Beyond the pride of being able to welcome guests into their home comfortably, buyers also see kitchen renovations as a major expense. Oftentimes, they don’t see themselves being able to afford something like that until years after closing on their new home. Other improvements like paint and flooring seem much more attainable to new homeowners because a lot of times they can do the work themselves, leaving the cost of materials and time the only things to consider. So when evaluating potential homes for themselves, buyers tend not to see those “smaller” things as obstacles. They do, however (almost always), see an outdated kitchen as an obstacle. This is why I always tell people there’s nothing that will sell a house faster than a brand new kitchen.