Why do estate agents keep listing any spare room as a bedroom?

[Kisbsikf]

We’ve had our eye on this house lately, but it’s listed as a 4-bed… the thing is, one of those “bedrooms” is actually downstairs! To me it feels way more like a playroom or office than an actual bedroom.

Maybe I’m being a bit fussy, but it really feels more like a 3-bed that’s been dressed up as a 4-bed to get a few extra quid.

4 bedroom detached house for sale in High Street, Bristol, BS39 6HU, BS39

I'm a carer too, and totally agree. The majority of my clients have moved downstairs to use one of the reception rooms as a bedroom. In some cases, even the only reception room is used as a bedroom.

To have an en-suite attached would be seen as a huge plus.

As a disabled person, I disagree. I'm spending a lot of money to put in a downstairs bedroom and bathroom, just as the house in the OP has a proper downstairs bedroom and bathroom. There's already an additional living and dining space, and a separate home office/playroom/snug.

Its not a proper bedroom its a room of the living room.

For the argument of disability it looks far too small for someone with serious mobility issues too, no way you would get a bed in and get my mams wheelchair around it. Then you have that terrible door swing into the room and god help you if you need a bed lift system and that bathroom is not accessible friendly.

It absolutely has not been designed for disabled people its just a random downstairs room. Your post however proves my point exactly though, as you said YOU are spending money to adapt YOUR home to YOUR needs. You aren't buying a pre-adapted so marketed 'disabled' future proof room built to someone else's needs even though as many say here 'downstairs' rooms listed as bedrooms are annoyingly common on rightmove now.

I added a downstairs bathroom to my house, it doesn't make the 2nd living space a bedroom just because it has a bathroom. You can add downstairs bathrooms anywhere, they are still just that. An 'en suite' is a modern fashion thing (that will go out of style the same way sinks in bedrooms did) and not remotely what 'makes a bedroom'.

Why wouldn't bedroom 4 not be a bedroom?

What annoys me when house hunting is the dining room being classed as a bedroom.

A downstairs bedroom with an en suite has appeal to many people. And it has probably been used as a bedroom previously.
I don't think it's a problem as people will look at the floorplan before deciding whether to view it.

Would love you to back up this stat that in 90% of the world this is normal.

Because it absolutely is not common for 2 story houses to have bedrooms direct off living spaces. Its not even common in flats or bungalows.

90% was a ridiculous number to pull out your ass.

I agree with your point in general, it is very annoying to look at listing for a 4 bed and it's just a 3 bed without a dining room.

But that particular house clearly has a purpose built downstairs bedroom and 3 additional reception rooms. It's a 4 bedroom house.

That is strange. I live in England and know several people with downstairs bedrooms. It's not unusual and suits some people. We are looking to move house in the next few years and one of our must haves is a house with either a downstairs bedroom or a room that can be used as a downstairs bedroom.

In many countries it's very common to have a bedroom/bedrooms on the ground floor.

We have a downstairs bedroom off the utility room and downstairs loo - the previous owners built it and used as an office. It’s perfect for my late teenage Dd - she can come in and out of the back door at all hours with her mates etc and it doesn’t wake us up as it’s at the opposite end of the house to us. It’s brilliant. When I had the house valued a couple of years ago the agent said it was a great selling point for a lot of people - teenagers, adult kids at home, elderly parents etc. lots of people find downstairs bedrooms really useful. Don’t see the problem at all.

We are currently selling a house with 3 bedrooms upstairs and a fourth downstairs, i am normally of the opinion that a downstairs room can't be classed a bedroom but the difference to me is that ours has its own ensuite with level access shower and is accessible off a corridor not off any of the downstairs living spaces. It is also the largest out of all the bedrooms could easily fit a couch and double bed/wardrobe etc and access is easy from the front door so is ideal for elderly relatives living with you. We have also found it ideal for a teen who games and doesn't disturb us in bed.

We have the exact same set up for our son.

It’s the reason we chose this house out of all the other houses we saw with all 4 bedrooms upstairs. He would have been waking up my younger two coming up and down at all hours from work. He can have his mates over late too and we don’t hear them in there. It’s a converted garage, so he’s got room in there for a sofa as well.

One of the reasons I want an end to blocks of flats with ground floor commercial property (where there is plenty empty shops etc that could be used) is so that downstairs rooms are available that can be used as a bedroom.

However, if we regulated and licensed estate agents, then there could be a legal definition of what can be advertised as a bedroom. Estate agents exaggerate to lie because they get away with it.

I doubt most of the people who know me would know we have a downstairs bedroom - even if you’d been to my house you wouldn’t necessarily be aware as we’d keep that door shut.

As someone looking for a house currently - it is annoying when 3 beds are listed as 3. They should be clearly labeled as having 3/4 bedrooms or a downstairs 4th bedroom. Bungalows are the worst - when they call them 3 bedrooms but there is just a kitchen and 1 reception room as additional rooms.

However, this house does look to have a lot of downstairs space and separate reception rooms and a cloak room, so I'd expect to pay part way between the cost of a 3 bed and a proper 4 bed. for me that would be a would be a useful office/guest room for when older parents come to stay.

I'm not overly keen on the layout of the house though. It's strange they put the kitchen at the front. what they are calling the dining room is clearly the living room as it has a fireplace in it. What they are calling the living room looks soulless - and you have to go through the dining room to get to the living room and then through the living room to get to the so-called 4th bedroom. I'd need to change the layout!

I agree. Its like they did the extension and didn't know what to do with that spare room so listed it as a bedroom and put a tiny toilet/shower in there but I seen the previous pictures before they emptied it and re-did the pictures and there wasn't a bed in there either.

we had this argument a few months ago.

I don't understand how people can be so adamant that only upstairs rooms can ever be bedrooms. How do you reconcile that with bungalows/caravans/ground floor flats etc?

Any individual room that isn't specifically designated by permanent fixtures (i.e. bathroom, kitchen) can be deemed a bedroom. Many people might actively prefer a downstairs bedroom for whatever reason.

It's bedroom.

I find it annoying when bungalows are listed as say two bedroomed, when one is clearly a reception room, because the window is actually patio doors which are the only access to the rear garden. That does feel like taking the piss imo. It's only mildly annoying though.

I don't mind a spare room being designated a bedroom otherwise, as it could be used for that. It does - in my mind - have to be genuinely spare though, and not the dining room or other reception room. So it could equally be a playroom, a music room or a study/office.

As long as it's big enough to contain a single bed and has a decent opening window, why not?

They may not have had a bed in it, but it's obviously a decent sized single bedroom with an ensuite. It is not compulsory to use it as such.
That's not a location that anyone would decide to put a bathroom just because they can't think of anything better to do with the space - a mighty expensive whim that would be.

Lovely house

I can't see the argument here at all. The house has 3 reception rooms and a kitchen and this room has an en suite, so what else would it be if not a ground floor bedroom? If it's not a layout that works for you, don't buy the house, but it doesn't make it NOT a bedroom.

It's also a bit pointless for a lot of people too, when we were viewing houses in 2023, my partner and I are not elderly or have kids and we went to see a house of interest only to find that the downstairs was broken up into that many rooms - living room, dining room, kitchen, downstairs bedroom, office and it was small rooms that would be wasted space rather than having a few spacious rooms. It'll narrow the market is the point I suppose.

Yes! The small living room is then classed as a living dining room, with no space for a table.

The exception is if a property is large, a downstairs bedroom should be listed and is advantageous for anyone with mobility issues.

Estate agents even list large cupboards/ dressing rooms as bedrooms. Room for a single bed but nothing else.

For these reasons I wouldn't use number of bedrooms as a criteria if searching online for properties. Sqm is more important as well as the obvious location.

4 bedrooms could actually put off some buyers as they are looking for a spacious 2 bed with extra living room or study.