Check with your local codes office. Locally, the closet has to be permanent, built into the wall.

maybe for your purposes it would. but probably not to a realtor/buyer.

Right about the codes issue. For this to be a legal bedroom, you may need a window big enough and low enough for fire escape. Also, you may need the built in closet.

But, for your own "temporary" use, the standup closet will work - I have seen it used in such a way. Just make sure the closet is not a death trap in case of fire (for your own safety). i.e. don't make a bedroom out of a room with one door and no window.

Around here, the rules are a certain amount of square footage (80 square feet comes to mind, but I'm not sure) and a "legal" window (closet not required). You could convert, but the bedroom will be considered "non-conforming" and will not appear as a bedroom on a real-estate listing. Definitely check your local code.

It depends on how old your house is. Much older homes do not have closets in bedrooms but if that is normal and customary you can count the room as a bedroom if there is market acceptance.

So what defines a bedroom? According to the International Residential Code (IRC) a bedroom must have two means of egress like a window and a door. A second door will do, but it must open to the outside. The window must have a minimum opening area of 5.7 sq. feet, a minimum opening height of 24 inches and a minimum opening width of 20 inches. The maximum distance between the finished floor and the finished window sill is 44 inches, but a recent change states that in a new home there must be a minimum distance between the finished floor of the room and the window sill of 24 inches to prevent children from falling out of an open window. Note that whether the second means of egress is a window or a door, it must be operable from the inside without the use of keys, tools or special knowledge.

In the real estate world, a space can be considered a bedroom if it has a door that can be closed, a window and a closet. The closet requirement is not covered in the IRC and is instead a bedroom feature more related to comfort and livability than safety.

With that said it is fairly inexpensive to add a built in closet. Here is a cut away view of a closet and a link with instructions. It "SHOULD" be a weekend job and fairly inexpensive.

{{!gwi}}

Here is a link that might be useful: how to frame a closet