November 15, 2024 •Brian Hogan
I’ve been a remodeler in the Geneva, IL, area for almost 25 years, and one question that comes up again and again for folks considering a kitchen renovation is, “Should we remodel the bathroom at the same time as the kitchen?”
I almost always answer yes, and it’s not because I want to encourage clients to tackle a larger project just for its own sake.
Sure, adding a bathroom renovation to your kitchen remodel increases the immediate cost and ramps up the inconvenience factor in the short term, but let me explain why the benefits of combining kitchen and bath remodeling far outweigh the drawbacks for most people.
If you’re skeptical and are thinking, “Why would I want to take on another project when I just want a new kitchen?” I understand. But consider these 6 reasons first before jumping to a decision.
Reason #1: The long-term cost is actually lower
Of course, adding a bathroom remodel to your kitchen remodel project will come with a bigger price tag than if you just did the kitchen. But the total cost of doing both the kitchen and the bathroom separately at different times would be much higher than if you did them both as a single project.
Now, not everyone needs a bathroom update. Perhaps you've renovated your powder room in the last few years, or it's older but the materials are of high quality and you love the layout just the way it is.
Then, by all means, stop reading here.
But if, like many people, your bathroom is looking a bit dated and is starting to wear out, then consider how much money you could save by tackling both projects at once.
You benefit from economies of scale by combining two or more smaller remodeling projects. Consider that your kitchen and bath contain plumbing fixtures, electrical outlets and fixtures, drywall, cabinets, and tiles. When you combine kitchen and bath remodeling into one project, then the individual subcontractors can work on both spaces at the same time, ultimately costing you less money than if they were to make a series of separate visits under separate contracts.
Reason #2: Relocating your powder room gives you more flexibility for kitchen layout changes
Many kitchen remodels go well beyond simply replacing all the cabinets and surfaces. If you are contemplating major layout changes, such as moving walls or opening up your main floor to create an open floor plan, your designer will have much more flexibility if you are willing to explore the possibility of relocating your powder room as part of the project.
Reconfiguring a main floor that is poorly laid out and turning it into your dream space can have tremendous benefits to your lifestyle and enjoyment of your home.
Reason #3: The design of the two spaces will be complementary
We’ve all been in homes that have a disjointed feel, where each room just seems disconnected and unlike all the others in terms of style and materials. Different rooms have different flooring, different trim, different paint colors, and fixtures that are clearly from different eras.
One of the secrets to creating a home that feels put together is to design each area in harmony with the others.
Often, when homeowners opt to update one room at a time over many years, they end up with a series of different styles that don’t mesh well.
On the other hand, choosing a skilled designer or quality design-build firm to redesign multiple rooms at once, while tying them into the look of the rest of your home, helps ensure a cohesive design and the feeling that the entire space flows together.
Since kitchens and baths tend to be the most “designed” rooms of the home and usually have finishes and details that tie them to a particular trend or era (even when you try for a timeless design), it makes sense to redesign both of these rooms at once.
Same designer, the same era, and a unified vision for both.
Reason #4: With a single remodeling project, you'll experience less overall disruption
We’ve all heard horror stories about home remodeling projects that have dragged on forever and that completely disrupted the homeowners’ lives.
On the surface, it seems like it would be better to limit the scope to just one room, the kitchen, and leave the bathroom for another time.
But in my experience, you’ll experience far less disruption if you tackle kitchen and bath remodeling at once.
As much as we at HDC try to minimize inconvenience, with dust protection, tidy worksites, and clear communication, remodeling is never truly easy. Our clients often comment on how our staff come to feel almost like family members, but that’s partly because they are there in the home so much.
Think of it this way: Combining a kitchen and bath overhaul means you have roughly half the occasions where workers are in your home, half the meetings with your designer, and half the days when a portion of your home is inaccessible.
At the risk of casting the remodeling process in a negative light, I’ll say that most homeowners, even when they are more than satisfied with the process, are happy to see it come to an end and are not usually eager to start it again right away.
As a design-build contractor, I can tell you that a custom remodeling project is worth it in the end, but it does disrupt your life temporarily, and doing it once instead of twice is simply better for most people.
Reason #5: More efficient use of materials and resources
Ordering all your materials at once, from cabinets to tile to countertops, means less waste and fewer delays caused by backorders or material shortages.
Additionally, your designer and remodeling contractor can better plan and manage the construction timeline, avoiding the need to set up and tear down workspaces multiple times, which aligns with sustainable practices. This approach can help you finish the remodeling project faster while reducing the overall cost of materials and labor.
Likewise, certain materials, like custom-tinted paint, can be ordered once and used in both spaces: the kitchen and the bathroom.
Reason #6: Increased home value from multiple home renovation upgrades
I almost always advise clients to consider a remodeling project not with an eye to their home’s resale value but rather with their family’s enjoyment of their home in mind.
That said, remodeling both your kitchen and bathroom at the same time can significantly boost the overall value of your home. Since kitchens and bathrooms are the two areas that prospective buyers focus on the most, remodeling both at once may help maximize your financial return on investment. Homes with updated, cohesive spaces tend to sell faster and for higher prices than homes with piecemeal renovations. By remodeling both the kitchen and bathroom, you’ll create a more appealing home for future buyers, making it easier to sell when the time comes.
Additionally, if your bathroom is due for an update and you’re considering selling within the next few years, why not combine both remodeling projects now and enjoy the upgraded spaces yourself? There’s no reason to wait on the bathroom and renovate it only for future buyers when you can benefit from the improvements in the meantime.
Other Rooms to Consider Combining with a Kitchen Remodel
I've outlined why it makes sense to combine bathroom remodeling with kitchen remodeling, but should you consider combining it with other rooms in your home? Absolutely! You'll get some of the same benefits with any "kitchen-plus" renovation: a cohesive design throughout your home and avoiding the disruptions of separate remodels.
Kitchen Plus Living Room
Also called a main-floor remodel, this combo is natural, and it is a frequent request from clients. If you are refinishing or replacing the flooring, paint, and other surfaces in the kitchen, it works much better to extend those updates to the adjoining parts of the home. Often, a redesign will call for the opening up of the kitchen, with walls between the kitchen and living areas coming down, making it necessary to renovate the living room in the process.
Kitchen Plus Laundry Room
This is another common request, especially for homes that have a laundry on the main floor. Many of the same benefits of kitchen-plus-bathroom remodeling apply here as well, including combining cabinetry, flooring, countertop, and appliance orders.
Kitchen Plus Bedroom(s)
Like peanut butter and chocolate, this is another classic combo. Often a small addition is incorporated into it. For instance, a primary suite (bedroom and bathroom) can be added to the main floor of a home as part of a reconfiguration of the kitchen and first floor.
Kitchen Plus Mudroom/Entryway
In some homes, the exterior door that gets the most use opens into the kitchen. But people entering the home from the garage or side yard track dirt into the kitchen and have nowhere to throw their coats and backpacks. Often, we design a small addition or reconfigure the existing layout to allow for a dedicated mudroom off of the kitchen that solves all these problems.
Whole-Home Remodeling
If reading this list, you find yourself thinking that you need all of the above rooms to be remodeled, you may want to talk to your designer about a whole-home remodel. One of our specialties is to completely redesign homes, reconfigure floor plans and completely replace almost every surface. It's a major undertaking, but it allows our clients to stay in the neighborhood they love while enjoying what feels like almost a brand-new home that has been completely custom-designed down to the tiniest detail for the way they want to live.
Whole-Home Remodel Example: "Holidays on Heather"
In this whole-house remodel, a customer wanted to gut their entire home which had little natural light and closed-off spaces. The remodel started by removing the enclosed basement stairs to create a wide-open entryway. The walls between the kitchen and sitting room and between the kitchen and family room were removed to create a much more open and connected floor plan with a wrap-around fireplace. Beyond the kitchen, updates included a new bookcase and wallpaper in the front office, all three bathrooms, new windows, flooring, and exterior paint. The result was amazing! The whole house was bright, open, and elegant.
View the case study
Wrapping up
Every home is unique so every remodeling project must be unique, requiring custom solutions. We pride ourselves on our design-build process, which starts with our in-house designer listening to your needs and working together to design your dream space, within your budget. Part of our remodeling design process is master planning, meaning we work with you to not just plan for your current remodeling needs, but we help you look ahead into the future and make a plan for future updates as well. We love the challenge of coming up with the perfect plan for remodeling your home, from the kitchen to the bathroom to a whole-home renovation, whether it happens all at once or over time.
Get in touch
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