Lose 4th bedroom for a bigger master/master bath/closet?

generals1992

7 years ago

All,

I currently live in a c. 1961 tri-level ranch home with four bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. The single-level portion of the home consists of a large open kitchen/dining/living, while the split portion contains three bedrooms (in an L shape) with 2 bathrooms upstairs and one bedroom, one bathroom, one laundry, and a large bonus room area that spans two of upstairs bedrooms. The house is approximately 2,600 SF including the basement.

I think it would be nice to combine the master with the adjacent room, which would allow for a large bedroom, bathroom, and closet. That would leave me with 2 bedrooms upstairs, 1 downstairs, plus the bonus room. I live in a good school district and the neighborhood is increasingly filling up with younger families. Most people with kids have one or two young children and move onto bigger homes when they have a third or their kids get older.

While the house is currently four bedrooms, I think a family of five would feel pretty cramped in this house - in my opinion, my likely audience is younger buyers with 1-2 small children who would likely appreciate a larger master ensuite vs. four bedrooms. That said, I also hate the idea of losing a bedroom and am not sure it's a project I'll get my money back on.

Featured Answer

sandi125

7 years ago

Families with young children may want their children close to them at night (not in basement). Also, they may want a guest room. I agree that a good local real estate agent can best advise you.

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Comments (7)

tartanmeup
7 years ago
A realtor with experience in the area could advise you.
melle_sacto
7 years ago
it really depends on your specific market, plus whether or not that reconfigure will make your place better for you while you live there.

i can tell you that when we were shopping for a different house my DH really liked homes with master suite set ups, and if a house had that then he basically didn't notice all the other layout issues. We bought a place that doesn't have a master suite but does have 4 bedrooms plus a small nook and small bathroom off the master; if desired the 4th bedroom plus master/bath/nook could all be reconfigured to become the master suite he dreams of. for now the 4th bedroom will be an office
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Mrs Pete
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
At a glance, I suspect most people would rather have a 3-bedroom house with a nice-sized master bath and closet, and 1961 expectations aren't the same as 2019 expectations ... but, as other people have said, local needs/habits trump generalities.
generals1992
Original Author
7 years ago
Thanks for the feedback.

I have spoken to a handful of agent friends who work in the area - there really is no consensus. Some are more old school and think number of bedrooms trumps all, while others are more in line with my thinking that my target buyer is the newlywed or newborn crowd.

I could *technically* still list the house as four bedrooms as that basement bonus room has a closet and is adjacent to a bathroom. I also thought about just converting that into a master suite, but I think that adds a ton of livable space as a second living room for a relatively small house and 5 bedrooms would be overkill.

The whole thing has raised another question - is having a large master with a big bathroom/closet going to be important to my target buyer? Sure, it would be nice, but there are two bathrooms upstairs right next to each other and I don’t see it being much of an inconvenience for a married couple.
tartanmeup
7 years ago
When are you planning on selling?
Bruce in Northern Virginia
7 years ago
Take a tour of the model homes in your area and see what they offer for layout. It will give you a good idea of what combination they think sells.

I expect you will find that many new/newer home have a very large open family room/kitchen area, a large comfortable master bedroom and bath, and the rest of the bedrooms are adequate. That combination has been popular for many years, and it works fine for many families.

Bruce