I didn't mean to post this twice. It didn't show up, I didn't think I posted right, so I reposted. sorry.. Tammy

By controlling where the sitter is looking, you define the space. Put a sofa parallel to the TV wall, facing the TV, with a sofa table or low bookcase backed up to it to define the TV area. Define the fireplace chat area with a rug. A pair of loveseats, or a loveseat and two chairs, one slightly angled with its back to the doors and the other (or pair of chairs) matching with a nice couple of chairside tables would define the fireplace part. People sitting here should be facing each other, at a comfortable conversation distance. There will be the blank corners outside the fireplace conversation area. Good for a potted plant, maybe a small writing table in front of a window looking out ... a solitary activity. Maybe a bookcase And If you are having a big get-tpgether, just turn the sofa around so it's part of the conversation area.

Hi there, we live in a 4 bedroom house, but we don't have an "extra" room for guests or an office since we have three kids (with no room sharing options.) My husband is having knee surgery this summer, and he will likely need to sleep downstairs for a few weeks. In addition, we would love to carve out a room for guests/office use on a somewhat regular basis. Our first floor has 3-4 rooms. One (counts as 1-2) is an open kitchen/dining room area where we spend almost all of our time. Another is a formal dining room that currently can't flex due to the furniture we have in there. The final room is the space in question: it is a large living room that we almost never use. It currently has doors on two of the three doorways, and we could add a door on the third. We would love to maintain the "living room" feel to at least part of the space since it is sometimes helpful to have a hang out space that is away from the TV/kitchen. We also need to keep the piano on the current wall since it is the only interior wall. However, it would be great to change the floor plan so that we can incorporate a desk space and maybe also a daybed space for a guest. We are willing to budget for new furniture as our alternative is an expensive project of enclosing our screened-in porch. I am including photos and would love suggestions about how to set up this space to better suit our needs! We have never really "moved in" here, so I realize that it looks like a total mish mosh right now. :-) We are ready for a fully revamp! Thanks in advance! Sara

@Patricia Colwell I might be able to edit that doc a bit and add measurements if I can find them. @Flo Mangan My husband has a cousin who is a Builder/Developer/Contractor. I figured it would cost around $50,000 to $60,000, but he said more like $40,000 to $50,000. I believe the electricals were brought up to date in the 90's, but I do agree with some other areas. As far as the location for the residence, its not a perfect area. However, there are a lot of homes in the area being remodeled or renovated. We've had lots of offers from "wholesalers" wanting to buy, but after capital gains taxes we wont end up with very much. I feel we need to fix it up and rent it back out again or sell. @apple_pie_order Not sure about asbestos, but I don't believe there is lead paint. Our options are to just renovate the bathrooms and kitchen, paint and lay new flooring. Or we can remodel the bathrooms and kitchen (which I kinda want to do), paint and lay new flooring. No we don't have an appraisal at this time. @Rachel Zylstra We do have a current mortgage. We have lots of "wholesalers" contacting us about the house almost daily. At first we didn't know what their game was because we've never dealt with it before. After asking questions of people knowledgeable about it, we found out what they do. With what they are offering (or what my hubby wants to offer), its enough to pay off the mortgage and gives us a little bit of money after capital gains taxes. I don't think its enough to be profit though. If it is, it wont be much profit. I'll contact a local agent. Thanks!