacing were clearly the two highest-impact items.
Happy to answer questions about the refacing contractor we used — they did excellent work.