To think nine bedrooms is a bit much?

[houseymcmousey]

Someone I work with has just bought a nine bedroom house for two adults and one child to live in. They aren't having more children or having anyone else move in.

Just out of interest, how big would you go if money was no object? For me I think 5 or 6 just to have a couple of guest rooms but nine seems bonkers to me. It has enough space downstairs for a playroom and office so they aren't using them for that. Just thinking of all the bed linen makes me feel faint.

I'd go five bedrooms max if I won the lottery.

We are about to move into a 5 bed in Cornwall, we are hoping that we'll have frequent visitors. PILs prefer to sleep in separate rooms so that's 2 guest rooms. Or we can host another family of 4 and comfortably put them up for a week without people feeling squashed.

9 beds - naah, unless you had staff the upkeep, cleaning and maintenance would be horrendous.

Having lived in big houses and had friends who rattled around a gigantic half derelict mannor house (you had to wear wellies in one part of the house...) I agree with you. Living in something far bigger than you need is ridiculous.

I can see the appeal of a separate flat over the garage for guests, but not seven spare rooms in addition to a bedroom each and offices downstairs. Most families find they only use a certain number of rooms and the rest are dead space no matter how they're dressed up. Knocking around a huge 3/4 empty house is also pretty spooky, and huge properties attract unsavoury types trying to break in...

Hmmm. When people think 'bedrooms', do they just think, 'rooms that aren't kitchens, bathrooms, living rooms or dining rooms'? Because 'chill out rooms'; 'storage'; 'studies' aren't 'bedrooms', in my book...

Ideally, I think I'd like five bedrooms (one for me/Mrmultivac; one each for the twins; two for guests) - but then also, as well as a communal living area and kitchen (with big farmhouse table), I'd like... two studies; a music room and studio; a teen den; and a reading room/library for ME.

Please.

I'd want 1 for each child (2), 1 for dh and I, we'd want 1 each as an office, 1 spare room, maybe 2, I'd take one as a walk in wardrobe so that's 8 straight away. I would want a cleaner too though.

I wouldn't go big. Four bedrooms max. I would go for location, garden space, and I would want a basement.

I would love 9 bedrooms

One for me
One dc1
One for dc2
Craft room
Spare/guest room
Sensory room for dc2
Dressing room
Gym
Office

@XingMing

We're planning to move from a spacious 4 bedroom house to something more suitable for a 60 something couple, and there is nothing that we have seen, in the areas that suit.

We'd like fewer rooms, but not small rooms, and just about everything we have seen advertised for older people seems to assume that you want a rabbit hutch with a warden. I explain that we want big living/dining/kitchen social space and two ensuite bathrooms and a guest annexe for a student son or visitors. No, sorry that's not what's in demand. I am coming to the conclusion that we need to build our own house.

I am always harping on about this, we are early 50’s in a large 4 double bedroom house, it will be a pain to maintain when we hit retirement so we want a detached house with a lot of living space but not endless bedrooms and bathrooms, a huge living area with 2 double en suite bedrooms would be ideal, they don’t exist in the area we want to live, I never want a tiny bungalow or rabbit hutch apartment when I retire, why builders have not cottoned into this is beyond me, there must be thousands of people who would willingly sell there large family homes if they could buy the same size house with better redistributed space rather than endless bedrooms. We will have to find a barn to covert I think.

Yes I’d love it, room for us. Room each for DD, study, gym, dressing room, guest room x 2 and cinema/chill room for when DD have their friends over could easily fill those rooms and more

If there are nine upstairs bedroom there's a corresponding amount of space downstairs. The family may be able to think of names for all the empty rooms but they won't actually use them all daily. 3 people living in an 18 room house will end up using 6 rooms regularly, another couple sporadically, and the rest will be empty and unused and gathering dust, developing leaks nobody notices because nobody goes into them, once the novelty has worn off.

One each and then one for each adult to use for hobbies or office. So if it were me husband and two DD as back in the day it would be six bedrooms.

Let's face it things will have to go back to the way they used to be in terms of multi-generational living. So a large house with lots of bedrooms is ideal for that.

So, you could have Mum and Dad in one bedroom, adult child in another, adult child's living room, grandparents in another with a further room for their sitting room. A spare bedroom for someone to retreat to when someone's ill or snoring or pissed or whatever, a further couple of spare bedrooms for guests, one for a study, and that's before you even get to any dressing rooms or converting to make space for ensuites.

A wing each would be ideal! Then you could even have your own kitchens and sitting rooms, and meet for Downton style dinners in the dining room and pretend you're all la-di-dah Ready made babysitters and grandparent-care on tap, it's the way forward!

Meh I have a 3 bed house all to my self, one bedroom I sleep in, the second is my dressing room and third is guest room but I'm considering turning it into a library/office room since I don't have many people staying over

Some might argue its too much house just for one person but its perfect for me!

Or an average size house upstairs, with a large downstairs extension or a large garden so you could extend it yourself.

Depends on the family. I have friends who pretty much have an open house with relatives from abroad or church group staying so in that respect it would be good. 3 bedrooms for parents, child and possible future child, 2 spares permanently set up for regularly visiting parents, one kept empty to do workout videos in lockdown without having to move furniture, one with ironing board permanently out and clothes dryer, couple more as generic spares...

A friend was ranting about another friend who had just bought a 6 bed house when she only has 1 baby but actually I thought it seemed really sensible and future proof rather than having to scale up if they had more kids

I'd need them for the staff.

I could easily fill a 9 bed house. Large family.

I think I would have five maximum rooms unless I could afford a cleaner.

We've got 6 double bedrooms but are about to convert one of them to another bathroom. At the moment 5 are occupied.

We've done so much work on this house. Sometimes i wonder what we'll do with it all once all the kids are grown ...

Hmm currently 2 adults and a dog. If I had to decide on a specific number of bedrooms I would say 4 or 5.

1. Master bedroom

2&3 for any potential children

1. Study
2. Guest room/dressing room

I would hate an excessive number of bathrooms though that larger houses tend to come with. Nor would I be desperate for an en-suite, although I can see why they are popular in larger families.

I’m more about downstairs and outside room. I would like a double garage, large garden, outer building for DH to do his own thing in.

If they can afford to buy and maintain a 9 bed house then good luck to them. There are just two of us living in a four/five bed house but we fill it and use every room. I would have at least three bedrooms so we have a spare for my daughter/mum to stay and one other in case DH or I snore and one of us needs to migrate. One for a hobby room/office for DH and one as a study/library/reading/music room for me and one/two for the grandchildren to come and visit and to store the multitude of toys which at the moment are cluttering my reading/music room. That is seven bedrooms which I think is as high as I would go. If they already have a playroom and office I cannot think what they will use the other seven bedrooms for but maybe one could be a gym?

@Curly, your DM and DD may not want, or be able to share a bedroom as they age. DH and I rarely sleep together. Apparently I snore as loudly as a steam train while DH sleeps so lightly that a fairy stepping onto ice wakes him. Sadly DH needs more sleep time than I do -- and is grumpy as feck if he doesn't get his eight hours uninterrupted.

I would have loved a massive house when younger. Now I want a place that requires minimal work. I’d like a really nice four bedroom flat with two or three bathrooms, but even three bedroom flats are like hens’s teeth where I live. Guess I need to move to a bigger city.

It could be an investment. Property is usually the best place to put your money.

I wouldn't say no to a 9 bedroom house!! Easy to fill.

1. Bedroom for me
2. Bedroom for DH
3. Bedroom for DD
4. Office/library for me
5. Office for DH
6. Playroom for DD
7. Gym equipment
8. Spare room
9. Craft room (extra spare room if necessary)