I would like to knock down two walls from the kitchen to create a "great room" effect. I would like to join the living, dining and kitchen together but a friend advises that just this portion of the project will run well into 50k, which is my budget for remodeling the entire house! Does drywall, relocating plumbing, etc. really that expensive a job?

Thanks from a naïve future remodeler!

As long as it isn't a supporting wall it shouldn't cost that much!