A kitchen in a new-build: what to change before handover
The shell stage is the cheapest window for changes. What can still move before handover, what will already be too late, and which decisions are worth making early.
- The right moment
- Shell stage, before handover
- Cheap to change now
- Plumbing, electrics, openings, lighting
- Expensive to change later
- Every one of those
In short
Why now specifically
Coming in at the shell stage lets you move plumbing and electrical points, change openings and plan the lighting. These are exactly the changes that cost far more after handover, and are sometimes no longer possible at all.
The kitchen plan is what determines where those points need to be. So the right order is plan first, services second — not the other way round.
The developer’s standard kitchen
The kitchen that comes with the apartment is designed for the space, not for the people who will live in it. It is usually very basic, centres the sink under the window and assumes everyone cooks the same way.
It is worth checking what you are getting and what the credit is worth before deciding. Sometimes the right move is to drop it entirely, and sometimes to take it and change only what genuinely gets in the way.
The decisions worth making early
Where the fridge stands, and which side its door opens. Whether there is an island, and whether it doubles as a table. Whether the oven sits at eye level or under the counter. Whether the kitchen opens onto the living room or stays a room.
Each of those questions drags an electrical point, a water point or an opening behind it. Answer them in time and the rest follows. Answer them after the floor is laid and you pay twice.
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