By Suzana Mikolova 
As consumers we often use the price of a product or service to determine its relative worth, by judging a highly priced item to be luxurious and decadent, as well as reliable and durable. It makes sense, then, to stop and think before you choose the lowest quote for your kitchen renovations. While getting a home improvement project finished way under budget is always an exciting prospect, you also need to consider the extended life of your kitchen renovation, and the impact it will have on your daily cooking habits and lifestyle.
Cheap contractors and designers need to cut costs somewhere, after all, and that might mean that your budget kitchen renovation is completed using weak and unstable materials and dodgy time saving techniques. To properly judge the price estimates given to you by prospective contractors, you need to have a good idea of the costs involved in an average kitchen renovation and a firm set of requirements for your perfect space.
You should also ask your kitchen renovation professionals about the techniques, processes and materials they plan to use, which make up the quote given to you. You can then evaluate these methods instead of just making a blind judgement based on monetary costs. The price of a kitchen renovation can be significantly cut, for example, by re-finishing and reusing elements and materials from your existing space. In this case a low price estimate could still indicate a high quality construction project.
You also need to weigh up the different pros and cons offered to you in each quote given to you by a home interiors designer. While a ‘green’ or environmentally friendly builder might give you a very high quote in comparison to other contractors, the price might be worth the budgetary compromise as the construction of your kitchen renovation will have less of an impact on the environment and will consume less energy in the future.
To make sure that your contractors and designers aren’t adding in hidden costs anywhere in your quote, you can use an online building costs calculator to find an unbiased estimate for the entire project. These automated estimators can include the cost of contractor services, of various materials and include product prices such as appliances or a particular cabinetry system in the final figure given to you.
Remember that the cost of your kitchen renovation will largely depend on the style you prefer for your home, so it is important to use a consistent design brief to find a contractor that offers the best value for money service.