Don't do anything in your hot market. The buyers may well want to do other upgrades as well.

Here's a $1.2 million dollar house in San Francisco.

Thanks sushipup, now I just need to move my house to SF :) I'm in the south bay, prices are crazy, but not that crazy. And I have been told don't do anything, just give me the listing!

I know I need to pick an agent soon. The one I really like worked with us when we bought the house 10 years ago, but he is on the other side of valley, not local, and will probably not negotiate fees.

If you want to go a less expensive route then removing tub (which I would not do, claw foot tubs are wonderful), and putting in a stand alone shower, put in a claw foot tub shower. The metal rods come in oval, round, or rectangle shapes and are hung from the ceiling over the tub. Add decorative shower curtains and call it a day. We have 2 claw foot tubs in our home. One in the downstairs hall bath. We use that just as a tub. The other is upstairs in the back bath. A tub/shower combo. The bath upstairs in the front has just a shower. With 4 bedrooms and 3 baths, I think that you may be selling families short. Now a days kids want their own bedrooms. No more sharing a room. Good luck with selling your home! NancyLouise

nancylouise, thats pretty much the advice I have been getting about the tub. I have less than happy memories of showering in a claw foot tub with the curtain surround - there never seemed to be anyway to not have the curtain stick to me. But maybe thats just me….

And it is wonderful to bathe in.

Not sure what you mean by "very dated" - vintage bathrooms with claw tubs are actually quite fashionable these days - I always see pics of them in paint color pamphlets and in magazines. And the online house listings generally make a point of showing or mentioning the claw tub if there is one. Since there are 2 other showers in the house I think you've got all bases covered. I don't know if I'd bother with the shower attachment. The attraction after all is the luxury of sinking in up to your neck - as you already know the shower part isn't so great. You might want to ask over at the decorating forum for paint suggestions and how to jazz it up.

We're not far from you, just farther down 101. The market is great, take advantage of it before interest rates rise.

Thanks everyone,

By "very dated" I meant awkward - thats as kind as I can be. The best label I can come up with for this house style is contemporary mountain. But this bathroom was late 70's early 80's uber country, I couldn't see how it fit with the rest of the home. But after many many hours looking at design photos I think I can make it work visually, it just really doesn't seem very practical. But I guess practical isn't everything!

We have had 3 pre-1850's houses before, so I understood them in that context, it just took me a while to see that it a claw foot could also work in a more contemporary setting.

sushipup1 - I'm not terribly worried about the first round of interest rate hikes - maybe I should be - but when we bought in spring 2004 rates were on the rise and it seemed like houses were snapped up as fast as they were listed because buyers were trying to get in before the rates went higher. Anyway thats what I'm telling myself. Plus we are moving to the other side of the country and wanted to give DH time to settle into his new job before having to decide on a new place to live.

This is totally my bias, but if I were a guest in your house, I'd be going downstairs to use the shower and would prefer the guest bath to offer a tub and shower or combo.

Claw foot tubs are nice, but I wouldn't want to bathe a kid in one.

If your market is so hot, I'd let the new owners renovate it to their needs and likes. I don't know if it would apply in SF, but if it is a sticking point to potential buyers, you could offer credit.

You have two showers, so that's covered. I'd try to update the bathroom with new paint, streamline it a bit, i.e. remove some of the "ye olde country look", and really "style" it with nice bath accessories, art, flowers....

The big question hasn't been asked yet: Are the clawfoot tub and the bathroom surrounding it in good working condition?

If so, do nothing. You have a perfectly functioning tub and bathroom, and you cannot know whether they'll suit your potential buyer's personal taste or not. Don't jump into an expensive re-do guessing about whether or not it's going to be helpful in terms of resale.

On the other hand, if the tub is old, has cracks or other functional problems, make a change. If a buyer couldn't reasonably expect to come in and shower on his first evening in the house, then you ought to replace the tub ... and while either another tub or a shower would be okay, I'd lean towards going with a shower-over-installed-tub option. It'd be cheaper than another clawfoot, while giving the new buyer BOTH a tub and a shower.

And, for what it's worth, I just had my kids' tub ripped out /a same-sized walk-in shower installed last fall. The tub had some serious issues and needed to go. They LOVE it. I paid $2600 plus cost of tile. This is in the South, where things are pretty cheap.

Links to styling a bathroom with claw foot tub

If it is not in need of serious repair, I would not change it. Claw foot tubs are popular and it might be a plus.

I also would not change it. As a guest, I would not mind walking to the laundry room for a shower.

All I would see is the claw foot tub! LOL Don't change it :)