(Long)Bedrooms divided between two stories?

18 years ago

Hello all,

During general design discussions regarding a planned addition to our house, it was suggested that we do a horizontal addition and put a second story directly above the addition, with a master suite. While I think that the idea would be fine for a family with grown up kids, we do not think that it can work with us since we have a baby who has to sleep on the same level as us. (This issue can be partially resolved by having a den at Master level and temporarily using it as a nursery).

I began to wonder how this idea of having two bedrooms downstairs AND two bedrooms upstairs appeals to the large audience here?

For me personally, I am in two minds. On the one hand, we would like to have at least one bed+ba on the main level, because when we have guests visiting, we want our space :-)

Also when we entertain families with little kids (which is something we do often), when kids have their little naptimes etc, it helps to have a bedroom on the main level. But do I need two?

I could possibly use second bedroom as home office, but that is just me. Also since we have only one kid, and none more are planned, we will be ok with only one extra room on the master level. But what about others?

I know that the other extreme is to have all the bedrooms on the same level. In our area, given our zoning rules I am not sure if this would be feasible; therefore that option is out. Basically, the footprint of lower level will have to be bigger than the higher level, per my understanding.....

Also, I might add that in the area where I live, majority of the people who move in do so for the sake of schools, i.e. have schoolgoing kids. Therefore there is not much chance that the next owner of this house will be an empty nester or a DINK couple.

Any thoughts, on this plan working or not working?

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (9)

solie
18 years ago
I think two kids' bedrooms upstairs and two downstairs bedrooms would be fine. Many people only have two kids and want a fourth bedroom for guests or live-in help or to use as a gym or study.

I think having the kids' bedrooms downstairs and the master upstairs would be a problem. People don't want their children sleeping below them.
oruboris
18 years ago
I like a second story bedroom, but I also like having at least one on the main floor incase someone can't handle stairs, which can happen to any of us, at least temporarily.

Some people like a little separation from the kids, but don't want to make it too easy for the kids to slip out... or in late, for that matter.
Related Professionals
Natchez Architects & Building Designers · Austin Architects & Building Designers · Santa Barbara Architects & Building Designers · Fayetteville Design-Build Firms · Ashland Design-Build Firms · Plymouth Design-Build Firms · Duluth Design-Build Firms · Concord Design-Build Firms · Salt Lake City Design-Build Firms · Gillette Design-Build Firms · Riverton Design-Build Firms · Portsmouth Home Builders · Harrisburg Home Builders · Platteville Home Builders · Lewiston Home Builders
frog_hopper
18 years ago
Master down, the rest up sells well around here. I think master and one or two up, with one down would do OK, but two down and you would start running into resistance.
chisue
18 years ago
The two-up, two-down was a hard sell in our old neighborhood, which had been developed in the 1950's. The best use of these homes that I saw was a tandem setup downstairs (closet between). It was used as a master suite, with two kids' BRs up. These had one bath up and one down. The *intended* master was up, over the LR/DR, with a small 'other' BR on that level. I knew one family who used the intended 2nd story master and put the kids on the first floor with monitors. (I recall one major fall down the stairs when a child was ill.)
jnjmom
18 years ago
The plan we are currently building calls for two up and two down. There are technically two master suites on the bottom level, as the second bedroom has a bathroom door adjoining the main BA. I fell in love with this plan when 'house shopping'.

For now, my nine year old daughter will be on the main level and my thirteen year old son will be upstairs. While I'm not yet living in it so can't say for sure, I like the 'idea' of them having separate living space/privacy/bathroom space, etc. Eventually when we finish the basement, my son will move down there and my daughter upstairs, then we will have a main level guest room for family.

In this area, two main level masters are also desirable for people who have parents living with them. HTH!
Lemon_Poppy
18 years ago
In our area many of the older homes have 2 bedrooms up, 2 bedrooms down. So it's rather common. I think it would work just fine.

When your child becomes old enough that you are comfortable having him/her upstairs then that additional bedroom could become a guest room or turned into a home office. There are many homes with the kids rooms upstairs, the master downstairs along with a guest room so I don't think it would be a major issue when it comes to resale.

I love jnjmom's plan of two master suites on the lower floor with attached baths. That spare suite would make a great guest room.
newoldhouser
18 years ago
We have the master down and the kids bedrooms upstairs. I would prefer all on one level but that was the best use of space for our plan. Also, when the kids grow up and leave the house, I can basically shut the upstairs off except for visitors. My main stipulation was I wanted the stairs to be by my master bedroom door. It makes it seem like they aren't so far away.
jimandanne_mi
18 years ago
I'd like to second having the stairs to the second floor kids' bedrooms near the master bedroom door. We built our house this way so that when the young grandkids sleep over, they're not too far away. It's worked great, especially when one wet the bed and woke up and the other had bad dreams and woke up. We heard them, and were able to intercept them as they started down the stairs.

Anne
neesie
18 years ago
Solie wrote that having the kids bedrooms downstairs and the master upstairs would be a problem. People don't want their children sleeping below them.

WRONG! Or at least he/she didn't consult me. My master bedroom is on the main level. I have everything I needhe on the main level and do not need to deal with steps. My kids bedroom were on the walk-out level. We moved in when the youngest was about 6. Personally, I wouldn't want them ABOVE me, hearing them walk and making noise. And I LOVE having the privacy on the main floor. I don't know how other married couples get their romance time in when their bedrooms are in such close proximity to the kiddies!

That's one thing I always check out when looking at blueprints. As long as the nursery days are behind us I want seperate bedroom space.