Would I be mad to convert the loft but not add a bedroom? (with pics)

[united4ever]

So had two builders come round to look at doing loft conversion. The context is that I will have to work from home permanently so need to create some office space but would also like to get my son out of the tiny box room.

1st one suggested to reduce size of master bedroom to put stairs in and then. This would mean keeping the box room and adding a 4th bedroom - still enough space for an ensuite in loft with dormer but it would be a smaller loft area because the stairs would take valuable head height space in the loft.

2nd builder suggested to put stairs in box room and the remaining space could function as an office (which is what I need actually) but obviously if we do come to sell (no plans for many years) then it would be a 3 bedroom house - not 4 bed so it's not going to achieve as high a sale price is it? However, the loft would be more spacious with the stairs not eating into the best part of the loft. I pointed out that not adding a 4th bedroom would affect value and he accepted this but also said, with many people working from home you are still adding a small office which is valuable and if you do it the other way you will only be able to use half the space in the loft.

I am erring towards the 2nd builder but it goes against all the usual advice doesn't it of adding another room to get your money back when you sell. Thoughts?

Option one every time. You move upstairs, child moves into now smaller bed 1, and you use boxroom as office without diminishing the size of the room.

In option 2, there's something weird about the window, and (for better or worse until we start selling by sq ft), you're selling a three bed.

If you don't plan to sell for many years then I'd be inclined to go with whichever option actually suits you better as a family.

Option 1 - if it's not your forever home I wouldn't risk losing a bedroom. The market is buoyant now but it may not be as buoyant when you come to sell and having a 3-bed competing against 4-beds is going to put you at a serious disadvantage.

I think option 1

the problem with option 2 is that if the stairs go through the office, then you can't use the office for zoom calls etc. And most wfh people are looking for a quiet space that can be shut off from the rest of the house.

If the stairs in Bed1 made a right turn at the top & took a chunk out of the corner of bed 2, would that solve the problem of the stairs appearing in the middle of the attic room?

We're looking at doing this is there an option to run over existing staircase that's what we was hoping just so difficult to get a builder to quote at the moment. Have you had any idea of costs given if you don't mind me asking?

Can the stairs not go up above the existing stairs?

I would also ask a Loft Conversion Co.

Option 1. Why would you spend the same amount of money to end up with what you already have vs an extra bedroom and bathroom?

Is it stupid to ask why the stairs can't just go up an extra floor from where they are?

the landing is tiny, the bathroom also prevents creating a starting point to get the new stairs over existing stairs. First quote for option 1 was 42-45k (ballpark only - no drawings done yet - but that was everything i.e. we would just have to paint it). Option 2 - he will send quote next week. These were both loft conversion companies (should have said).

Is it an option to rearrange the bathroom to cut out enough space for the stairs to start there and run above the existing ones?

Sorry, cross post. I think a smaller bathroom would be my preferred compromise

Option 1, option 2 would be daft and could end up reducing the value of your house. You said it was a box room so the office would be minuscule if you had a staircase in it, it’d not really be able to function as a proper office so would be viewed as more of a hallway instead.

If you move your loo to be opposite the sink, that creates space in the bathroom for the stairs.

I'd also suggest whatever solution you go for, that the room that the stairs are taken from, you don't put in a ceiling to floor ceiling - have the wall ceiling to stairs, so the understairs part of the room has the same floor space.

Slice across the bathroom at approximately the point where on your picture the word "bathroom" is written. Have door that opens outwards on to landing. Put loo opposite sink (or, sink on that wall and loo where sink currently is, if you need loo on an outside wall). Run stairs up above current stairs.

FFS it chopped off my first line!

I wrote
"If it were me, I would slice across the bathroom at approximately the point where on your picture, the word bathroom is written."

Then read the rest of my post!

If you think you'll be there forever then go for it but if not it'll be easier to sell a 3 bed home as opposed to a 2 bed.

@WyldStallions

Slice across the bathroom at approximately the point where on your picture the word "bathroom" is written. Have door that opens outwards on to landing. Put loo opposite sink (or, sink on that wall and loo where sink currently is, if you need loo on an outside wall). Run stairs up above current stairs.

Thanks, moving the sink in the bathroom to the other wall and moving the toilet closer to the bath may work. Its all going to add to the cost of course, would that be adding hundreds or thousands do you think?

Firstly, to do any loft conversion you are going to have to apply for Planning permission and Building control Approval and that can be an added expense. There has to be a means of escape and an opening window in the roof of the Loft conversion to comply with Fire regulations. If your home is built with a Truss type roof rather than a Traditional type, then it may mean that the roof would have to come off and substantial alterations made to accommodate the space required within without the supports of the Trusses.
Also consider the fact that loft conversions tend to be Colder in Winter and Hotter in Summer than the rest of the house simply because the insulation is never as good once the buffer space of the roof has gone to form another room.
The average cost of a Loft conversion on a standard sized 3 bedroomed detached house in the Midlands is around 70k. The average cost of building an Add-on single level Downstairs office space completed and second fixed is around 45k, or a Garage conversion would be much cheaper. What you need to ask yourself is when the time comes to sell your property, would you be able to gain the amount spent in Value?
It is soo easy to overspend and loose value when a more secure financial option would be to sell up when the market was favourable and start afresh with a new home more suitable to your needs.

Locally someone has installed a very nice Garden room, fully double glazed and insulated with power and water supply, that is sectional and can be transported to a new destination should they ever sell up and wish to take it with them. They run a small business and use it for a client base, it’s a lovely smart place and only 4x3m footprint, l wouldn’t mind one of those myself, and quite cost effective!

Don't need to apply for planning for loft conversion only building regs and I think 70k is excessive

Neither. I'd keep the largest bedroom as is as everyone wants a decent size bedroom on the main bedroom floor.
I'd put the stairs in b2 if you can and if it fits in, I'd do a stair that has a turn in it, build cupboards for B2 under the stairs to save having wardrobes in B2 so you can have a 4 bed home b2 smaller room plus box room

I think option 2 is strange and a complete no-go unless you have some incredibly specific plans for the loft that would really benefit from this space in the middle that otherwise would be taken by the stairs. This would only be the case if the whole loft is one big room - and even then it's still a bit tricky to put furniture in the loft so I wouldn't rush to lose a perfectly fine room on the 1st floor for that. Option 2 would make a 'proper' (albeit small) 1st floor room into something very odd - not only tiny but also not private due to stairs and with half obscured window. It'll be a naughty corner essentially. Useless space, for arguably not a lot of gain.

You don't say what the overall measurements are. I have stairs in the middle, half of the loft to one side of the stairs is bathroom and study, and the other half is bedroom. There's still enough space for this despite the 'lost' headspace due to staircase. Another loft option is two bedrooms both sides and jack-and-jill en-suite in the middle (over the staircase).

I'm not convinced that option 1 is your best option, but you can definitely rule out option 2.

I think option 2 is strange and a complete no-go unless you have some incredibly specific plans for the loft that would really benefit from this space in the middle that otherwise would be taken by the stairs. This would only be the case if the whole loft is one big room - and even then it's still a bit tricky to put furniture in the loft so I wouldn't rush to lose a perfectly fine room on the 1st floor for that. Option 2 would make a 'proper' (albeit small) 1st floor room into something very odd - not only tiny but also not private due to stairs and with half obscured window. It'll be a naughty corner essentially. Useless space, for arguably not a lot of gain.

You don't say what the overall measurements are. I have stairs in the middle, half of the loft to one side of the stairs is bathroom and study, and the other half is bedroom. There's still enough space for this despite the 'lost' headspace due to staircase. Another loft option is two bedrooms both sides and jack-and-jill en-suite in the middle (over the staircase).

I'm not convinced that option 1 is your best option, but you can definitely rule out option 2.

We put stairs above our stairs by moving a door where your bathroom is.
It was a kite winder staircase.
My bil was a building inspector and said it couldn’t be done but I’d seen one in a friend’s house and knew it could.
Obviously I don’t know if you can do it but it’s worth investigating.
I can’t send a pic because we don’t live there anymore.