That's quite a groovy space there!

I'd move the laundry upstairs because that makes for easier laundry and a powder room downstairs is really nice.

But...I would first do some sketches and see if perhaps by grabbing the closet by the laundry room (unless it's something mechanical that you need there) you can't get a better combo layout downstairs.

Disclaimer: my house is from the '50s and so I am used to small weird spaces that don't look like they belong in a Laundry Rooms Weekly magazine.

IMO these changes would serve your family and home better. If you have no need for a cedar closet that Master Bath could be significantly be improved.

@Fori, I agree! It is a groovy space! It even has a clothes line that runs above the sink and toilet for an extra 1960s feel. I love old house and all their charms and I'd love it if this room worked well! The sellers left me the original plans for the house, and I was surprised to see this half bath / laundry combo is original to the house.

Clearly someone who didn't do laundry thought this was a good idea for a layout. Who amongst us doesn't love to open the dryer door only to have the laundry tumble into the toilet? Good times!

The closet next to the bathroom downstairs is kinda weird and appears to have some sort of mechanical in it -- an HVAC duct through the top and something that is boxed in and runs vertically. This closest is roughly below the walk in closet in the bedroom and there is cabinetry on the other side of the wall, so I'm not sure what that vertical box in the closet could be!

see if the HVAC could be rerouted and turn that closet into a stackable? that's one option.

any other utility closets (like a water heater that can be moved) that you can utilize?

what if you sealed off the current door from the garage and used that corner as the laudry or bath? make a door from the garge into the family room?

(hard to visualize just from the floor plan)

Losing the downstairs bath is a biggie. Don't know how many guests you get or how long you plan on being in the house, but that would be a negative.

Losing a large closet in the master is also a negative.

19X15 is a large bedroom. are you redoing the bathroom in the master? if so, could you borrow some floor space and put in a laudry or a diff walk in closet?

Beverly's idea is genius!

Yes I would have 2 laundry and a stackable is a great solution. But I would never loose the only main floor bathroom.

Have you considered replacing with an all-in-one laundry unit? I have a 100 year old cottage with weird laundry space off of my kitchen. There was an eyesore stackable there but I switched to all-in-one 15 years ago and never looked back. Plus it is ventless, so you can put it anywhere you have access to electric and water connection. It does take a little getting used to.

I did notice the clothesline. :)

I wonder if this did not originally have a dryer and that's why things got squishy. The sink cabinet looks new (or at least the counter does). Does the tile go everywhere?

A lot depends on your budget. Usually when I work with people the first space they want to tackle in a home that needs to be updated is the kitchen. If this is the case and you are going to work through the home in phases a simple and budget friendly option to stretch your dollar until you can move the laundry upstairs where I think it belongs would be to incorporate it into the kitchen. The plumbing would only need to be moved a short distance. Id pull the peninsula and incorporate a stackable full sized unit behind cabinetry against the wall that shares the bath wall. install a nice island. When your ready to move the laundry upstairs you will be left with a nice sized pantry where the washer and dryer once was.

Your laundry/powder room is the same as the one I got rid of 2 years ago in my own home. In my case, we moved the powder. So, it's possible that it was once the style to sit on the throne while emptying one's dryer. The 60s were apparently pretty crazy times. ;)

Beverley's idea to move the laundry into your master closet and use reach-in closets for the master is the most efficient, least disruptive plan. I suspect the only possible difficulty might be venting the dryer from there. But even in the unlikely event that it is difficult to do, I think it would really be worth it.

@Design Interior South -- Thank you for the option! The kitchen is definitely a sub-optimal design -- why they didn't at least swap the position of the fridge and the stove is beyond me. Having the stove in the highest traffic area of the kitchen seems like an odd choice. I'm planning on living in it for a while (we aren't moving in until the end of the year) before figuring out how we want to redo it. I've taken a few cracks at combining the kitchen/dining room or redesigning the kitchen without knocking down any walls. The kitchen is a tough nut to crack because of all the doors, windows, and stairs that lead to the lower floor and I'm sure I'll be back here to ask for opinions on it when we get there!

@Jennifer K -- I agree! I think it's the least disruptive plan to get us to a place with a usable laundry room. @BeverlyFLADeziner deleted the door to the attic that would have to stay so that laundry room configuration wouldn't quite work. To save on budget I probably wouldn't move the closets because, well, I just don't have that many clothes and, unfortunately, the previous owners ran ducting through every bedroom closet so if I moved the closets I'd be opening a can of worms with moving HVAC ducting and fixing the holes they cut through the flooring. Although, maybe I could save some of the wood flooring from the walk-in closet turned laundry room to patch the holes in the floor. Food for thought!

I would move the wall about a foot into the fanily room.

@Fori The tile does indeed go everywhere! It's in fabulous condition and were it not for the weird configuration, I'd find a way to work with it since I don't typically rip things out unless they are ugly and they don't function well. I suspect it's in such good condition because no one ever actually uses that room for anything other than the laundry. Also the sellers took immaculate care of everything, so it could be just another sign of their loving care for the home. If we move the W/D upstairs, I'll probably still see if I can work with the tile and only revamp the vanity.

The simplest solutions might be to just put it outside the downstairs powder room but on the other side of the wall in a new closet. Probably cheapest too, it's all right there and the family room could lose a couple feet no problem.

It could possibly go in the bathroom upstairs in the closet area,

Personally I don't care for laundry right off the bedrooms because there is usually either a load on the washer or in the dryer at bedtime in my house.

If you move the laundry, the holes left by the machines can be covered with some shallow cabinets (which everyone in an older home should be able to find a use for).

Palimpsest's suggestions for laundry locations might work well, depending on what actually goes on in those rooms and what time of day.

Could a stacked washer dryer be put in the screened in porch area next to the current powder/laundry room? You’d have access to plumbing in that spot.