Definitely remove the wallpaper, it's a lot of work but well worth the effort. I'm a person that loves my bathtub in the master bath, so personally I wouldn't want just a shower in the master bath. I think trends are changing where a shower alone in the master is acceptable, but I personally think you limit your "buying pool" to those that like only a shower. I've never heard of someone not buying a home because it has a tub and shower in the master, but I have heard of buyers passing on a home with a shower only in the master bath.

DBF (an RE agent) deals w/ buyers all the time whose lists of must haves include a tub in the master - some really nice homes are often scratched off the potentials list just because of a tub - it's a shame but true. With so many to choose from I guess it's not worth the hassle of putting one in yourself, etc. This could definitely be an area specific thing but wanted to share our experiences.

Removing the wall paper is a great idea.

There are a few schools of thought on the tub s. walk-in shower issue and it has been discussed many times here and in the bathrooms forum.

I think the general preference -- space and budget allowing -- is for a separate tub and decent-sized (preferably double) walk-in shower in a master bathroom. Given a choice between a tub/shower combination (i.e. a showerhead in a tub with either a shower curtain or a sliding glass door) and a walk-in shower, most people (except frequent soakers like the above poster) would opt for the walk-in shower (assuming there is a tub elsewhere in the house for bathing children or the occasional soak). Getting rid of wallpaper is usually plus.

You have a tub so you should be fine. We have five bathrooms, one with a soaking tub & a walk in shower, one with a walk in shower (master), one with a tub/shower combo and two half baths. As long as you do have a tub offered in one of your bathrooms, you should be fine.

Definitely take down the wallpaper. It is a $#@! but it will go a long way towards updating and depersonalizing your house. Prospective buyers will not be mentally deducting time and money from their offer to do the job themselves.

I disagree - these days everyone's bombarded by the need for a tub like the Romans had! Yes they all want walkin showers, but they also want an ensuite to have a tub (pref. with built-in candle-holders :-) so the lady of the house can feel like Cleopatra. Having a tub incidentally somewhere else in the house is not enough.

I love lucy's comment about Cleopatra. I have done a lot of reading and changes to the master bath do make a good return. I definitely agree with those that suggest keeping the tub. If it's older and looks it age, you can try having it refinished. I had that done. It's great. It makes it nice and new looking. And removing wall paper is a great idea, although I have never liked wall paper (may bias my opinion there)

Are you planning to sell soon? If so, I would just fix things in the bathrooms that might look worn out like faucets, and external shower hardware. The wallpaper will be a great project too. I donÂt think that any major improvements will improve your homeÂs value more than the amount of money that you put into them (70% is really good), especially if you have to pay someone to do it or do a less than quality job.

If youÂre not selling very soon then I think you should improve the bath however you like so you can enjoy it. If you have the common shower/tub combo in there I think that the walk in shower would be more useful - they have came up with a lot neat stuff to put in one. Coming up with the extra room for a separate spa tub in there and moving around walls for a walk-in closet and a sitting area would be nice too though :).

Another thing that you might have on your list (or is already done) is updating your HVAC system. Also (if selling) make sure that the roof has a number of years (5?) left in it.

It depends on where you are located and what comparable houses have in the master.

Around these parts, less than a third of houses even have master baths, and a large soaking tub is considered to be an extreme luxury item. Only the highest-end homes have both a soaking tub and a walk-in shower in the masters, so I would not see a shower-only master bath as a minus. I would actually prefer a nice walk-in shower over a shower in a tub, and I think that most people in my area would, too.

Look at comparable houses for your cue before you convert your tub to a shower.

I believe it depends on the space also. We redid our master bath and took out the tub and made it a enclosed two person tub. The old shower stall (which was extremely small) was turned into a nice linen closet versus the teeny tiny one in the Master bedroom. We now have a much larger master bath, a nicer linen closet and a super looking bathroom.