BathEmpire

Moving a downstairs bathroom upstairs can add value

Posted on 10. May, 2011 by Charlotte Laing in Design Tips

If you have one of the many homes in the UK with a bathroom downstairs, then you may well have considered whether you should have it moved upstairs.

Or you might be somebody who’s been put off buying a house because of the lack of upstairs bathroom.

But is an upstairs bathroom really that important? And what might be the effect of having one on the value of your property?

Well, most people who have a downstairs bathroom will admit that it comes with its problems – the main issue being that you have to go downstairs, perhaps in the cold, to get to the bathroom in the middle of the night.

You won't want to have to go downstairs to use this at 3am!

Some people also say it’s potentially dangerous because if you need the loo in the middle of the night the you have to negotiate the stairs in your half-asleep state.

This will be even more of a problem if you have children, who may also be afraid of the dark and won’t want to go downstairs on their own. It could make for lots of sleepless nights for you!

Another issue is that typically, when you get up in the morning, you’ll want to have your shower and then return to the bedroom to get your clothes from the wardrobe and get dressed – which is not so easy if your bedroom isn’t right next to the bathroom.

There’s no doubt that all of these factors, plus the ‘snob’ factor of people associating downstairs bathrooms with poorer quality housing, may make a house with a downstairs bathroom harder to sell – certainly the market for your home may be limited.

So should you take the plunge and relocate the bathroom upstairs?

It’s a big decision, because there are drawbacks to moving the bathroom too.

The main concern is that by moving the bathroom upstairs, you are probably going to have to sacrifice one of your bedrooms. We’d advise asking a local estate agent or having a look on property websites such as rightmove to help you decide whether this would be a canny move in terms of the value and saleability of your property.

In some areas buyers would probably prefer a three bedroom property with downstairs bathroom, whereas in others renovated properties with just two bedrooms and an upstairs bathroom would command a premium.

There are things that you can do to remedy the loss of bedroom space. One popular option is to extend into the loft at the same time as having your bathroom moved, so you can have an extra bedroom up there, and perhaps even an en-suite.

If you really don’t want to lose a bedroom then it may be worth installing a simple toilet and sink somewhere upstairs if there’s room.

It will also help to improve the value of your home if you make the best use of the space created by removing the bathroom from downstairs – properties with large kitchen diners or even lounge diners can be very attractive and are certainly fashionable right now.

If you decide to take the plunge and relocate your bathroom upstairs then good luck with your project. You’ll be able to save by choosing a bathroom suite from BathEmpire.

Tags: bathroom upstairs adds value, house with downstairs bathroom, moving bathroom upstairs, new bathroom suite, renovating bathroom, should i move bathroom upstairs?, ways to add value to home