Am I devaluing the house?

[SofiaGracee]

My partner and I just bought a five bedroom house. It was cheap and an absolute state and we’re renovating the entire property.

Upstairs (attic) has two bedrooms, one a good size and the other not so much. I want to turn that room into a bathroom with a feature bath (and have the bathroom downstairs with just a shower). Partner thinks losing a bedroom is crazy.

what’s not appealing.
5 bedrooms, 1 bathroom and ensuite
4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and an ensuite

(Ensuite is in the master bedroom on the first floor)

Bedroom and bathroom in the attic. I hate loft conversions without a bathroom. When I was house hunting, I discounted any house that did that.

For me two bedrooms in a floor with no loo or shower would be a waste. It is much more luxurious to have a bedroom plus bathroom than two room upstairs. It’s a guest suite - or teenagers floor.

so absolutely I would convert the smaller bedroom into a bathroom.

In the long term it might be a good idea but I don't think it's what I'd prioritise now unless you have guests very regularly?

As others have said, you want the bath near to where your baby's room will be. So not putting one into the large family bathroom would be a mistake and potentially more off putting for resale than the loss of the fifth bedroom

I'd perhaps have a small ensuite in the attic with shower but I don't see who will go up there for a bath if your bedroom is on first floor.

In the long term it's a great room for an older child but you are a long way off that.

I’d go with the bathroom. As other pp said, not having a loo on the same floor as a bedroom is annoying.

I think it's a nice idea but potentially very expensive, disruptive and energy consuming and it won't really add a great deal of value - especially if the rest of the house is in a state. I'd put my energy elsewhere before the baby is born improving a room you'll spend more time in

Not many people want five beds, and they f they did they'd want at least enough suite and two full bathrooms and a loo. I have a three bed, there's an en suite, another full bathroom , and a downstairs loo.

I think you also need to consider the ratio of living space to bedroom and bathroom space and design accordingly

With regard to selling on, surely versatility is key because you don't know who might be looking, it could be a family with three children, it could be people who have a lot of visitors to stay, or it may be a couple who both work from home and want separate office space.

Unless you're renovating purely for your own lifestyle, long term, don't tie it down too much or spend money unnecessarily.

I'd want the extra bathroom but we have adult children who are in theory moving out !

Do what makes you happy and what suits you and your family best. More bathroom sounds much more conducive to happy family life imo.

Divide the smaller bedroom making it an en-suite for the bedroom. Remaining space is an office/study.

As a chartered surveyor and RICS valuer I can assure you that a well laid out 4 bedroom house is always worth more than a badly laid out 5 bedroom house. It's the law of diminishing returns with number of bedrooms and after 4 the added value is negligible. Only estate agents are obsessive about number of bedrooms. I bet the house will be more saleable if not worth more as 4 beds 3 baths

Instead of changing bedroom 5 to a big en-suite could you make a smaller en-suite and a walk in wardrobe?

I'd almost discount bedroom 4/5 as bedrooms without a loo & bathroom on that floor. Not useful for me or guests. It's more like a loft or storage room.

4 bed plus baths.

I’d hate to sleep on a floor with no bathroom, whether I lived there or was a guest, so I’d go with turning it into a bathroom.

Honestly 2 bathrooms is probably enough

This is what I think. You're saying 'one bathroom and an ensuite' but that's actually 'two bathrooms'. A five bed with two bathrooms is fine. A four bed with three bathrooms is unbalanced. You don't even have any DC yet so you'd be fine with one bed and one bathroom. I wouldn't get into it for now. Leave the top floor until you know how your future family are going to use it. A home office and a spare room might make more sense than a bathroom if your other floor has you and DC covered with the bathroom and ensuite. More bathrooms need to be cleaned which gets to be a pain in the arse if it's not used much.

I don’t understand all the comments about wanting to be on the same floor as DC. We have 3 now 8, 5, 3 and love the fact we are in loft out of the way with our en suite! We would have a baby monitor regardless so has been fine.

I’d definitely go with a master bedroom : en-suite and then have the office later in the garden. Will be amazing and won’t devalue the house in most areas.

Ps. We have 5 beds and 4 bathrooms - you can’t have too many bathrooms as kids get older / have guests to stay.