The Worth of Concrete Countertops: Modification Rises Aesthetic Appeal and Real Estate Investment for Homeowners

1. From top-dollar homes in the countertops for rentals San Francisco Bay Location to sprawling hill residences in the Colorado Rockies, discriminating home owners are demanding custom designs and also surfaces in their cooking areas. Specifically, they are wanting to express their individuality as well as unique layout preferences with the fast expanding layout product of choice-- concrete. Actually, concrete countertops have actually become rather of a status symbol for cooking areas, rivaling granite and also other high-end kitchen counter surface area options. Customer Information Magazine (August 2004) placed concrete highest for its "customization" as well as "exclusivity" among premium cooking area counter tops. As a customized product, the quantity of time and also workmanship needed to produce concrete kitchen counters positions them as one of the most labor-intensive and most costly among leading kitchen counter materials. However, concrete kitchen counters are ending up being extra obtainable for those on a small spending plan. The current do-it-yourself (Do It Yourself) fad to mesmerize property owners and also builders is developing your very own concrete counter top. This sensation has actually obtained appeal mostly because of Cheng's very successful book Concrete Countertops: Layout, Kinds, and Completes for the New Kitchen Area and also Bath (Taunton Press, 2002). According to Cheng, there is little financial investment in making concrete kitchen counters, yet the imaginative gains of working with concrete abound. THE SHOWSTOPPER Increasingly, property owners are relocating far from the monotonous, manufactured appearance of traditional kitchen counter surface areas as well as selecting concrete for its earthy, ageless appeal. Plus, the choices for personalizing concrete counter tops are endless: one can color, gloss, stamp and also tarnish concrete or imbed personal items like stones, seashells and fossils into the counter top's surface area, adding belief and also character. Useful features such as drain boards, soap recipes, as well as trivets can likewise be integrated to fit the home owners' own demands and way of living. Concrete is gradually becoming demystified as classically cold as well as industrial. In contrary, this old-time material is warm as well as surprisingly responsive; individuals can not help but touch their smooth, polished surfaces. Property representative Joy Rasmussen, that has recently sold her mountain house-- a temporary financial investment building in Boat Springs, Carbon Monoxide-- recounts her visitors' experiences with concrete: "When I had open homes, site visitors gravitated to the concrete kitchen counters-- many people around below have actually never ever seen them". Delight's 2,265 sq. ft. hill residence was custom-made develop by her partner, Ken Otterman, together with KJ Otterman, president of Standard Special Personalized Houses. They constructed pour-in-place concrete counters for the home's kitchen and 3 bathrooms by using Concrete Countertops as their guide. The sand-colored concrete counter tops were polished smooth, after that coupled with all-natural slate of differing colors-- like charcoal, rust and gold tones-- that develops the backsplashes in the kitchen and also baths. As a style accent, small rectangular slate ceramic tiles were contributed to the edge of the shower room sinks, which provided a distinct detail to the custom-made vanities. When Pleasure and Ken chose to offer their home, their financial investment in concrete countertops confirmed its worth. "We were able to list the house $20,000 over market price, and also had no worry marketing it," remarks Pleasure, while discussing the long list of upgrades throughout their house, including knotty yearn strong doors, all-natural slate wall accents and also hardwood floors. "The concrete countertops were easily the most distinct and also remarkable of all the surfaces. I think they were a significant part in adding value to the residence. Around below, all you see in houses are granite kitchen counters-- as well as I actually assume buyers are obtaining quite numb with granite."

2. " Concrete countertops are an unique offering to property buyers that see the very same coatings utilized in residence after home they visit," discusses Happiness, supplying her monitoring as a seasoned real estate agent. "Having concrete countertops virtually gives you bragging rights-- you have something different from your next- door neighbors." DAMAGING THE MOLD One more benefit of concrete is its adaptability in either modern or typical settings, particularly when combined with other materials like diverse steels, wood or stone. "Concrete includes a lot of [opportunities] to rock, as well as the mix with slate, which is hugely preferred right here, offers the hill houses a total cozy, all-natural touch," claims Pleasure. Happiness as well as Ken have actually because built a much larger house (4,000 sq. ft.) that uses large views of the Steamboat Ski Hotel and also is implied to work as a lasting financial investment for the pair. They have actually likewise broadened their list of custom coatings, including hand-troweled walls, stylish oil-rubbed bronze hardware, knotty pine doors that arch on top, cupboards in a natural, knotty alder, and their favorite-- concrete kitchen counter tops. Unlike in their previous house, KJ as well as his specialized crew put charcoal-colored counter tops utilizing the pre-cast method in the unfinished cellar of the new home. Prior to pouring the concrete, they sprinkled an array of semi-precious stones in the mold including Leopardskin, Moonstone, Mother-of-Pearl as well as Blue-green. After the surface was ground and also lightly polished, the finished outcome was an outstanding mix of shades, "Without a doubt, the Mother-of-Pearl was one of the most extraordinary," says Delight. The L-shaped concrete countertop has a harsh, rustic stone look, enhancing its tough nation surroundings. An essential drainpipe board and also trivets supplies function as well as added passion to the concrete kitchen counter. Natural slate backsplashes, distinctive wall accents, as well as a butcher block counter top at the cooking area island all reverberate with the standard heat and earthiness of the concrete counter tops. Delight and Ken's particular histories in realty as well as personalized homebuilding, and as investment buyers, have aided them understand that concrete kitchen counters can include remarkable aesthetic and also economic worth to a house. Concrete's modification and also "show-stopping" allure resembles no other kitchen counter surface area. Cheng is a proponent of emotional appearances as well as building homes that record these emotions, as in the case of Delight and Ken Otterman. Cheng wraps up: "Individuals really want distinction, something individual, something personalized-- and concrete can do that for them."