Help with layout for rental

[Peonies007]

Hi all,

we were planning to sell but nothing is shifting where we live (SE home county), so we would like to rent out for a year or two, but possibly permanently if move goes well.
Current kitchen is due an upgrade and we were wondering if it would make sense to move it to the back, so have large kitchen/diner with office/playroom to the side and living room in front?
The living room might then be too small though?
Kitchen is sufficient as it is (2 adults and 3 kids living here) BUT the table is more breakfast bar, so what you would call 'breakfast kitchen'.
We are minimalists, so we don't have that much stuff, hence asking what do people normally expect for 4 bed house? (Upstairs is 4 beds and 2 baths).
We don't want to lose hallway, but could make current kitchen wider by about 60cm (so it would be 3.2x3.2m).
What would appeal to most renters?

*note we can't move very structural walls highlighted red. We have previously taken the wall down between living and playroom but put it back up as it had to have 'nibs' and it looked awful.
Wall between kitchen and living room is non structural (stud).

thanks!

Honestly for the sake of gaining 60cm, I wouldn't spend the money. Especially if you may not end up returning, I'm not sure where you are but in my area the rental market is scarce, someone will rent it as it is and be glad of it

Thanks.
So, just refurb the kitchen as is?

I'm presuming the green wall isn't there yet?
Would a kitchen refurb removing the breakfast bar and having space for a small table instead work?
If it's a family house then having a table would be better than a breakfast bar in my opinion

Hi,

green wall isn't there. The kitchen has a table but really can only sit 3, rather than 4 or 5. I was thinking maybe reverse kitchen to U shape and have table next to window as one of the options. Or one of those benches in L shape.

I would always want a larger kitchen diner at the back of a house and a smaller living room.

Thanks.
I'm in two minds about it. We only ever cook in the kitchen and have quick dinners (kids SEN and don't do family sit down things).
Open plan worked well whilst they were small but we hated the dishwasher noise whilst watching TV so we put wall back up.
I think kitchen would work better at the back though because garden access etc.
Isn't what most people now want? Back kitchen/diner/sofa area plus separate utility and living room?
Hate the decision making!

The app won't let me add a photo but I'd probably do this if possible:
Split the living room before the sliding doors.
Make the office and rest of living room the kitchen
Move the office/playroom to current kitchen

Here you go

Thanks. Thought of that too and it would make perfect sense except those nibs are there and we can't move them. I guess they could be incorporated into design somehow though.

I'm not sure what you mean by nibs?

Ah like a wall/column? Yes I reckon you could incorporate them.

That layout is what would work best for my family but everyone is different.

When you remove wall in the external wall, to support the structure you have to have c 40cm wall left where the wall was. Looks like this (off google, not mine)..

Yes, like a column. The office is N facing and is the darkest part of the house, so partially why I'm hesitant. It will also still leave living room only the same width as current kitchen. We had architect design another solution but despite him saying the nibs can be removed, they couldn't 🤷‍♀️ He basically made office the living room but moved the wall so it lines up with stairs (sliding doors were moved)

Rent it 'as is' and save the money to tidy it up after your tenants leave and you want to sell. People will acceless than perfect rentals as it's only temporary

More tax efficient doing some work now as replacement kitchen can be claimed against the 'profit' for the year (not improvement but direct replacement of style).

If you can claim for 'replacement' before you have tenants in, can't you do the same in the year the tenants leave?

Because you then don't have tenants in. Tax rule.

Ah, I must have misunderstood, it sounded like you were doing the work while you lived in it / before you put it on the rental market. I'm still getting my head around the rules and have probably missed a few opportunities to minimise the tax we pay, I thought pre-letting costs were generally capital expenditure, I also thought any layout changes were capital rather 'replacements'.

I think a larger social kitchen with garden access is optimal but I doubt it would be worth doing in a property you plan to rent / sell (unless you have builders in the family who would do it cheaply!)

Hi, the plan is to do the work before first tenant move in but after we have moved out. I had quotes and it would cost £30k to swap. Plumbing etc is nearby already.
You can claim for improvements only against tax (replacement kitchen/bathroom, repaint, boiler etc) but not things like extensions - this would be deductible against CGT.
it all depends if you really swapping because kitchen is tired vs I don't like it.