Which floorplan is best?

[Plrm]

We have a two bed Victorian terrace which has a large upstairs bathroom. We need to make this a three bed for our growing young family. We plan to move the main bathroom downstairs into the space there which is currently an extension room off the back of the kitchen. We think we should try to retain an upstairs toilet as has been advised helps protect the desirability of the house incase we sell in the future. Can you advise, is keeping an upstairs toilet really worth it?

 

If we do, would you advise adding it into a cupboard area in the smallest bedroom with access off the landing OR add it into a space taken from the master bedroom? I’ve added floorplans for options. We are end of terrace so can have soil pipe around the building joining up to the old soil pipe. 
 

Many thanks  

 

current floorplan/ end of terrace on right hand side:

 

 

option for toilet in smallest bedroom space:

 

Plan for toilet in master bedroom space:

 

plan for downstairs:

 

[ToughButterCup]

The problem is not the plan : its the word 'best '. Best for whom? You? The buyer? Both?

 

Only you (both?) can decide. The process of making that decision is difficult and requires lots of work - lots more than I had ever imagined. Because - I have learned - people 'see' things in different ways.

Not everyone is comfortable with a plan. Not everyone can understand  a 3D plan. Not everyone bothers to read words on a page and think about them. Some can only say whether they like something when they see it for real for the first time.

Some like images from magazines and can say 'I like that ' . Some can point at a display at an exhibition and say 'Thats for me' , but be 'unseeing' until then.

 

One way to start the decision making process is to list the things that you do not want. 

[-rick-]

Just another idea:

 

 

Personally, I wouldn't buy a property that didn't have a full bathroom on the same floor as the main bedrooms. I suspect plenty of other buyers are in the same boat so moving the bathroom downstairs may affect future saleabilty/price. I think the above fits space wise with 2 x double bed and 1x single/(or double bunk). Making this change doesn't require touching plumbing and so should be much much cheaper (it's possible this was the original layout when the property was built).

Edited Wednesday at 13:59 by -rick-

[torre]

I'm guessing the wall between beds 2&3 is brick and supporting the ceiling joists, maybe the roof, so you probably don't want to move that. 

 

It's tricky as a growing family means you have to prioritise what works for you above what might maximise returns of any refurb. 

 

Another possible idea..

 

Divide bed 2 so you have 1500-1700mm as a small but functional bathroom (no window unless you can add one that side) accessed through existing door and a 2000*2500 box room benefiting from the existing window accessed from a new door onto the landing.

 

That's small for a bedroom (bit below minimum space standard) but okay for a child and a decent home office later thinking of resale.

 

Personally I wouldn't give that much downstairs space to a bathroom esp as you already have a downstairs toilet. I'd rather keep a reception room downstairs and have a small upstairs bathroom than a large downstairs bathroom.

[Iceverge]

Is there an option to just use the conservatory as a bedroom and making a new home office in a garden room ?

 

You could add a shower downstairs too then which should broaden the market for potential buyers. 

[-rick-]

10 hours ago, torre said:

I'm guessing the wall between beds 2&3 is brick and supporting the ceiling joists, maybe the roof, so you probably don't want to move that. 

 

I'm not convinced this would be a big deal (at least compared to moving the bathroom to the ground floor). It's not like there is a heavy brick wall above to support. We don't know how the roof is built, if it is relying on the wall then the property is <4.5m wide so a chunky bit of wood covering the distance between the two exterior walls should be able to take the load (with the right engineering).

 

An additional expansion to my option is to move the bathroom into the small room in the front. This is a much bigger job (if it's economically feasible at all) but results in a bathroom upstairs and 3 double rooms.

 

10 hours ago, torre said:

 

It's tricky as a growing family means you have to prioritise what works for you above what might maximise returns of any refurb. 

 

It's a balance, at some point it's just better all round to find a new more suitable property rather than plowing money into the current one (that you won't get back when you sell). A simpler, cheaper, scheme now that either improves or doesn't damage the value of the property but that only buys you a few years before the kids grow and you need to move might be the better option than a scheme that creates the space you want but costs more to do than you will ever get back when you sell.

 

My brother finished a major extension to his 'forever' home a couple of years ago. He spent far more than he could ever get back from the sale price but it didn't matter because he wasn't planning to move any time soon. Well guess what? Events have conspired to mean he is now moving. In his case, the extension while very costly adds curb appeal (in a way that moving the bathroom downstairs doesn't) and his situation means the excess cost isn't such a big deal but it just goes to show situations can change faster than you think and it's well worth trying to preserve options where you can.

Edited 23 hours ago by -rick-
Mention my brothers situation

[torre]

Looking again at your earlier suggestion @-rick- I think that's the easiest way to create 3 bedrooms at minimal cost and disruption without much impact to saleability or value.

 

It's workable even if you don't move the existing wall between bedrooms and just divide bed 1 pretty evenly in two with a stud wall. Bed 2 becomes the 'main' bedroom but all 3 beds are upstairs with a decent bathroom.