Would this devalue the house/make it harder to resell?

[YellowEllis]

Four bed house - one family bathroom, one en-suite, one WC.

We want to swap out the bath shower combo in the family bathroom and put a more luxurious fancier free standing bath in. It won't have an overhead shower or screen

There is a nice rainfall shower in the en-suite. We only have young kids and rare guests so we have no issues with guests just using the en-suite if they need a shower it'll only be our closest family but would it affect resale value?

They've said they can source one basically identical to this. It's a solid bath so no panel. Will fit a regular and rainfall shower head and a waterfall tap for the same price as the original bath so I think we'll go for this one.

@RosesforMama

I will never understand the mentality of people deciding against buying a 500k house because it doesn't have a shower over the bath. That is ridiculous.

"Darling, the house is just the right size, in the school catchment we want, a bedroom for each child and off road parking. It's in good decorative order and the garden is perfect. Plus it's the right price. What do you think?"

"Sweetheart, did you not notice? There was NO SHOWER over the bath. Obviously that is impossible to rectify. It's got to be a no. Such a shame the kids won't be able to attend that school up the road now, but hey, a shower is non negotiable".

"Yes of course, you're right darling. Let's rule this one out".

That’s a bit silly. It’s about the cost and upheaval of having to redo your bathroom soon after moving in.

Op that’s really nice.

Oh I see, it’s all in one piece no side panel? That sounds much nicer yes.

Just check the screen can swing out of the way for cleaning!

I can't understand why having a luxury freestanding bath also means you can't have a shower over it? You don't have to ever use the shower so don't need a shower screen. Just have the shower unit on the wall. Unless the bath is going to go in the middle of the room, in which case have the shower head coming down from the ceiling.

Thank you for the help! Much happier with this option actually so glad for all the comments telling me to think twice about my original idea.

Ah you've gone for one!

I see you have other options now but my friend has a gorgeous claw foot bath with a rainfall shower thing above and shower curtains that can go the whole way round the bath. I guess she might need to replace the curtains of they go manky but I have used it and it was lovely.

Our kids have their own en suites and the main bathroom has a shower over the bath as it didn't when we moved in and we found guests preferred a quick shower than have to run a bath.

It would mean j wouldn't even consider your house for purchase if it meant my en suite wasn't my own private bathroom which is what an en-suite is.

Guests, kids, the cats aunt, I don't want anyone traipsing through my bedroom:

bluntness yes and I get that that is annoying.
But it's not a deal breaker is my point. I simply don't believe that people would walk away from a decent house over such a triviality.

@RosesforMama

I will never understand the mentality of people deciding against buying a 500k house because it doesn't have a shower over the bath. That is ridiculous.

"Darling, the house is just the right size, in the school catchment we want, a bedroom for each child and off road parking. It's in good decorative order and the garden is perfect. Plus it's the right price. What do you think?"

"Sweetheart, did you not notice? There was NO SHOWER over the bath. Obviously that is impossible to rectify. It's got to be a no. Such a shame the kids won't be able to attend that school up the road now, but hey, a shower is non negotiable".

"Yes of course, you're right darling. Let's rule this one out".

Obviously this is unlikely to happen. However, a potential buyer may knock more than the cost of a new bathroom off the asking price for the inconvenience of not having a shower in the main bathroom. It may be a sellers market in some areas of the U.K. it remains to be seen how the future market will be in 10 years hence.

I don't think it would devalue the house as majority of buyers buy with their hearts and their eyes rather than with their practical head on.

We recently holidayed in a house that had the set up you're talking of. It did my head in! There was a shower attachment that was basically useless for rinsing hair because water went everywhere.

The bath was lovely. The kids loved it. I reckon if you would use it a lot then go for it. They do have the wow factor and most people would recognise that before noticing potential impracticality.

Oh and I much prefer your latest option. If you had space for a decent shower as well, that would be different.

That looks really nice OP. I totally get what you mean with plastic baths and panels feeling flimsy but hate cleaning/mess situation more, plus budget...

At the moment most people are looking for "done" houses they can move straight into. The other end is complete projects which seem to be shifting but more slowly. We looked at (but didn't offer on) a house that had a very annoying kitchen layout (almost no units/worksurface, wall space wasted but not quite enough space for a dining table) because the price was too strong given the need to completely redo the kitchen. Something impractical (like a bathroom with irritating bits to clean or no shower over bath (washing a 2 year old in an small ensuite shower enclosure was quite entertaining and very messy in the holiday let last year) and he's funny about baths...

I also think that 4 bed family homes tend to be bought by people who have experienced their own mistakes in previous houses (waterfall taps and square toilets in a hard water area!)

OP we also have a central tap with shower head for hair washing and dog washing also a must for cleaning the bath!

They aren’t much more

I can't understand why having a luxury freestanding bath also means you can't have a shower over it? You don't have to ever use the shower so don't need a shower screen.

What would be the point of putting in a shower which very obviously couldn’t be used due to lack of shower screen?

Obviously this is unlikely to happen. However, a potential buyer may knock more than the cost of a new bathroom off the asking price for the inconvenience of not having a shower in the main bathroom. It may be a sellers market in some areas of the U.K. it remains to be seen how the future market will be in 10 years hence

Exactly. And the op asked if it would impact the value and make it harder to sell, both are likely true, she didn’t ask if it would make it impossible to sell. Which clearly it would not.

I had a P shaped bath in my house before last and it is the best option if you don't have room for both bath and shower (IMO). But, it takes loads of water to fill it up for a bath because the volume is far larger than a standard bath so if you have a small hot water tank you might want to upgrade it OP.

Our house only has a shower in the ensuite and it's a pain TBH. It doesn't bother me but Guests find it awkward and even DS1 (now adult!) say it feels strange going through my bedroom. I plan on putting one in the main bathroom when I have it refitted.

What you've chosen is very similar to what we've just put in. Very fancy rainfall shower that looks 'victorian' with a handheld shower as well - shower screen. But we had a bath put in but with a solid wood side to it. Looks good.

That looks like a good option, enjoy your new bath 🙂.

Hi OP. I know a few people have mentioned it already but it might be possible to have a lovely bath still keep a shower, and have it looking good. Instagrammer Kate La Vie used to have one in her old flat. I always liked her set up because as much as I love a bath, I only take one about 6 times a year!

I have to use my sisters and her husbands en suite when we stay with her and don’t like it much despite being incredibly close.

In one of our houses I had a free standing bath and a shower in the only bathroom and whilst it looked nice I maybe used it five times. It took ages to fill and was very deep. I dont think that putting one in will reduce the resale as they are a luxury item. I've seen lots of houses with only one shower in the ensuite and now that puts me off because I dont have small children and ALL I have ever wanted is my own/girls only bathroom!