" is it worth it?"

Only if you can answer ; Should I buy a large yellow hat? Is it worth getting botox? Which automobile best suits me? Will I be happy if I marry my next door neighbor?

Well, if you want to do it i would go ahead and have it done. You dont want to get the new kitchen done and then regret not having the ceilings done.

I dont think you would need to move out while it is being done though.

You could also try removing it yourself by spraying water on the "popcorn" and then scraping it off.

I will link a video showing you how it is done.

How to remove popcorn ceiling

It would be worth it to me, because I think smooth ceilings are much more attractive, and add value (or at least that popcorn ceilings reduce value). Whether it's worth it to you I can't say.

I've done it twice and am about to do it for a third time.

First time - 20+ years ago in a home previously owned by smokers. That ceiling had to go. Had a professional crew do it before I moved in. I don't think it took more than a day or two. They just wet the ceiling and used a broom to sweep it off.

Second time I was tight on money and was not going to do it. But when I started painting the ceiling the popcorn just started falling off. So off it came too.

Just bought a home that is just absolutely perfect (new everything) except for the popcorn ceilings. And it's the really big popcorn too. I'm trying to get an estimate now about how hard it will be to have it removed. There are huge vaulted ceilings in 3 rooms. Plus it may have been sealed which means it will not come off with water.

But if I don't have it removed (after doing it twice) I will wake up every morning and go "yuck". And popcorn ceiling can be a real deal breaker when trying to sell. I know people who will not even look at a house with that type of ceilings. I would not have bought this home except that it was an exceptional buy and had totally renovated (gutted) kitchen and bathrooms with tons of wonderful landscaping.

Thank you all for your comments. I think we will have it removed

OT on "And popcorn ceiling can be a real deal breaker when trying to sell."

We've been looking for a house in the SF Bay Area, where inventory is low and prices are high, pushing 6 months now. People are paying top dollar for houses with leaking roofs, massive water issues, 40 year old single pane windows, and very sad kitchens and baths. These are houses in the 1300sf - 1900sf range with 6,000sf - 10,000 sf lots. One we passed on recently due to the aforementioned issues plus electrical and plumbing issues was on the market for $699K. It sold in 5 days for $170+K over asking, cash. There were 19 bids. Popcorn ceilings are not even on the radar in that market.

P.S. We got rid of the popcorn ceilings in our current house (been here 40 years) when we reno'd 3 years ago. Love it.

Susanne,good point. When I read the deal breaker remarks I wondered why anyone would pass on a house simply because it has popcorn ceilings? The same people can't wait to close so they can spend $40k ripping out built ins and moving walls to make the house "their own". If everything else pleases a buyer,popcorn ceilings shouldn't cause them a secound thought.

I think if it came down to two homes the buyers like, and one had popcorn, and the other didn't...they would pick the one without. We should have removed it before we moved in, but had sold our other home and needed to move in. But easier to put in storage then, than now... guess you shouldn't put off what you think you might want to do. Less expensive and trouble in the beginning, not 9 years later, as that is how long we've waited. But with all the other work, and we can change some light fixtures, etc., now would be the time.

Thank you all for your help. Also, we live near Key West, and the house prices in Old Town are expensive also, and a lot of them have issues as well. So I understand the pricing in a popular area, especially with low inventory.

Thank you all for your input!

Why such snarky comments? This is a big decision because it involves testing for asbestos and removal could be expensive.

I don't think my comments were "snarky". I've bought 3 homes with popcorn. One only has to test for asbestos if the home was built before 1977 or 1978. My most recent home purchase was built in 1988 - no asbestos there at all.

Popcorn ceiling are ugly. It's not snarky to want to get rid of popcorn anymore than wanting to get rid of gold formica countertops.

We had ours removed last summer everywhere except the bedrooms. It was messy, smelly, and a bit of a nightmare. But we stayed here through it all. Some furniture was moved outside, but the big, heavy stuff was just wrapped in plastic. Maybe you could do it in phases if you don't want to move out. The prices were also all over the map. Some bids super high and some low. We ended up having it as a package deal with our paint and flooring guy.

deal with our paint and flooring guy.

now that's scary, paint and flooring guy

Ha, yeah, live and learn. :D

We have "popcorn" ceilings in our vaction home. Living room, dining room and hall. The conteactors who looked at it said it is not normal popcorn but drywall mud. And they are more like stalagtite, very big peaks and spikes. Not so easy. 8 ft ceilings, so we cant just dry over them. And of course, blown in insulation in the attic above. I would love to have them gone. If i were you, i would do it and get it over with.

"The conteactors who looked at it said it is not normal popcorn but drywall mud."

While it;s true mud popcorn is different to what is used currently,drywall mud was all they used for many years. And the solution to getting rid of it is to spray water from a garden sprayer then scrap off with wide putty knives,not drywalling over it,regardless what is in the popcorn.

And the solution to getting rid of it is to spray water from a garden sprayer then scrap off with wide putty knives,

Unless they used actual stucco, as in one room in my own home( freeking idiots), used over real plaster walls, it is there forever.

I love happy endings!

Let the balloon play commence!