Granite vs. Laminate Countertops; Tuition Reduction

amother

Thu, Aug 20 2009, 7:28 pm

OP here -

They are doing it to get an idea of what kind of lifestyle you lead.

Same with asking what types of cars you drive, if you have cleaning help, take vacations, etc.

Truth is, as soon as they see my address and what block I live on they will know this is a small simple house (all on block are the same). I could have taken on a bigger mortgage and gotten a bigger house or one with a functional kitchen but am more responsible financially than that. We are now living in the house a few years and I feel I cannot work in the current kitchen. That's how I feel I can justify granite or am at least considering it. I picked the simplest door style for the cabinets in a maple wood (cheaper than cherry) but a good quality company. Simple hardware. Vinyl sheet flooring - $80 maybe.

Rubber Ducky - just e-mailed the contractor we are likely using about the granite tiles and here was his response:

I have not worked with tiles but have seen them. The cost for the material is reasonable but you would need to figure the cost for the labor to install the tiles and the prep work. It would be the same preparation as ceramic tile top and my educated guess is that cleaning the top would not be fun or easy because it's not a solid 1 piece surface.

Dini

Thu, Aug 20 2009, 7:49 pm

In that case, where you know that you are financially responsible, I don't think that your counter tops should have any relevance with tuition. I don't have any advise regarding the counter tops since I rent and haven't made such decissions yet. But it just has to make financial sense to you.

queen

Thu, Aug 20 2009, 8:23 pm

Dini wrote:

I think it's a horrible thing for the school to ask whether you did renovations.

It's not horrible at all. I know a family that did a $100,000 home renovation but can't afford tuition.
a family member pays their tuition for them in full...

queen

Thu, Aug 20 2009, 8:26 pm

I know I'm going against the grain of most posters on this thread- but I'd find places to save money and go with the granite in the kitchen. You will absolutely love it and it will make the whole kitchen special.

OP already said she went with cheapest cabinets... find some other places to save as well, and then go for it. This is being said based on my thought that you are responsible and DO pay a significant part of your tuition and are not part of the "club" that gets tuition assistance yet still goes with family to florida each winter for vacation.

PAMOM

Sun, Aug 23 2009, 1:36 pm

Look, you get to enjoy your life too (and I could make comments about how you'd enjoy your granite so much more that you'd cook more and save money but that's irrelevant). If the school asks for 3 years' worth of info, then that's how long they think matters. You're following their rules. Get the granite and enjoy! ALSO--you're increasing the value of your house so when you sell, you'll make more and need less aid (or can give more tzedakah).

PinkFridge

Sun, Aug 23 2009, 4:14 pm

PAMOM wrote:

As far as increasing the value of the house, depends where she lives. Granite wouldn't do much on my block.

Liba

Sun, Aug 23 2009, 4:28 pm

I think you should all just move to E"Y.

Standard builder's kitchens come with granite counter tops, even if they only have two cabinets. Formica is more expensive than granite.

My old counters, in the states, were thirty years old and just fine, but we couldn't kasher them, put hot things down on them, needed to bleach out spots, etc. I couldn't justify new counters or granite, but I am happy that I have it now.

Gsanmb

Sun, Sep 13 2009, 7:46 pm

If you haven't already made a decision, something to consider: many granite places will have 'remnant' slabs leftover from large jobs. If your job isn't huge, you can find a nice piece at a hugely discounted rate. Or sometimes people will reject a slab for a funny 'grain' in the color, or whatever. Ask about the remnants/seconds. They are the same quality but a heckuva lot less money. My parents did this when renovating (a tree fell on their house and they basically had to rebuild) and although the insurance was paying for stuff, it left them a lot of $$ to spend elsewhere because the countertops came in way under budget.

Good luck!

faigah

Sun, Sep 13 2009, 8:39 pm

Liba wrote:

It all has to do with supply and demand. Stone, marble, granite are more plenty in Israel. That is why most houses are built with bricks and stone because it's cheaper. OTOH wood is very expensive. From the regular houses I visited I can't recall seeing hardwood flooring in any of them.

amother

Sun, Nov 08 2009, 8:49 pm

OP here, with an update:

b"H our kitchen renovation is 75-80% complete. I am very happy with it. We went w/ formica countertops as we decided it was the right thing to do and fit better with our lifestyle and neighborhood. Also, truthfully, the granite was not affordable to us without dipping into our savings more than we would have liked or taken on additional debt. There are some very nice options available. Entire countertop cost (actual countertops above cabinets as well as matching tabletop piece for eating) was about $750.

I did spend a little bit more money in things like - esthetically nicer faucets with a pull-down sprayer and soap dispenser in a bronze color, matching bronze hardware, and nice accent tiles for my backsplash) but did it with birthday/anniversary checks that we received while the construction was being done. This really gives the kitchen a nice, put together look.

Taking a step back at the big picture, I feel a sense of happiness and relief that we have a finished product that I am happy with but that did not put us over what we could comfortably spend.

I think I got a bit caught up in getting the perfect kitchen, which is VERY easy to do. The best thing my husband could have done was said to me "it's your decision" versus "why should we spend money on this?" as I did not feel forced to go with the formica. I really am very happy.