Don't Fool Yourself About the Cost of a New Kitchen and Master Bath

A few months ago, a friend who was house hunting and knew she may be faced with the prospect of renovating asked 'how much does a new kitchen and bathrooms cost?' and 'how long will it take?'.

With renovations, you have more variables than with new construction. Existing conditions, scope of construction, community regulations, availability of contractors, availability of materials, etc. all contribute to costs and construction time.

What's the time frame for getting the work done? IF YOU HAVE EVERYTHING PLANNED AND PURCHASED IN ADVANCE. IF YOU HAVE AN EXCEPTIONAL CONTRACTOR (we know several) AND DESIGN TEAM (of course, we supply that) then .... the absolute shortest amount of time we have ever done a kitchen is six weeks but you should allow for ten weeks. Allow three to six weeks for a bathroom. And remember, in construction, something unexpected always happens.

What follows are the approximate costs for an upscale but not over the top Kitchen and Master Bathroom in Southern California.

A new Kitchen can cost from $155K to $215 plus design, engineering (if necessary) and permitting fees. Here's the breakdown.

1. Appliances for the kitchen: $27K to $38K depending on extras for Subzero refrigerator or equivalent, Wolf or Thermador range/cooktop, Bosch dishwasher, Bosch or Thermador double ovens, Sharp under counter microwave, and Abbaka or Best exhaust hood. 2. Plumbing fixtures for kitchen: estimate $4K to $6K. This assumes 2 sinks and filtered water. 3. Lighting fixtures for kitchen: $3K to $5K (you can go considerably higher). 4. Flooring: $12K to $20K. For the purposes of this exercise, we assumed 400 sq ft. 5. Tile: $4K to $10K depending on your preferences. 6. Limited construction work: framing a few walls and a ceiling, replacing two windows and a large slider, rough and finish plumbing, rough and finish electrical, cabinetry, hardware, painting, stone counters, labor for floor installation, labor for tile installation. $75 K- $95K before contingency and GC fees. 7. Demo and Clean-Up: $3K to $6K depends on scope and community regs.

A Master Bath can cost between $50K to $85K plus design, engineering (if necessary) and permitting fees.

1. Plumbing Fixtures: $6K to $18K. 2. Tile/Stone: $10K to $20K. 3. Lighting Fixtures: $2 to $4 (you can go considerably higher).

4. Limited construction work: framing walls/ceiling, plumbing, electrical, painting, cabinetry, hardware, one window, one door, and stone counter. $18K to $25K before contingency and GC fees. 5. Demo and Clean-up: $2 to $3 depends on scope and community regs.