I bought my kitchen second hand on Facebook for £1,500 – here’s how you can too

When Richard and Suzanne Young moved into their five-bed detached dormer bungalow in Northamptonshire in April 2022, much of the decor needed refreshing, including the kitchen. “The kitchen was pine, had been badly painted and was very 1990s in style,” says Suzanne, 51, who runs property management consultancy Riverley. However, when a quote for renovation of the 24-square-metre room from a high-end supplier came back at £60,000, they decided to put their plans on hold. “The only change we made was to replace a Rayburn that wasn’t working with a Range cooker. I managed to source one on Facebook Marketplace for just £1,000.” In 2026, the couple decided to take matters into their own hands. “We decided we’d do it in stages, working on it ourselves to keep costs down,” says Suzanne. But before they started, Suzanne noticed her dream kitchen being advertised on Facebook for a fraction of the price. “It was second-hand, but it had come from Howdens, was just two years old and £1500.” The couple purchased the kitchen and used the man and van service AnyVan to collect it from a property 28 miles away for £120. “The owners had removed it as they were having an extension and it was in perfect condition. The fitter commented that it looked like new.” As well as the cupboards, the kitchen came with an unneeded hob and oven, which Suzanne sold for £200. Shorts Suzanne worked out the layout using squared paper and a numbering/lettering system and the pair engaged a kitchen fitter to install their kitchen. “We had the old quarry tiles ripped up, the floor levelled and a new floor put down for £7,000. The kitchen installation, including electrics and a couple of cupboards we had put in the utility room, cost £6,000.” Making a second-hand kitchen fit can be a challenge, and a bit of flexibility is sometimes needed. “You have to be able to compromise. We used the doors and back panel to renovate our existing kitchen island, but we had to drop the size of the island by an inch for the back panel to fit. We used the granite from our existing kitchen, but bought a piece of oak countertop to complement it,” says Suzanne. Interior designer Sandy Armitage has been working with luxury kitchen companies since 1983, but now specialises in creating design solutions for clients purchasing preloved kitchens. “About seven years ago, for both affordable luxury and environmental reasons, I began actively encouraging clients towards looking at second-hand kitchens after I discovered the fully assured services offered by Rehome. It is like being able to recommend a good-quality brand.” Interior designer Sandy Armitage advises avoiding flat-pack kitchens, kitchens without a brand or inspected provenance and any kitchen with evidence of water damage When purchasing a kitchen from eBay or Facebook, she advises clients to check the quality of the carcasses, as well as find out the age of the kitchen and the use it’s had. “It’s also important to find out who will be taking the kitchen out,” she says. “When designing new kitchens in the past, I’ve seen kitchens ripped out by tradespeople and ruined. Reusable kitchens need to be de-installed properly, something that Rehome offer.” For those looking to source their own kitchen in a private sale, Sandy advises avoiding “flat-pack kitchens, kitchens without a brand or inspected provenance and any kitchen with evidence of water damage. Always inspect the units in person.” She also advises choosing a kitchen that is bigger to ensure sufficient units for the project. “Any excess units can be redesigned into a different space such as a pantry, for instance.” Buyers should also be realistic about whether worktops can be reused, with wood often sustaining water damage close to sinks and granite or quartz hard to work with. “In nine out of 10 cases, a second-hand kitchen will need new worktops. Granite and quartz are often installed but will have to be recut to size. But if you can find a tradesman with a diamond blade, angle grinder, PPE equipment, time and confidence, you could possibly reuse or repurpose it.” For clients who need more assurance, Sandy recommends using Rehome, a company that buys and sells quality second-hand kitchens, saving customers up to 80 per cent of retail value. “They’re very user-friendly and take a lot of the risk out of it as they remove things properly and check the kitchens are intact.” When Amanda Corgat, 63, moved to Kent with her husband Dave, 65, in 2025, she had already set her sights on using a second-hand kitchen when renovating the tired 1993 property. “We’d paid £52,000 for a kitchen at our previous property in 2016 and while we loved it, it felt wrong to spend so much.” In October 2025, when the house sale was agreed, two matching Neptune kitchens came up on Rehome, perfect for Amanda’s large 25-square-metre space. “They included all cabinets, a kitchen island, two fridges, a freezer, sink and taps.” “I bought them both at £6000 each. I drew the space out on paper, then cut out cabinets and arranged them to see where they fit. We’d employed builders for the renovation and they weren’t initially keen on the idea of second-hand, but came around.” Having saved a great deal on the cabinets, Amanda also got her builders to respray the doors, taking the price of installation, including respray, to £22,000. “In total, we spent £36,000 on the whole job. Buying the same kitchen new would have cost £77,000 for just the cabinets.” Amanda Corgat, 63, had already set her sights on using a second-hand kitchen when renovating a tired 1993 property (Photo: Anthony Sullivan) Carpenter Paul Lake from Kettering has experience installing both new and old kitchens and has some advice for would-be bargain hunters. “It’s important to check the carcasses are intact with no water damage. Check the hinges and the integrity of the work surface, especially around the sink. Ideally, ask a fitter or expert to come and look at it with you.” “You also need to be willing to compromise a little; for example, if you buy from a range that’s been discontinued, you might have to source a few extra bits from another range. But a good kitchen fitter will be able to help you to put these in areas where they won’t stand out.” Installation costs vary, depending on the specifics. “I charge around £125-175 for wall units, £210 for larder units and £165 for base units,” says Lake. “A whole kitchen would likely come to £1500-3000 for installation.” When Becky Lane, 39, from Surrey bought a run-down bungalow with husband Adam, 38, in 2021, it needed a full renovation, with the pair initially living in a caravan on site. “The budget was tight, so we were considering buying a kitchen from a DIY shop for our 14 square metre space to tide us over for a few years,” she says. However, while browsing Facebook Marketplace, Becky was astonished to find her dream kitchen on sale for just £1,000. “I’m really into reusing and repurposing, so when I saw the kitchen I acted fast. It was a handmade solid wood kitchen imported from Germany and included a Miele oven and hob, microwave and two porcelain butler sinks, as well as a dresser,” says Becky, who shares renovation and budget lifestyle tips on Instagram. “We hired a man and van to pick up the kitchen for £200, but we didn’t need the dresser, so sold it for £250, which more than covered the cost.” For a professional job on a budget, Adam worked alongside a local fitter to install the kitchen, meaning the job cost just £400. In addition, “the kitchen had cork surfaces so we paid a cork specialist £150 to cut them to size,” says Becky. As the kitchen is solid wood, it’s also easy to update as tastes change. “It will never need ripping out – we can paint it and renovate when we see fit. I’m a big fan of recycling, so it’s the best of all worlds.”