Bathroom & en-suite update … is it worth it?

[hadenoughforever]

My house needs both of these updating (as well as a new boiler ideally 🙀). Thing is, I don’t know whether to modernise house as I can now downsize given my dds have left home.

Is it worth spending £££ so house is easier to sell or not? The kitchen is also tired but I don’t have the money to do this as well.

Please help!

Watching with interest as I have a similar situation.

My opinion is not to do the bathrooms. When I look on rightmove and it says kitchen, bathroom updated, they are invariably not to my taste, and I don’t want to pay extra for something I couldn’t live with. I would much rather do them myself.

We are doing my son’s bathroom as it lets down the rest of his house. He’s the U.K. I’m an agent living and working in Portugal and an attractive and well designed bathroom definitely increases the value and speed at which we can sell a property.

It depends how tired. Avocado suite etc - yes, but if it’s a useable white suite I’d just add new tiles and blinds perhaps.

Kitchen, if it’s not really grubby I’d give it a good clean, perhaps new Lino or tiles, or paint the unit doors.

Generally I’d just get it looking as clean and fresh as you can. Unless you think a new kitchen/bathroom will add tens of thousands to the price it’s not worth the investment.

If you are thinking of downsizing I wouldn’t bother updating, whatever kitchen or bathroom you chose is likely to be ripped out and replaced by your buyer. I would just freshen up, neutral paintwork, some winter flowers in pots etc. de clutter and get it on the market. Good luck OP.

I wouldn't bother Yes, I'd rather but a house with a new bathroom, but not if it meant I was paying extra for it, as I'd rather choose my own.

I'd just replace silicon and re-paint, if any mould is present. If it looks clean and looked after, that's the main thing for me. Same with the kitchen. Just fix any wonky doors if need be and make it look well maintained despite being dated.

*buy

It depends on what the rest if the house is like. If you have artex ceilings and a 90s kitchen, then updating the bathroom won’t add much value. If the rest of the house is noticeably more modern, then it’s worth bringing the bathroom up to date.

The buyer sees the house as a whole when it comes to decor. They don’t see individual rooms as being updated, they see it as everything needs doing or nothing. Only the fixed aspects of a house are perceived individually like garden size, amazing views etc.

I wouldn't if it was reasonable, people will just do it themselves to their taste, as you have a bathroom and an en-suite, it will be quite easy as there will still be facilities to use as one or the other is done. Get rid of any mould, the silicone may need refreshing, you can get silicone to just put on top if you don't want to remove the old stuff

If you are going to sell, I would sell it as it is, as some people like to do things like bathrooms themselves. We sold my FIL’s house recently it needed a new bathroom, boiler, new windows, new garage door etc. but estate agent said don’t spend any money on it as it will sell quicker as it is. The first couple to view the property bought it at asking price. There was another house in same road that had recently been renovated and for sale but they wanted another £25,000 and took a lot longer to sell.

Same. Only do it if you want to live there afterwards.

It depends on how old and tired the bathroom is. Ours was tired but had large white tiles and grey tiled floor, nothing chintzy or that screamed "hasn't been touched since the 90s". We repainted the ceiling, replaced the grout and silicone, painted the radiator and replaced the bath panel. We also went crazy with a bottle of viakal on the shower doors and taps. It took a weekend and we're not handy DIY types. We had 4 agents round for valuations and they all thought the bathroom was recently replaced. I'd estimate it's at least 10 years old, we've been here for 6 years and it didn't look new when we moved in.

Thanks for all the responses. The house is 16 yrs old. It was let out until I bought it post divorce. I’ve cleaned both up but no getting past the shower door is broken (ironically easier to get in now) in en suite and it’s the only shower in house (very small too - Superman wouldn’t be able to change into his cape in there!) and it’s in the master bedroom. Otherwise, the bathroom is v tired looking. I might be able to get away w just changing vinyl (it’s got that faux wood look as has en-suite). My plan was to change bathroom (which is quite big) to bath w stand in shower so it has appeal of two showers, change dated sink etc. The tradesperson is reputable and very busy. I really do have to decide whether to stay or go. At moment, I’m a bit embarrassed at state of house. Carpets need replacing in several rooms and I thought this could add some attraction since garden is small. It does have two parking spots though. Because I don’t have friends to run this by (deafness - speech impairment) your replies have helped me so much. Just getting some/any feedback has helped my state of mind. Thanks - any one else who has ideas/opinions, would be welcomed xx

What's the market like in your area - are properties like yours easy to find? Would yours be at the lower end of the price band? Have you contacted an agent to get a valuation & see if they have people on the books looking for your type of property?
These would all affect my answer.

We have just sold a house which needed a huge amount of TLC but because of the price and type of property it was a first time buyers dream & we accepted an offer in 2 days that went to completion.

I think I'd also be wary of spending money changing showers to baths etc. as you can't predict what the new owner would want. Only make expensive changes if you intend to stay.

I definitely wouldn't change the carpets. You're either a carpet person, or you're not, and lots of potential buyers may prefer hard flooring.

One of the reasons I discounted a house once was as it had newly fitted grey carpets throughout, including in the dining area (I have small children!). I knew I could change this, but also knew I would have been paying a premium as the house was 'done'.

I'd definitely get an agent round and see what they suggest. When I sold my late dad's house, they were all adamant I shouldn't do any work. The house was very dated, but clean and perfectly liveable. It sold to the first viewer. Obviously it will be dependant on area, demand etc, but a good agent will understand this.