Planning to sell your house? If you watch carefully, you'll see that it's the women who influence the house buying decision of the family and most women begin by evaluating the kitchen. So if you wish to get maximum resale value for your house, which is normal, renovate your kitchen before you put it on the market.

Roughly speaking the cost of renovating a kitchen can be anything between $6,000 and $30,000. Of course one is looking at maximizing the returns on investment and therefore outgoing costs will be given preference in the renovation decisions - but remember, as with any investment, you'll usually make your money when you buy (not when you sell), so, in this case you'll be making your money when you renovate your kitchen - not when you try to sell the house.

The renovations of a kitchen range from the cosmetic appeal of the kitchen to the appliances. However when looking at maximizing resale value, the designers at Urban Key recommend that you concentrate on the kitchen features primarily, before moving onto the appliances.

1. Doors - Opt for the melamine covered doors which are cost effective and durable too. Choose bold dark colours since they're not only lower in cost but also hide stains which are common in a kitchen. Of course if you are looking at high end renovations then, you could go for solid timber, 2 Pack or vinyl wrap doors and gables, but remember that they could put costs well above your benchmark cost. For timber also, the matt look is much lower in cost while the satin look costs more. If opting for the high gloss look, remember that defects show up clearly here and therefore the high gloss is a high maintenance finish.

2. Shelves - Don't bother breaking down the entire shelf structure, but on the contrary redo the face of the shelf to match the doors finish. You could opt for a repaint job or change the edging on these structures, or just replacing the bare essential carcasses. Remember here the cost of the labour is sometimes even higher than the raw material so if you have any skills on this front, now would be a good time to show them. Also if you are hiring labour, it's advisable to hire either local cabinet-makers or cabinet-makers who offer a warranty for the job since you could always ask them for repairs later if things do go wrong.

3. Benchtops - Kitchen splash backs and counter tops form a large part of the physical outlook of a kitchen and therefore feature high in the renovation list. There are suppliers, such as Surface Dynamics, who will just resurface your existing benchtop with a granite overlay, and have carved out a niche in doing just that, but this does not mean that you should rule out any local supplier you know. Undertake some extensive research before choosing your bench top. The most commonly used bench top is the granite 20-40 mm thick slab, or the overlays are about 7mm.

While a laminated top is of course a much cheaper option, it is advisable to go in for the granite or engineered granite, such as CaesarStone for your home. Not only is granite chip and scratch resistant but you can chop and cut on it (highly not recommended) without having to bother about the surface being porous. Also, consider how the kitchen might be used by the new owner, so as to ensure the layout is workable for someone else - we often compromise our own comfort in our own homes, but this is the time to change anything which has been niggling at you. Also note that the recommended depth for the bench tops is no more than 900 mm (should not exceed 300mm overhang) while the minimum length could vary from 900 mm to 1500 mm depending on the number of people cooking. So if looking at a kitchen bench for two cooks working side by side, the length is better if closer to 1500mm. Note that the maximum sizes of granite slabs changes with different products, so ensure that the layout dimensions work with the size constraints.

4. Flooring - The flooring of a kitchen also forms an integral part of the look of the room. So consider the pros and cons of the material used before taking the plunge. Cork tiles cost roughly $90 per square metre and feel warm and soft as opposed to the often cold and slippery tiles, although anything cooling is often good in Australia. Cork floorings last 10 to 20 years depending on maintenance. But they stain fast and in a kitchen where spills are common one would need to clean these quickly or else bear with a stained look for a long time. The linoleum tiles and Vinyl sheet floorings cost less (about $50 to $60 laid), but can damage easily and some people may think they look cheap. There are stone, ceramic and terracotta tiles, which are easy to maintain but are heavy. If possible, hardwood is a great choice, working in well with Aussie building and fashion trends, but if you don't already have a timber floor, you'll need to be willing to spend somewhere near $130 per square metre.

As a tip, and I would love to get feedback from you if you've tried this, get an appraiser to value your house and offer suggestions to better the value (most often these will involve the kitchen), and after the renovation is done, have them back again to reappraise. Or another idea is to have an open house, advertised just privately in the paper (no need to get a real estate agent yet) and take the vistors around asking them what changes, especially to the kitchen, they would like to see - you'll get some great ideas from the sort of people who are currently in the market! Please feel free to email me if you have any feedback on these ideas at info@urbankey.com.au.

So, it is most often best to choose the budget, the materials and to renovate your kitchen BEFORE an official For Sale sign goes up to potential buyers, and watch the value of your house rise immediately.

Urban Key for the best kitchens in Brisbane!