Help with kitchen layout

[Eric Littlepage]

Hi all, I’m looking for help with the layout of this kitchen. I have a 3/2, old house that I’m going to rent out. It’s probably a B class property in a quiet area near a state park in a good school district. The current kitchen has a row of cabinets on the left side, and I’m going to put in a dishwasher. That doesn’t leave a lot of storage space. So I was going to add some more cabinets on the right side (the corner next to the French doors will be the fridge). I could put a pantry to the right of the window, and some upper cabinets above the window… the other problem is the rest of the room opens up to the living room and fireplace, so I think the dining area should also be in the kitchen area. I’m not sure if I should just expect tenants to bring their own small table that fits the area, or provide a seating area for 4, like a built-in table or cabinets that have a breakfast bar one one side. The row of cabinets is 11’1” long, and the width from wall to wall (not taking into account cabinet depth) is 11’6”. The current cabinets are 24” deep I believe. 

[Brian Perlman]

Just as important as the the cabinets and pantry is workable space. Any rentals I show, the number one inquiry when we walk into a kitchen is where can I prep my family meal? With that, I would add a sort of butcher block table below the window (assuming that the refrigerator is in the corner) or a higher island with cabinets below. This way the tenants can have the prep area and it's their choice to bring their own stools (or you provide). Also, these days, many tenants do not come with dining room tables and prefer to eat on the couch in their living/family room.