Cook up a tastier sale; Place for family and friends to relax.

IT IS a well-known fact that kitchens can make or break a house sale so, in today's highly competitive market, it is worth ensuring that your kitchen helps to make that elusive sale.

If you are looking to sell your property, then you need to think what a potential purchaser would want. Don't be swayed by personal taste. You need to think about maximising space and efficiency and, most important of all, you need to try and create that all-important "wow" factor. So where to begin? Create a stylebook If you''re even thinking about a kitchen redesign, odds are you have been leafing through magazines and watching home improvement programmes. Both are great ways to jump-start the process, but to get the most out of this step, you''ll need to do more than just turn pages and programme your Digibox.

While looking through magazines, tear out photos of kitchens that appeal to you and write what you like about the room in the margin. Then save the photos in clear dividers in a file to create a stylebook.

The internet is another source for kitchen inspiration - simply print out photos that catch your eye and add them to your stylebook. As your stylebook grows, a clear picture of your desired style of kitchen will begin to emerge.

Define your goal There''s obviously a reason you want to remodel your kitchen and if it is to help to add value to your property, then now is the time to think about how this can be achieved.

Make notes about how the space can be used to its best potential, then try to distill all that information into a one or two-sentence goal such as: "I want the kitchen to be a place for family and friends to relax and enjoy healthy meals."

Create a financial budget To get a general idea of how much you have to spend on a kitchen remodel, you will need to crunch some numbers. Are granite countertops a must-have? How about stainless steel appliances? Do a little research into the costs of your wish-list items and compare them with your preliminary budget to make sure you're on target.

Set a time budget When most people hear the word budget, they automatically think of money. However, when remodelling, it''s also important to budget time. Is there an event on the calendar that would be affected if your kitchen was under construction? Discuss your time budget when interviewing potential builders and kitchen fitters.

Have realistic expectations Above all else, make sure you have reasonable expectations when it comes to kitchen remodelling. Talk to people who have been through the process before and call in the experts for professional help and guidance.

At the end of the day, you can only achieve so much with what you've got. If you have a tiny galley kitchen, then, with the best will in the world, you aren't going to be able to create a Nigella Lawson-style spacious kitchen.