Berkley, Michigan | Investment Property Kitchen & Bathroom Flip

Berkley is one of Oakland County's most sought-after communities for buyers who want character, walkability, and a neighborhood with a genuine sense of place. The homes here tend to have great bones — original hardwood floors, generous natural light, architectural details that newer construction simply doesn't have. They also tend to need updating in ways that, done right, reward the investment significantly.

This Berkley home was purchased as a flip opportunity and brought to Costello & Co for a complete kitchen and bathroom transformation. The goal was to honor the home's existing character while bringing it fully into the present — a renovation that would appeal to Berkley's design-forward buyer pool and command a strong sale price. It sold.

The Project

The Design Strategy

Berkley buyers are discerning. They've toured a lot of flipped homes and they know the difference between a renovation that was done thoughtfully and one that was done cheaply. Generic white everything, builder-grade fixtures, and a backsplash chosen for price rather than personality — they've seen it all, and it doesn't move them.

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For this renovation we made a deliberate choice to add personality alongside function. Not at the expense of broad appeal — but in service of it. Because in Berkley's market, a home that feels genuinely designed sells faster and for more than a home that simply feels updated.

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Every detail was chosen to strike that balance: welcoming to a wide range of buyers, memorable enough to make the home stand out in a competitive listing environment.

The Kitchen

White Shaker Cabinetry & Quartz Countertops

The foundation of the kitchen is clean and classic — white shaker cabinetry with brushed nickel hardware, and white quartz countertops with subtle veining that catches the light beautifully in this south- facing kitchen. It's a palette that photographs white and bright, which matters enormously in today's market where listing photos are the first showing.

Large Island With Seating

The island is the functional heart of the kitchen — generous enough for four stools, with a deep undermount sink and a commercial-style spring faucet that signals quality without announcing premium pricing. The island transforms what could have been a serviceable kitchen into a gathering space, which is exactly what Berkley buyers are looking for in a home they're planning to actually live in.

The Herringbone Brick Wine Rack

​This is the detail that makes the kitchen. Built directly into the cabinetry wall beside the refrigerator, the custom herringbone brick wine rack is a structural design moment that stops buyers in their tracks during a showing. It references the original character of a Berkley bungalow — the warmth of exposed brick, the craft of a detail that was thought through — while functioning as a genuinely useful storage feature.

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This is exactly the kind of decision that separates a memorable flip from a forgettable one. The brick costs far less than the impression it creates at resale.

Rattan Pendant Lighting

Two oversized rattan pendant lights over the island bring warmth, texture, and a sense of scale to the kitchen that recessed lighting alone never achieves. They're the first thing buyers look up at when they walk in, and they immediately signal that the renovation was designed rather than assembled. In a sea of investment properties with the same brushed nickel drum shade, rattan pendants are a differentiator that costs very little and returns significantly more in buyer perception.

Original Hardwood Floors

The original hardwood floors were refinished rather than replaced — a decision that honors the home's character, saves budget, and delivers a result that no luxury vinyl plank could replicate. Buyers in Berkley know original hardwood when they see it, and they value it. Keeping it was both the right design decision and the right financial one.

The Bathroom

Warm Wood Vanity

Both bathrooms received completely updated vanities — a warm, slatted wood cabinet base paired with white countertops and matte black fixtures. The wood tone brings warmth into a bathroom that could easily have felt cold and clinical, while the black hardware keeps it contemporary and cohesive with the rest of the home's finish palette.

Black Hexagon Floor Tile

Large black hexagon floor tile grounds the bathroom in a pattern that reads as both vintage and modern — appropriate for a Berkley bungalow without feeling dated. It's a bold choice that pays off at resale because it's specific enough to be memorable and neutral enough to suit a wide range of buyers.

The Result

A Berkley home that sold with strong return — renovated with personality and precision, designed to appeal to the specific buyer who chooses Berkley for its character and community, and completed on a timeline that respected the investment.

This renovation is a good example of what we've seen consistently across our Oakland County investment properties: buyers in design- conscious communities pay a meaningful premium for homes that feel genuinely renovated. The herringbone brick wine rack, the rattan pendants, the geometric tile accent — none of these were expensive. All of them returned more than they cost.

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That's the investment remodeling philosophy we bring to every flip we take on.

Berkley, Michigan - A Market Worth Understanding

Berkley sits just south of Royal Oak in Oakland County, attracting a buyer who values the community's bungalow architecture, tree-lined streets, and walkable downtown. It's a competitive resale market where presentation matters, character is rewarded, and buyers have a clear sense of what quality looks like.

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For investors, Berkley offers strong resale fundamentals and a buyer pool that will pay appropriately for a well-executed renovation. For homeowners, it's a community where a thoughtful remodel adds genuine long-term equity in a market that rewards quality.

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Costello & Co serves Berkley homeowners and investors as part of our broader Oakland County service area.

Learn about our Ferndale investment remodeling 

Learn how we approach investment property remodeling 

Learn how the design-build process works