Thinking about the financial aspects of your kitchen remodeling project before you start spending money is not only wise, but necessary! You do not want to get half way into it and discover you may have to get a loan or stop all together.

Understanding the rate of return on your investment (ROI) while keeping in mind how it can pay off is possibly the best of the kitchen remodel tips. In most cases, a remodel will pay for itself (and maybe more) when you sell your home. But you have to be diligent. Remodeling projects have a way of getting out of hand, if we're not careful.

Generally, kitchen remodels are the highest pay-back projects you can do. But, they're the also the most expensive sometimes. Average major remodels can pay you back by about 91% and minor remodels will pay back at close to 99% of your investment. These are averages, so its good to realize that the numbers (91% and 99%) are the average return, meaning that just as many people got back more than that as less than.

So, first: Decide on a budget! Not just pulling figures out of the air because, as the numbers above show, many people actually loose money on their kitchen remodels. The smart ones MAKE money. The most important of the kitchen remodel tips is to create a workable plan, including a budget, at the very beginning. This means finding out what's out there, deciding on what will work best for your family and ferreting out the best deals. Your goal should be to have a dynamite kitchen for the cost of a firecracker!

Block out some time to go to the big box retailers, plumbing stores and design stores (lighting, tile, flooring, etc.). Talk to anyone who you think can offer insight or help. Be open to ideas. Scrimping in one area may allow you to splurge in another—which could make a tremendous difference to the finished project! If you'll be doing the work yourself (and you should nowadays) you'll need to actually draw what you have in mind. Nothing professional (or even artistic) but something you can show to members of your family, the people at the home improvement stores and other places to get your ideas across. Get a pad of blue-line graph paper (8-1/2X11) and use a pencil. No ruler or straight-edge, just pad and pencil.

Consider opening up a wall to allow the kitchen to have visual access to other areas (dining room, living room) which creates the illusion of more space for both areas. Define the kitchen space by adding a soffit, sloping a ceiling or building an island or peninsula where the wall was. If you entertain, this is especially important as it will allow those in the kitchen to stay connected to others outside the kitchen. Also, look into laminate flooring. Its inexpensive, warm, comes in lots of styles and is very easy to clean.

Kitchen lighting has come a long way, baby! Thoughtfully consider combining direct lighting with indirect lighting. And, forget those huge fluorescent ceiling fixtures. They're harsh and bad for the environment. Today, small eco-frendly lighting comes in hundreds of iterations and you can find these in beautiful direct and indirect lighting systems. Under cabinet, ceiling mount, recessed, spot, flood and in-cabinet are some of the designs you have to work with. NOTE: In most states you'll need to work with an electrician for major installations.

And, always keep safety in mind. If you have small children, factor in cabinet door locks, oven locks, non slip flooring, childproof outlet covers and never leave knives lying around. In fact, your kitchen will be much safer if you simply remember that accidents (slips, cuts, shocks and burns) happen in a flash. Design to eliminate or reduce these possibilities. For more information and tips, go to RemodelQuickTips.com and click on KITCHEN TIPS in the left hand navigation list.