making two bedrooms into one w/o decreasing value?

10 years ago

Hi, I am considering buying a 1400 sq ft house in a very desirable neighborhood. They are older ranches that usually sell by word of mouth, not listed with a realtor. I want this to by my retirement home and plan on living there for the next 30 years. For my daughter and I ,it would be best to make take out a wall between the two smallest bedrooms and make it into a master suite..adding a walk in closet and master bath. This would make the house a 2 bedroom versus three in a neighbhorhood where all the houses have 3 beds. I know for resale value/appraisal value this will most likely decrease the value. Does anyone have any creative ideas of how I could do this and still have one big room but creatively be able to consider it 2/turn it into two easily or for appraisal? I have considered the following: 1. leaving a teen tiny room with a window and calling it the thirld bedroom (do they have to be a certain size to qualify? 2. Keeping both doors to each room, knocking out the wall and adding a slliding wall/partition. That I only close when it's appraisall time (stragely.. the third bedroom has such a sliding wall that seperates it from the living room) I am NOT concerned about selling the place, should i have to. It will sell even as 2 bedrooms. These houses go mostly to single elderly folks who would love the master suite. I am concerned about appriasal, as I will be rolling approx 80k of rennovation work into my mortgage (through a credit union) and need the house to appriase out for as much as I put into it. Anyone have any ideas as to how I can get my big master and not lose the third bedroom?

Featured Answer

weedyacres

10 years ago

I was confused at first like the other posters about why you cared about the appraisal if it was before you did the work, but then re-read your post and at the end you explained you want to finance the remodel.

That said, if you're going to change the 3rd bedroom into a bathroom plus walk-in closet, I can't envision how in the world you could "pretend" that's a bedroom as well. There's not enough room, Presumably this is an older house, in which case it's probably got small bedrooms to start with.

There will be added value from having a second bathroom. Perhaps that would offset the lost value from a bedroom. I'd call an appraiser or two and run your plan by them. But rarely do any improvements return (or appraise for) what they cost you to do. I seriously doubt that your changes would increase the value $80K unless this is a $2 million house or something.

While you should certainly make the changes that will make the home more livable for you, you should probably save up some more cash and pay for the remodel that way. Or make a bigger down payment and/or pay down the principal faster and create equity that you can borrow down the road.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (16)

kirkhall
10 years ago
In some states, there is a mandatory minimum for bedrooms. In my state, that is 100 sq ft, though houses older than when that minimum went into effect are grandfathered in. I am not sure how that would affect a "remodeled" home.

I think you need to be careful about expecting to get "all you put into it" in appraisal on the refinance. That is HIGHLY unlikely, even if you do it all DIY, but especially if you are moving from 3bed to 2 bed homes. You need to see if there are any other 2 bed homes in your local area, and see what they sell for. That will give you an idea to what kind of "hit" you'll take by removing the wall.

I don't think you can do a curtain wall/removable wall.

You *could* maybe put up a temporary wall, finish it all nice so it looks good, get your appraisal, then remove it. But, that is sort of cheating the system.
GreenDesigns
10 years ago
You need to plan on a master addition if you want a master suite. Doing what you plan will greatly adversely affect the value and appeal of the home. An addition will add value, though not as much value as it will cost to add.
Related Discussions
Advise: Buying w/o An Agent But the Sellers Are Agents
Q
Comments (10)
teelag, you are thinking exactly what I'm thinking about the market trend in CA whether it's in No. or S. CA. I don't think these owners are in any hurry to sell even though they are "AGENTS", they are posing such a unrealistic expectation to the price of their dear home. They also commented about spending $300K on upgrades but just like most people believe that most of the time you upgrade the house because you want to enjoy the upgrades that bring to you personally. If they eventually add value to the house, that's great. That's a bonus. But we shouldn't expect that any buyer will gladly agree to reimburse all the $ the owner spent on the things they may not even care for as much. I'm pretty knowledgable and confident on the buying and selling RE in general so I am not afraid of representing myself. I just don't like to face this particular situation when the agents are selling their own home and they're not showing the honest, integrity and ... As most people think that the worse thing I'd get is a No from the owners/agents with my look-like low-ball but realistic offer. Sure, the only thing I don't have is the same access to the current market data as an agent. I'm sure if I want, I can pay to get that kind of data. If these owners are half knowlegable agents, they should have known how bad it can be to set a high price when selling a home. But I just really don't understand these people, maybe they just simply want to test the water like anybody else to see if any fool would want to pay a high price to get the home.
...See More
Front Loader w/o pedestal- XPOST
Q
Comments (22)
I too am one of those crazy non-pedastal front loader owners. They were expensive, so I always figured that someday I would get them when I had extra cash. Also, my kiddos were little, 2 & newborn when I got them, eventually followed by a 3rd, so storing chemicals within their reach didn't seem like a good idea. I've had mine for 9 years now and the kids are no longer a worry, but honestly other than raising the height, I couldn't see the point of the storage down below. Talk about stooping! I much prefer having my laundry stuff higher up at a level I can easily reach. I'm 2.5 years into our sorta DIY kitchen, but I have plans to eventually stack mine too rather than build a counter (someday). My laundry room is not spacious. In fact, with no windows and a single depressing light overhead, it's pretty dark. I usually end up folding upstairs in our loft area where I can watch TV. It seems I rarely ever get to watch anyway (3 kids remember), so doing laundry is a good excuse. Plus the bedrooms are all up there too.
...See More
Value of a walk in pantry w/appliances
Q
Comments (27)
We have a walk in pantry in our home that's under construction. It's fully interior, with no side on an exterior wall. It will also be the home for my kegerator, ironically. It also has a large counter-level shelf for many of the infrequently used appliances (bread machine, stand mixer, air fryer, blender, etc) In our current house the back of the reach-in pantry is the rear wall of our garage. The heat transfer is noticeable in summertime for sure. Our new home is in a much more rural area, the closest true grocery store is a 15 minute drive, so my wife needs space for storing groceries from a big restocking trip.
...See More
Advice please ... will an external laundry decrease our house value?
Q
Comments (16)
There are several rooms on this plan that raise my eyebrows so I definitely agree you should be asking local real estate experts. When you said location is Melbourne, I, being in US, assumed you meant Florida. I know nothing of Australian housing norms. I too am trying to place the WIP - is it the nook across from refrigerator? Rumpus room? Is that like a casual family gathering room? Besides your outdoor laundry which sounds primitive to my US mind, I have issue with 2nd bath so far from the 2 bedrooms. The en-suite bath is so much closer. Can that 2nd bathroom be moved to opposite wall of Living room & be reconfigured or enlarged a bit to put at least A stacking washer / dryer inside that bath? You’d gain advantage of both 2nd bath being closer to 2 bedrooms & laundry area close to bedrooms where the clean clothing goes after wash. And, you’d have an inside laundry & not use any space in your alfresco room. My proposed location is still convenient for guests to use that 2nd bath as it’s close to dining & living rooms but just on opposite wall. The rumpus room would be same size as shown on plan. Living room would be offset from dining area since it would move into space where you now have 2nd bath to make up for space lost with bathroom being moved to opposite wall.
...See More
User
10 years ago
I sometimes chuckle at folks who insist resale value trumps all.

If you are going to live in the house for 30 years, do it like you want it.

Wife and I bought an older house that had a low sale value(repossed to start) because it has tiny bedrooms and too many walls(no open concept).

We like it enough to not care. It is our Retire/Expire house. The last time I leave will hopefully be in a body bag.

You do need to check with the local zoning and codes office about the proposal. Here in Kansas City, taxes are based partially on the number of bedrooms---as an indicator of the number of people living in the structure.

And get an estimate of the change in value(if any) for the credit union.
aggierose
10 years ago
In my state, a room can not be counted as a bedroom unless it has a window as well as a closet. Make sure you check into that as well. Also, typically, appraisers only take off around $2,000 (give or take) for a bedroom. For example, If 2 houses are identical in every way in regards to location, square footage, number of baths, condition, etc, but one has 4 bedrooms and one has 3, then the appraiser will adjust the price by approx 2K. Again, please keep in mind that this is an approx. number and I can only vouch for my area. (I've been a realtor for 10 years so I've seen this often). Appraisers in your area may do things very differently. You could also look up several appraisal companies. Call one of them and speak directly to one of their appraisers. Explain your situation and ask how much value they would deduct from your house if it only had 2 bedrooms. They will probably give you a lot of helpful info. Good luck!
debrak2008
10 years ago
I'm a little confused. Would not the house be appraised before you buy it? When it is still a three bedroom? After that do what you want. If this is your retirement home then why would you care what it would sell for in the future? Sorry if I'm making assumptions but at that point would you not either be in a care facility or have passed on?

You said yourself these homes are typically sold to elderly who would love the changes you would make.
debrak2008
10 years ago
I'm a little confused. Would not the house be appraised before you buy it? When it is still a three bedroom? After that do what you want. If this is your retirement home then why would you care what it would sell for in the future? Sorry if I'm making assumptions but at that point would you not either be in a care facility or have passed on?

You said yourself these homes are typically sold to elderly who would love the changes you would make.
rwiegand
10 years ago
You're worried about what the house will appraise for 30 years from now when you may well no longer know or care what happens to it? Really??

The changes you propose will make the house more valuable to a lot of people, not just you. Make yourself a nice place to live and enjoy it. If the side effect is lower real estate taxes for the next 30 years enjoy that too!
live_wire_oak
10 years ago
Taking a home from a 3 to a 2 bedroom is a significant bigger hit than 2K almost anywhere in the country. A 2K hit might be applicable if the home was under 50K in an economically depressed area. Any place else, you're looking at a much bigger chunk of change. Here, in a low cost area, that would average around 30K.

The bank who issues the mortgage on a 3 bedroom house does so based on the value of a 3 bedroom. Altering it to decrease the value while they still hold the mortgage would be frowned on. It would be the same if you wanted to demolish part of the house. They could call the mortgage due if they desired to do so.
annkh_nd
10 years ago
I'm not sure I understand the problem WRT the appraisal.

The house is appraised before you buy it - certainly before you do anything to it. You get as much cash out as you can with the appraisal you get. This is what you have available for the remodel.

The house won't be appraised again until you sell or refinance. Are you thinking that you will refinance after the renovations are complete? That seems like an expensive proposition - you'll be paying closing costs twice in a relatively short time.
aidan_m
10 years ago
Is the house currently a 3Bed 1Bath?

If so, making it into a 2/2 with a master bath would likely increase the value of the home. A bathroom costs more to build than a bedroom, whether you are adding new construction or remodelling within an existing space.

I think 2 bathrooms is a necessity. I'd rather give up a spare place to sleep and have a spare bathroom.
User
10 years ago
Plain and simple: this isn't the house for you if you have to try to do some workaround to make it work and have to worry about if the bank will approve of your plans. Buy another house.
kitasei
10 years ago
I'm curious what the property tax ramifications might be. Can you ask your assessor if your house can re-assessed (lowered) if it's two bedrooms only?
fourten1j
10 years ago
A 3bdrm 1400sqft house is not necessarily worth less than a 2bdrm 1400sqft house.

But 30 years? Just do what you want to do. When you (or your heirs) sell it, selling price will be more accurately calculated by price per square foot than by how many bedrooms it has.
southernstitcher
10 years ago
A 3 BR 1400 sq ft home sounds like tiny bedrooms anyway. 30 years from now, there will be someone who would appreciate the larger bedrooms, even if there is only 2 of them.
I know several empty nesters who have wanted to do the same thing so they could have a really large home office or craft/sewing room!
azmom
10 years ago
It seems that you expect the renovation spending would increase your house value dollar to dollar (100%), so that you could fold the expense into new mortgage when you refinance. is it realistic?

making two bedrooms into one w/o decreasing value?

weedyacres

Comments (16)

kirkhall

GreenDesigns

Related Discussions

User

aggierose

debrak2008

debrak2008

rwiegand

live_wire_oak

annkh_nd

aidan_m

User

kitasei

fourten1j

southernstitcher

azmom

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US