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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think that five lavatories in an ordinary suburban semi

49 replies

beanlet · 02/07/2011 20:59

is fucking ridiculous?

House hunting at the moment. What is it with the modern obsession with putting multiple bathrooms and lavatories in small to average houses? I can see the point of an additional downstairs loo, but why carve an en suite out of a small master bedroom when you only have three small upstairs bedrooms?

I just don't get it.

OP posts:
LaurieFairyCake · 02/07/2011 21:01

How were there 5 ? You described 3.

Grin
OpusProSerenus · 02/07/2011 21:06

I agree! The trouble is that this becomes the norm. We have a beautiful period house with all sorts of original features built in 1911, near a well known golf course. When there was a championship a while ago local agents appealed for houses they could rent out so, thinking it might pay for us to have a holiday, we applied and the agent acted like we were living in squalor because in a 4bed house we only had 1 main bathroom, 2 seperate loos and a vanity basin in 1 bedroom. Apparently our house is "simply unlettable" due to its lack of bathrooms!

PrincessJenga · 02/07/2011 21:26

YANBU. When i was house hunting i saw one place that had shower cubicles in each bedroom. Not wet rooms. Not en suites. Just a stand alone glass cubicle in the corner of each room. Yuck!!!

biddysmama · 02/07/2011 21:29

i have a bathroom and a loo outside, absolute squalor!

SugarSkyHigh · 02/07/2011 21:33

we viewed a 4 bedroom house that had 5 bathrooms - ridiculous! All that cleaning!

If the house had not bothered with all those bathrooms, the bedrooms might have been a realistic size.

We bought an older house, with one family bathroom and one ensuite, and loads more space.

dementedma · 02/07/2011 21:40

wow. how do you all cope with "just" an en suite and a downstairs loo?
will admit to being [jealous] but the five of us cope with one tiny bathroom between us. Five bathrooms is just sily!

Original poster
beanlet · 02/07/2011 21:42

Sorry - alongside upstairs family bathroom, en suite and downstairs loo there was also a compleye downstairs bathroom and a loo in the cloakroom by the front door. All relatively new looking. The owners must have had serious incontinence problems.

OP posts:
Original poster
beanlet · 02/07/2011 21:43

And carving the en suite out of the master bedroom made it 9' x 9' !

OP posts:
Hatesponge · 02/07/2011 21:47

I think the usual rule of thumb if you're doing up a house to sell is 1 bathroom for up to 3 bedrooms. Which is about right. However since property prices started to drop, some people seem to have the idea that you can command higher prices the more bathrooms (esp if ensuites) you have - and if you're putting in the plumbing for one additional bathroom, it probably doesnt cost more for another 2 or 3....

CarnivalBizarre · 02/07/2011 21:51

Try living in a large 7 bed Victorian house with 8 family members with only 1 full bathroom a tiny loo next door to it! Two of the bedrooms have dressing rooms 9x6 off them so the possibility of having 2 en-suites are there ....but we have no money so thats that!

CarnivalBizarre · 02/07/2011 21:52

...oh and the full bathroom is the size of a postage stamp!

Original poster
beanlet · 02/07/2011 21:54

I could sort of have understood if they'd had six children, but...well, they didn't.

It's just excessive. Too many boom years lifestyle programmes, maybe?

OP posts:
Original poster
beanlet · 02/07/2011 21:54

Lord, carnival, that sounds tough!

OP posts:
MoreBeta · 02/07/2011 21:56

Developers know that what sells houses is good kitchens and bathrooms. An ensuite is a real luxury I don't think I would want to go without now. A loo by the front door plus 2 ensuites and a main family bathroom is now more or less regarded as essential by many people.

I wouldn't buy a house without plenty of bathrooms/loos/shower rooms although I think redesigning an old house and making the bedrooms tiny to achieve it is just plain silly.

menazovut · 02/07/2011 21:59

I hate this obsession with toilets. I want a loft conversion, pushing us to three bedrooms. They can't seem to comprehend I don't want a second toilet, I'd rather just have a decent sized bedroom up there.

MoreBeta · 02/07/2011 21:59

We lived in a flat in London with 3 beds and 1 bathroom. Then we moved to a small house with 2.5 bedroooms and 3 loos. It was jolly useful with 2 toddlers and I wouldnt go back to less loos now.

menazovut · 02/07/2011 22:00

I really don't see an ensuite as luxury, I see it as extra cleaning and a waste of space. Really, when did it become difficult to have a family bathroom?

Original poster
beanlet · 02/07/2011 22:02

The point is that it really isn't essential, and even ten years ago most people would have thought it was nuts. Five loos isn't even a nice luxury - it's just insane!

Family bathroom, main bed en suite and downstairs loo is the absolute maximum for a 3 bed semi, surely. Anything more is frankly crazy.

OP posts:
tallulah · 02/07/2011 22:02

We had 3 toilets in our last house. This one has only one and nowhere to put a second. It is horrible. I would kill for a second toilet (especially with a 4 yo who is always 'desperate" the minute anyone else sits down)

CocktailQueen · 02/07/2011 22:03

YANBU - it's bonkers! I;d much rather have 2 loos and bigger bedrooms!!! All that cleaning of loos and sinks ;-)

Original poster
beanlet · 02/07/2011 22:04

(oh and up until now we've got along perfectly well with JUST A FAMILY BATHROOM Shock!!! I would really like a downstairs loo though.)

OP posts:
joric · 02/07/2011 22:09

We have 4 bed, one bathroom and downstais loo and sink - bathroom needs to be taken out and gutting really- not done it because where would we shower/ bath whilst a week of work goes on? Got emailer envy at the moment!!!!

joric · 02/07/2011 22:10

ensuite envy

whackamole · 02/07/2011 22:57

I don't get en suites. Unless they are huge with windows and the person reading their book in bed can distance themselves from the poo sounds and smells.

PrincessJenga · 02/07/2011 23:02

Can I hijack slightly to ask a question?

We're about to move to a three bed house that has one bathroom (not the house with all the showers!) and are considering extending it to a four bed with one family bathroom and one en suite. The only problem is that because of the layout neither of the bathrooms would be able to have windows. I think this will be okay so long as we get some good lighting and an extractor fan, but would that put you off buying a property? Ta!