I have a friend who uses the dining room as a display area for thier collections. They do not entertain often, but when they do, they set up an inexpensive table and chairs they keep stored when not used. Its a quick set up and you will usually know at least a day ahead if you are expecting dinner company. With a table cloth and chair covers, no one is the wiser that is is just a cheap, old table set.

I guess the first question is what is the rest of the plan for your remodel?
Are you planning a kitchen remodel and need to expand into the dining area, or are you simply just contemplating the idea of re-purposing the dining room space?
Also what other rooms are adjoining or attached to your dining room?
Finally where does the dining room fit in the existing floorplan, is it entered from the foyer or through the kitchen.

Torry Manzo
Renaissance Kitchen and Home

I think you should use the dining room in whatever way would be most useful to you, but keep your dining room table in the basement. When you sell the house you can reconstruct it as a traditional dining room, which many people still want to see when they are buying a house.

I would think having a dining room area is better for resale.

Torry,

Thanks for your response. The downstairs floor plan has a mud room off the kitchen, the dining room has an entry way from the foyer and from the kitchen, on the other side of the kitchen has an eating area with a large bay window, the large family room is accessed from the eating or breakfast area. Presently there is a wall between the breakfast room and the family room. That is going to come out.

There is a large bar between the breakfast area and the kitchen, that is also coming out to make it more of an open space. Kitchen is to be revamped with new cabinetry and appliances.

We always wanted the dining room, but with the breakfast area and the large bay window, its nice to set there and watch the deer eat everything we have planted.

I have had some suggest that since there are four bedrooms up and none down, that it should become a spare bedroom. That just seems out of place to me because of its location, Office, maybe. Extend the kitchen into it and make a very large kitchen, possibly, any ideas? Appreciate your thoughts.

We use our dining room and table all the time, but we have many casual dinner parties with friends - sometimes for hours. We sit down for dinner there as a family most nights, too. My husband uses it as an informal desk area with his laptop.

I think it is used so much because we have visual connections to the other rooms and outside - there are no closed walls. While it is definitely a dining room and has the cozy surround of walls, each wall has an opening - a large window, french doors to the patio, a large diagonal opening into the family room, and a large pass thru into the kitchen where people hang out to watch the cook.

We have a breakfast nook, but we don't eat there. It has naturally evolved into an office area. That's where I watch the deer eat everything!

I have built 5 homes and haven't put a dining room in any of them. I am the homeowner. We never had any trouble selling any of them. In fact, our last one sold before it even went on the market! I think they are a total waste of room.

We used ours as a loungey area for the dogs (we have two great Danes) during the rush around years my boys were into anything and everything. We just returned to having a dining room table, mostly cause they are grown and at the point of bringing home serious girlfriends. I'm more comfortable getting to know them over brunch than in front of the TV

But we did put in a banquette setting dining area.That was really nice. we did it in a corner by windows. Everyone likes to sit in the "booth". Although it was much nicer that a booth.

If you have a large eating area in the kitchen then there is no real need for a formal dining room. It could be a nice home office, using a desk in the center of the room that could double as a dining table for showing buyers the possibilities.

I would have to say after reading the description you sent regarding your layout that the kitchen is large enough for dining and lounging. By taking out the wall between the kitchen and the Den you are creating a wonderful Great Room concept. I fell that as long as you get the correct kitchen layout you will be able to incorporate a great eating area in the kitchen space. If you still feel you need a more private or formal area than I would suggest that you keep the current dining room location. (don't remove the walls there though) too much open space isn't alway a good thing. If the formality or privacy are not a concern than I would add some french doors entering the dining room in from the foyer and create a fantastic Office or Study. The only concern would be adding built in bookcases in the new office. If you are worried about resale I would simply add a desk and freestanding bookcases that can go with you if you move and the room can be simply put back to a dining room.

Last question,is there a formal living room?


Torry Manzo
Renaissance Kitchen and Home

I use my dining table for lots of my different projects, not just for dining. I suggest you have the best of both worlds:

1. Line one or more walls with great shelving that can be used for display, books, home office, what ever you and a future buyer might need.

2. Get a long, simple lined rectangular dining table that can be used as a desk. Desk can be left in middle of room or pushed on to wall. This comes in very handy for all sorts of projects that need some spread out room. Still have a table handy this way for buffet dinners or sit down, too!

3. Replace any hanging fixture with recessed lights.

4. If possible add french doors so you can close off this area for quiet study.

Just read thru responses again. I think if you are doing a reno, a really important thing to have is a bedroom/bath downstairs.

Not saying to turn your current dining room into this! Just somewhere. Why: aging parents that visit, so you can stay in your home when you are that aging parent, when son/daughter/you have that ski accident or slip on ice, have a leg in cast!

If I were house hunting, not having a downstairs bedroom would possibly be a deal breaker.

Yes, sad as it is we have rarely used the room. The dining room at present is on the west side of the house so the kitchen is on the east side, making it difficult to incorporate into the litchen. But, I think that is a natural use for the room. Thank you for your thoughts.

Hope I am not getting annoying: just another use for a dining room: turn into a billards room. Seen this done on a show. Make it look rich. Great hang out spot.

Pcmom1... I like your ideas. On the west wall of this room is a large twin gridded double sash window. On the north side of this room there is about 12 feet of dead wall space, no windows, then the garage starts. This Area in front of the garage and north of this dining room is a treed covered grassy Area bordered by the sidewalk that.
Leads to the front of the house. I'm considering cutting into that wall and put in a gridded 3'x6 window a single gridded man door out. Then turn the grassy area into a courtyard with brick pavers. Under the trees it would be very nice. How would that work with the present Dining room, office or bedroom. Would accessing the courtyard from this room be too clumsy?

My son has the same situation (a dining room they never used). They have a huge kitchen/family room next door, so he set up a formal bar, seating and a game area. They have informal parties on a regular basis, and this arrangement works well for the smaller groups who want to gather somewhere other than the family room/kitchen.

The exterior entry would be a great addition to the space.


Torry Manzo

I like the idea above of the bookshelves in the DR, this way you may go in and use it more. You could also use the table for reading, games etc. when you bees the table for special occasions it's still there. I don't think it is a waste of space, just underused. Hope that helps. Charmean Neithart

You say you are planning on moving soon. How soon? In today's market, will all this investment pay off? Would it be more cost effective to just clean, clean out spaces, paint, refresh yard, do some staging and then price it to sell?

In addition to the existing walls, we enclosed our "dining" room with pocket doors (instead of french doors which eat up floor space) and are currently using it as a downstairs bedroom. There is a small closet which can have adjustable shelves or a hanging rod as needed. When we sell, it will be easy to recreate the room as either a dining area or office, based on preference.

"Planning to sell" is a fluid situation. This is not an economy for successful house sales. If your plan is several years down the road, use hte room however you need with the realization that resale will require a functioning dining room to compete well in the market.

pcmom1
Your comment is well taken. That is a concern of mine. The house needs maintenance and considerable updating. Built in 83. in a nice semi rural area, That rural area has fallen to very upscale developers that have built nice large homes on 2 acre lots selling for between 750k and 1.23millon today. They are truly beautiful homes. Is it better to upgrade the home to more closely resemble the very expensive homes going in around me or simply clean and polish what is there and go for a sale. Our land is more than 5 times the lot sizes of each property that has been developed, all deed restricted. I set 600 ft off the road in a heavily wooded area where the driveway takes you through mature 40' spruce that is truly a Hallmark moment.
We will be moving soon, as soon as we can get the property ready for sale. So, what are your thoughts regarding the upgrade or clean up of the property in preparation for sale. I appreciate your thoughts. Should I make the substantial upgrades and enter a more lucrative upscale market or sell as is with upgrades dealing with primarily painting and sprucing up? ( sorry about the pun)

Sounds like you are in an ideal and picturesque location and potential buyers will be drawn to your lot rather than the structure. It seems counterproductive to sink considerable time and money into your home in an attempt to compete with the upscale homes in your area. Market the superior attributes of your property...lot size, privacy and proximity to the desirable development.

Personally I prefer a larger breakfast / dining area located at the sunny side of the house that can be causal for daily use, but also feels formal enough when entertaining. If there is enough space it could also double as a sunroom for plants as well.

I sorry, I thought you were in the renovation process. If you have not started anything yet than you really need to consider a few important things before talking about design options.

1) What is the reason you are moving? Is it the size of your home, layout of the home, or location?

2) What are the homes that closely match your existing home selling for?

3) If you do decide to upgrade, will the improvements closely compare to the new or upgraded homes in your area? If the anwser is yes than the next question is what are those homes selling for. Once that is determined you will be able to estimate what amount of money you can spend on your proposed renovation. Knowing these costs will help you determine if you have the proper budget for your project.


That being said I would agree that if your homes' real value is in the land than you
may just need to clean it up and do some "Budget Friendly High Impact" minor renovations needed to put it on the market.

I understand it is a tough decision but if you do you homework now, the picture will be much clearer to you and you won't start an unnecessary and costly renovation.

Hope this makes sense.

Torry Manzo
Renaissance Kitchen and Home

Not in real estate profession, but the way you describe all that wonderful land and privacy, and the proximity to a large upscale development, you just may attract that buyer who is way more upscale than that development! He/she may be thinking of your home as something to just live in while building. So, push the land and location.

But, in this market, how many sellers can spend the time to wait for that white knight.

Will you be competing against foreclosures? There are way too many in our area. My husband and I have friends that gave up on idea of moving (made us happy) because they didn't want to give their beautiful home basically away!

Renaissance Kitchen and Home:
Thanks for your response. The real reason the were are moving is 1. I have retired and find I have way too many properties, The second is that I dearly love old classic homes and we purchased one approximately 10 years ago and I have been restoring and renovating it back to it's heritage of 1850, for ten years. It is a gothic revival brick completed in 1850, has a beautiful courtyard at the rear of the property and another on the south side of main house. the house and all of its original woodwork has been restored back to it's heritage. The house is a bridal house. marked with wedding band and wedding Vail in the bridge-board above the entrance. There is also a summer kitchen that I plan to restore but have only recently started on it. We love the charm of this home and we are moving into it. It's finally ready. I have attached a picture just for reference. SO to put it plainly we want to live in the old 1850. It has become a labor of love.

AS far as our present home, it is not without its own charm, but the land truly make the property. It is a two story colonial, wooded lot as I said and with a small pond. The woods are heavily stocked with deer and pheasant. Fortunately or unfortunately nothing is really selling in our area. Nothing is for sale, no foreclosures. Most are new houses, with nothing less than a basement theater room.

Not sure about the renovation yet. Certainly some will be done. It just has to be, I do all the work myself, so cost to renovate remains reasonable. myrns has hit on the head though, it is an 80's house, it has four bedrooms, 2 1/2 baths, and all 8ft ceilings. It has a second story deck off the main bedroom and an attached 2 car garage. The land is dividable. I have had a surveyor investigate the possibility of splitting and she advised she could split it in half or divide it into four lots and all meet local zoning requirements.

Any thoughts, I have had some great comments,

What an absolutely beautiful home you will be moving into!

Are you open to leasing out current home. Don't know if i'd go down that road...

Thank you, we really love the house. It has the true gothic style, church like windows upstairs. hard to see in this picture due to a branch that seems to be hanging down on cue.
I don't really want to go the leasing route. I have some rental properties, not sure I want to release that element on my home.

I believe you've answered your own question. So it doesn't matter how much the dining room is used if you are leaving. Your initial question was "is the dining room going away?. Well, yes and no. Even I do not entertain as I used to (old) and many families today spend their time in the great room and kitchen (young). It's not had its last gasp yet, but I believe the time is coming when this room (along with the living room) will be a thing of the past. So in the meantime, lay it out as a dining room for resale or as a rental, so people who think they need a dining room will at least be in their comfort zone and be happy nothing is missing. By the way, your "love" is absolutely breathtaking......very, very, jealous here!

I would have to agree here. Your property and possible subdivision are whats is for sale.As long as your home looks well kept, you should be in great shape.I hope we are steering you in the right direction.

Torry Manzo
Renaissance Kitchen and Home

well, it has been 3 1/2 years, so assume you have made all pertinent decisions. I am fortunate to live in the family farmhouse (which will be 100 years old next year) and have reinstated the dining room. (Folks used it as a living room.) I LOVE having a dining room, wouldn't want to be without one!

Old thread.

I would never buy a home without a formal dining room. If you don't want just a dining room, you could put bookcases all around and then have a dual purpose - library and dining room. There are tons of ways to use a dining room table - work, homework, crafts, card games etc. I may be in the minority but open floor plans with dining room next to kitchen depress me. I don't want to be seeing all that clutter wherever I sit. Too much visual "noise". Also when I have had an open floor plan, I spent most time at kitchen island and things revolved more around eating (not cuisine mind you but just eating) and gained weight. Last night we had our diner at the dining room table with our young kindergartener and it was one of the best family experiences - I felt so happy at the quality, talking time we shared. You can't get that in front of a tv.