Most Common Kitchen Renovations in Canada

Guide · Kitchen renovations · Toronto, Vaughan, Markham, Brampton and the GTA · Reading time about 7 minutes

Kitchens keep coming out on top of renovation surveys. Here is what people change first, and why.

Kitchens have stayed near the top of Canadian renovation surveys for years. A 2005 Ipsos-Reid poll for Scotiabank found that bathrooms (37%) and kitchens (35%) were the two areas homeowners planned to renovate that year. A later Houzz report named the kitchen the most popular room to renovate, at 28%. Most kitchen projects are not about tearing everything out. They are about fixing the few things that make the room hard to use every day: dated cabinets, worn counters, tired floors, poor light, and not enough storage. This guide works through each problem and the change that solves it.

What do Canadian surveys say about kitchens?

A 2005 Ipsos-Reid poll for Scotiabank found bathrooms (37%) and kitchens (35%) were the two areas homeowners planned to renovate that year. An earlier Ipsos-Reid poll for the DIY Network found 38% of Canadians would choose the kitchen as the one room to renovate. A later Houzz report named the kitchen the most popular room to renovate, at 28%, with bathrooms at 24%.

These polls are older and ask slightly different questions, so use them as a pattern, not a forecast. The pattern is steady: the kitchen is where people want the biggest change.

Statistics Canada’s release shows homeowners spent $23.4 billion on repairs and renovations in 2002, up from $20.4 billion in 2001. The same release put the average spend at $2,910 per homeowner in 2002.

Which five problems do most kitchens have?

Most kitchens have one or more of five problems. Each one has a different fix, and the fastest way to a better kitchen is to start with the problem you feel every day.

Problem one: dated cabinets

Cabinets set the look of the whole room. Worn doors, a yellowed finish or drawers that stick make a kitchen feel old before anything else does. New doors and drawer fronts can change the look without moving a wall, and new hardware makes a bigger difference than most people expect.

Custom cabinets let you choose the depth, the storage and the finish. Standard cabinets are faster to order. Choose by how you use the kitchen, not by the showroom.

Problem two: worn counters

Counters take the most daily use. Stains, scratches and chips show up first around the sink and the cooktop. A new countertop is one of the most visible changes in a kitchen, and the surface you choose decides how it looks and how it handles daily use. Ask for samples and look at them in your own kitchen’s light before you decide.

Problem three: tired floors

The floor carries the traffic of the whole kitchen, so it has to handle water, grease and daily wear. Worn grout, cracked tile and scratched wood all make the room harder to clean. Choose the floor for the wear you expect. Our guide to the best flooring for Canadian homes gives the room-by-room view.

Problem four: poor light

A kitchen with one light in the middle of the ceiling is hard to work in. Layered lighting solves most of it: general light for the room, task light over the counters, and accent light for the cabinets. Lighting is one of the cheapest ways to make a kitchen feel bigger, and it changes how every finish looks.

Problem five: not enough storage

Storage problems are often layout problems. Deep drawers instead of deep cupboards, pull-out shelves in corners, and a pantry that uses the wall space solve the problem without adding floor area. Plan where each everyday item will live before the cabinets are ordered.

Which kitchen change pays off the most?

People often ask which change adds the most value. A 2004 Ipsos-Reid survey, as reported by Insurance-Canada.ca, found that half (49%) of mortgaged homeowners believed a renovated kitchen would boost resale value more than any other part of the home. That is a belief, not a measured return, and it is from 2004. Use it to frame the question, not to promise an outcome.

The practical answer is simpler. The change that pays off is the one you use every day. A kitchen that works well for the people in it, and that looks clean and current, tends to be the one people remember. Start with the problems on this page, then ask your designer to show what each change does for your daily routine.

How do you choose changes you will still like in five years?

Pick the changes that solve a problem rather than follow a trend. A neutral palette and quality surfaces age well. Bold colour on a single feature, such as a backsplash or a statement light, is easier to change later. Plan the storage and the light for how the kitchen is used, because those needs do not change when the fashion does.

1. Name the problem you live with. Write it in one sentence.
2. Choose the change that solves it. Storage, surfaces or light.
3. Keep the finishes neutral. Put the personality in the pieces that are easy to change.
4. Test samples in your own light. Before you order anything.

Where should you start?

1. Choose the problem you feel most. The one you notice every morning.
2. Fix the storage and the layout first. They decide what the rest of the kitchen has to do.
3. Pick the surfaces next. Counters, floor and cabinets, in that order.
4. Layer the light last. It shows every choice you made.

Which kitchen myths should I ignore?