Still can’t read the dimensions put them into each room instead of along the wall on the exterior. The scale is useless for us to read and help.

Who did this redesign?

Can you post a larger floor plan as it is impossible to see the measurements.

To get to your living room you have to walk through your dining room and kitchen? And in that convoluted pathway? Not very inviting for guests!

And based on your table in the dining room, you don't have enough room. Look at the path past the dining table to get to the rear of the house.

How do you expect to vent your dryer if it's in an interior wall? (How is it vented now?) And how do you intend to sort laundry in that room that is obviously too small. What is it 4' wide? Talk about claustrophobic.

Is there a reason the entryway is one of the most spacious areas but the coat closet is past the dining room?

I would highly suggest you vet your kitchen before doing anything in the kitchen forum. This one is dysfunctional with the dishwasher in your prep space and not having enough prep space between your stove and your sink.

You'd be better off making one full bath downstairs that is shared by the office and the guests and use the additional space for better layout of the rooms.

And speaking of that one bath, what is that large closet in the bathroom for? And the narrow deep ones in the living room and the office?

Upstairs the shared bath with all the doors will be a nightmare. Get rid of the jack and jill and make it one entry from the hallway with one sink and a large vanity. This will make for a narrower bathroom and more space to the bedrooms which is a good thing. It will also get rid of the entry wasted space on the top right bedroom. In a small house, no space should be wasted!

I would figure out a way to have the master closet closer to the master bedroom so you're not constantly walking back and forth between the two.

And you walk into the master suite and your view is your bathroom? Then you have that wasted hallway again?

And you have the wasted hallway into the bedroom on the upper left?

Sorry but this is not well planned out. Are you working with a person of design talent? Meaning an interior designer or an architect?

Interesting history on your home. It seems you are making major bathroom changes such as moving toilets and sinks. It would cost much less to leave toilets in their original position and it seems that can be done if you need to rein in costs a bit, and still make the general changes you are looking for.

On the first floor, I prefer the guest bath off the hall as in the original, rather than off the dining room, for privacy of guests. ((Dinner party is awkward if a guest gets up to pee or more and all hear it :))) I do not see that as an increase in functionality, it is a negative and saves some costs changes walls and doors and sink plumbing. It also gives you a bigger office closet. You can still take out the entry closet, and make the new "office" with double doors, that has a private bath. But that does appear to be a coat closet, will you miss it? Just one glass french type door to the office could look nice. Closing the office off to the hall is good sound buffering from the living room area.

Laundry, I prefer side by side for folding space on top as I get things out of the dryer. This is of course personal preference and you may prefer stackable.

Upstairs, the master toilet is on the wall to the other bedroom. I think the bathroom layout could be made a little better and keep toilet where it was etc.

I like when a door is open and you can see directly out a window such as in the 2 upstairs baths. But the toilet door could obstruct the window if open. The upstairs guest bath also opens with a window view which I like. But it also has a direct toilet view which I prefer hidden. (Maybe I am a privacy freak about toilets lol)

With the jack and jill bath upstairs, made into a bathroom with access from the hall and one bedroom, I would consider making it a bath from the hall only between the rooms. It saves you all of the extra door space from both rooms and makes just one door into the bath. It allows for bigger closets in the 2 bedrooms. If the bathroom is shared by the 3 upstairs bedrooms, I see the door directly from the bathroom to the one bedroom a privacy issue for that room occupant rather than a plus.

Some of these comments are my personal preferences. So absolutely ignore them if they do not work for you.

lafdr

I love a creative use of what you are given. Very nice.

I did wonder about the living room bein so far removed from the front door. Maybe switch the living room and office. Looks like the office is doubling as a bedroom. Putting it in the back gives it more privacy for either an office or bedroom.

I second the idea idea to keep the second floor bathroom open to the hallway only. Easier to manage for everyone.

I like that that you kept some of the vintage sinks. Enjoy the process. Cool house. .

Big fat NO. Way awkward.

Agreed that the layout is awkward. Start by moving the laundry upstairs. It appears you would have enough space if you take from the hall closet and large walk-in closet. Also consider only one bath on the first level. Removing these parts of the first floor plan may allow you to open things up a bit more and improve the flow.

Also, what is your budget?

Understand the pressures of budget, but this poor layout will make it difficult to sell and likely hurt any reasonable resale value. It's clear flipping the office with the living room would be a start to many functionality improvements that can be made. Agree that you would have a significantly improved home if you hire an experienced architect or interior designer, and have a higher probability of realizing a better return for your investment. Good luck in your remodel!

I think it depends what your goal is. If you feel the need to keep some of the existing elements then you are stuck in several areas. But if you see this as keeping the shell and changing the layout more then I think it can be better.

I would find a way to make the kitchen/dining open to one another and eliminate or relocate the pantry.

The office would be open too and it would actually be the living room. The living room would now be an office at back of house.

I don’t have a problem with the laundry as it is in the same spot it currently is. Presumably it vents now.

Upstairs I would try and configure the master bath so it had the toilet in the original location just as a cost saving measure.

I think the bathroom between bedrooms should just be accessed from a hallway and not jack and Jill style.

For the kitchen, ditch the pantry and make that area part of the kitchen with cabinets and counters.

There are 3 closets on the first floor between the living room, office and office bath that are a waste of space. Those areas could be combined to a larger laundry room.

Get rid of the double door in to the office, replace with a single door and add a closet on the wall facing the front door.

However, if you are doing a total gut, could you put the kitchen where you have the living room, then have the living and dining rooms to the left side of the house? It would be nice if you could clear a center hall from the front door back to the stairs. Do you know what walls are load bearing?

Am I correct that you are reorganizing an historic building, and not necessarily gutting for a full remodel?

I love the start. Tweaks will help. Don’t listen to those who cannot give positive feedback.

What’s the budget for this “reimagine”? 200K? 400K? 900K?

And know that Auntthelma is always here to give positive feedback and always tells the OP's to not listen to those who might help you improve your design.

I would agree that the office and the living room should be swapped. That would also likely mean leaving the rear closet and sink rather than the one in front, so that the living room can be larger and the office smaller. If you moved the stacked laundry upstairs you could slide the powder bath back into that spot, allowing a wider cased opening between dining room and living room, as well as a coat closet in the foyer. Then you could remove the coat closet between dining and kitchen and instead either enlarge the pantry or hallway.

The upstairs bedrooms/bathroom look like a bit of a mess to me at the moment. I would streamline to a single hall bath shared the the three non-master bedrooms. See if you can get a more straightforward layout that way, with fewer twists and turns, short halls into bedrooms, etc..

CP, “Big fat NO.” Is not a way to improve a design. It’s mean. You will see it above. I’m hoping OP doesn’t leave because I love the idea of rearranging a home rather than demolishing it. Takes imagination. 💕

Well auntthelma, no one said to demolish the home. If they did, I missed it. However the redesign as the OP has it will not live well. The flow is bad. And the OP posted to get input. The OP is going to spend big bucks to redo the layout. Shouldn't she/he get it right so it lives well?

If you move the laundry upstairs, the current laundry room can become the pantry. The study door can be changed to a single door and a coat closet can be added back to the foyer. Then, it appears the entire kitchen/dining room can be one large open-concept room. I would adjust the rear window of the kitchen to allow for a run of cabinetry to end on that wall. The dining area could be used for both informal and formal dining and the dining table can be reoriented to allow for better traffic flow from front to back of house.

On the second floor, you have an excess of floor space in the master bathroom. I would eliminate the water closet and move the shower and toilet wall closer to the vanity. This will allow for a larger secondary bedroom with a wider closet. Most of your laundry is generated on the second floor, so moving it up there will be an efficient improvement to your plan.

Laundry location is personal. So many recommend it is upstairs but we purposely put it on main as I often fold in living area and we run the dryer in the evening when kids are trying to sleep. Just think about your lifestyle and where works for you and why.

True. My kids are almost all grown, so having a second floor laundry room made it easier to transition them all to doing their own laundry in middle school. Eventually, having little ones sleeping through a dryer running is less important than them running the dryer themselves. ;-)

I normally agree, A S, but in this case moving the laundry upstairs allows for much improved flow on the main level, and there's space for it upstairs.

All true. I guess just pointing out family needs differ. My kids do their laundry often but still sit on couch to fold.

That said it has the potential to make a big floor plan impact you are right. But if the OP is worried about funds I suspect there will need to be sacrifices

Oh wow. To the constructive comments, thank you. A couple responses..

1) Living Room Location: We toyed with the idea of putting this in the front. The idea with having it in the back is that it connects easily with the kitchen. Also, we may add a screened porch in the back down the road, which would tie the living room nicely to the backyard.

2) Downstairs full bathroom: If you take a look at the existing floor plan and if you can read my comments, you'll notice that this bathroom is remaining unchanged. We will upgrade it later if we're still living here so that it has a larger shower and a smaller closet. Again, this is what currently exists.

3) Laundry Room. We initially talked about moving it upstairs, but keeping it downstairs is a quick way to cut down significant construction costs. Also, I typically fold laundry in my living room.

4) Entry way size and powder bathroom: I floated the idea of removing the powder room to enlarge the laundry room. You would have to connect to the downstairs full bath through the living room...would love feedback on people's thoughts on that. However, there are considerations on how it affects resale by removing a bathroom. Also, I don't think it is that closet to the dining room, especially since there is a chase between the toilet and the hallway. If you need to poop, you can always go to the office toilet.

5) Pantry: My husband insists on a pantry. I need a mudroom (which is the open space adjacent to the kitchen by the back door). If you can find places for these two without moving the laundry room upstairs, I commend you.

6) Master Bath: I would like the toilet in a separate room, that's why I moved it. We're trying to keep the master bath in the relative same space without affecting the neighboring bedroom too much. Again, ideas welcome.

7) Jack and Jill Bathroom: Again, this is what currently exists. We're moving a sink and adding hallway access so that the bedroom next to the Master has toilet access. Down the road, the bedroom with the large (existing) sink will be renovated so it has its own bathroom.

The budget for this is $120k. We are trying to carefully balance the cost of the renovation and the value of the house, in case we have to move in the next 5 years for jobs, but we could also stay here for 20, who knows. I hired an architect and spent almost $3000 on a design that would have cost $250k to build. So here I am. Let me know if I missed any major issues people previously commented on.

Thank you again for your help and advice. I really appreciate it.

Sabrin the reality is that $120k is likely nowhere near enough for this project and that the architects plan and price is more realistic. I know that is hard to hear but it’s probably the truth. Can you share what the architect designed? Perhaps there are ways to lessen the costs on the plan a bit?

In my market, this would be a minimum $200k remodel. Before you go any further, think about the value of this remodel. While it can be tempting to try to get everything you want with a too-small budget, you may have to use poor quality materials and unqualified contractors to do it. And in the end, the resale value of your remodel will suffer for that and because you had to sacrifice improved layout options for an inadequate budget.

I suggest you speak to a realtor to assess your current home value and potential value of the new plan. You may find that moving is a better option than an extensive remodel that may not provide a ROI.

I suggest you rethink owning this property. Your budget is not sufficient for the large amount of changes that you want to make. You’d need to double the budget. Unless you want to DIY all of the labor, and that figure is for materials only?

Or you develop a long term ownership strategy that has you create a master plan that is done in phases, over several years, 100K at a time. That costs more in the end, but it is more affordable at each stage, rather than committing 400K all at once.

I think you can make some nice livable changes for 120k. I agree that some posters are negative without giving helpful feedback. Not moving toilets will save a lot. I have no issue with a private living room at the back of the house.

Here are some $$ simplifications:

Leave the laundry room as is, perhaps gets nicer doors if you do not like the ones you have. You can do French door type doors if you don't like the folding ones. KISS and change little-nothing there. If you want a stackable, you can do it in the existing space and use the other half for storage.

Take out the powder bath downstairs, it enlarges and squares the dining room. Consider leaving a wetbar/beverage area in the dining room since the sink is already plumbed. Take out and close over the toilet.

Take the downstairs Jack and Jill bath and make it one bathroom with a door to that back hall. It then serves as a powder room for guests and a guest bath if you have a guest staying in the office room. Consider keeping the door from the office to the back hall in addition to the glass door to the DR. Loops in a house often do get used :) This bigger bathroom also acts as the family bathroom for anyone in the living room. I would keep the shower in the same spot, but update to your tastes, it may rarely be used. You can make the door to that bathroom where the closet is now. There may be space for a closet, if required to call the office a bedroom in there somewhere, or use a freestanding armoire.

The extra sink closer to the living room could become a wetbar/beverage station or being capped off. Whichever extra sink location makes the most sense for the way you live and entertain. ? beverages for kids or coffee or tea station, or if anyone does hobbies a handwashing sink in whichever room is most likely to be used.

I can come up with ideas upstairs too.

To keep costs down, do not move major items like walls and plumbing whenever possible.

Keep trying til you find something that you like!

Obviously the home can be lived in as is, the goal is to make it easier and nicer for the way you will use it. That could be as simple as nice updates to existing everything with zero changes in walls or bathrooms.

lafdr

Or option 3 -- prioritize. I'm not a pro but have lived in and remodeled a few homes. I understand wrestling with the existing structure and limited resources. Maybe it's time to rethink the "wants" and "needs". What can you live with for the next ten years? What annoys you every single day? Is it the kitchen? The bathrooms? Is it the living level or the bedroom level? Are there rooms you can paint, replace flooring and call it good enough? Focus on what will make your home livable for your family, knowing it will still have quirks.

A final thought . . . I've had great success working directly with good contractors who were able to make practical suggestions for scaling back on my unaffordable plans. Talking to a realtor you trust can also help you decide how far to go. Good luck with your project.

How do you plan on using the space between the kitchen and the back door as a mudroom? It doesn’t look like there will be much storage there, just a chair?

There are some great questions on your previous posts, it would be helpful if that information was available,

The kitchen layout needs a bit of work. Not sure if theres enough space for an island with seating, having the dishwasher between the sink and the stove isn’t ideal, theres no landing zone when taking things in and out of the fridge.

We are trying to carefully balance the cost of the renovation and the value of the house

What you have to consider is that a low cost of renovation doesn't necessarily equal more value or return upon resale. You're not guaranteed a return just because you have X number of bedrooms and X number of bathrooms. An awkward layout or poor quality workmanship and materials can hurt your return just as much as a good layout can help it.

Do you need four bedrooms upstairs? You can convert the back bedroom of one pair to a master closet and dressing room and not move any walls or fixtures. Smallish master with a double vanity bathroom and giant dressing room.

Renovations are for people who enjoy renovations. A hobby. Most DIYers fall into that category. Or renovations are for those who want to enjoy the results for a long term. They want what they want, and are willing to pay for the results. They want to live in a home thst is more pleasant to them, and understand that that is a cost, not an investment.

Renovations with an eye towards “increasing market value”, I.e. flips, only work as non emotional arms lengths projects. You have to buy the property way lower than market value. As in, an ugly wallpapered granny house in a 500K neighborhood for 200K. Then the cap on expenses for cosmetic changes makes sense. Because it’s an “investment” and not your residence. And no flipper is as foolish as the ones on TV who move walls and plumbing. That’s affectatated drama. If the TV production company wasn’t paying the costs, and the hidden costs, you’d know that they are all losing money on those.

Get a handle on if this is a home, or an investment. It won’t be both. Your posts show the emotional attachment of a home is wanted. That doesn’t work when you also want to limit the economical investment and show “profit” at the end of your time in the home. Your wants are at cross purposes. All the while your needs can be met by living in the home mostly as is, with very little changes. It’s functional. To be mega functional and more of your want list, that requires more money than you want to spend.

Y’all need to argue this out, as I suspect it’s the husband watching too much HGTV fiction that is the driver here. It is not a documentary. It is manufactured drama that uses fake numbers and fake situations.

Hello Sabrin,

I like the overall ideas you have for the house. However, I could recommend having the laundry moved to the send floor hallway closet instead. It would be better to keep the first floor as open as possible, I would also removed the bathroom in the office and open up a archway to the living room, since it's not ideal to have to walk all the way through the kitchen to get to the living room space. I would also considering adding closet space in the foyer area, it will be more convenient for you and your family.

Good Luck on your renovation!

Live_wire_oak I can always appreciate a realist but there is such a thing as balancing improvements with the risk of your investment. Even if you’re planning to live somewhere forever, thing could change unexpectedly. And yes, I do have an emotional attachment because I live there and also because I am responsible for the mortgage and the renovation costs. Now I did not ask for cost advice...you were the one that started talking about it. But how could you anticipate costs when you don’t know where I live, how much I spent on the house, etc.? Your comments have been unhelpful and annoying to read.

Now I did not ask for cost advice...you were the one that started talking about it. But how could you anticipate costs when you don’t know where I live, how much I spent on the house, etc.?

I think I was the one that first asked your budget? Why? Because budget and design go hand in hand. A lot of design advice gets bandied about these boards with no clue to budget, which is backwards. Design for your budget. Do not design first and then try to squeeze it all into an inappropriate budget.

Sharing the general area where you live is extremely helpful and I'm always curious why people do not often want to reveal it. By sharing this information, you can get better cost estimates for your locale from people who live and work in your area. It may be difficult to hear, but wouldn't you rather understand the cost of your remodel before you invest too much into designing it?

Basic costs are basic costs. Unless you live somewhere that forces them to double. You cannot plan for the moon with Grayhound bus fare that won’t get you to Amarillo. That’s completely wasteful of yours and others time planning, and disrespectful to any contractor you might have come in to cost it out. Worse case is that you believe your budget will cover the fantasy scenario, and so you search out unlicensed handymen types who take advantage of your willful naïveté. That’s a quick way to ruin a house, a relationship, and your credit.

When you have a limited budget you research a lot more on the front end, before starting any planning. Start with standard average costs of well known projects that don’t include wholesale LEGO rearranging. Figure out how to not move anything. That’s much harder than taking pencils and creating something that can’t ever happen even at twice the budget price. Start real, and spend your time productively in the world where things cost far more than you dreamed.

https://www.remodeling.hw.net/cost-vs-value/2019/

I appreciate the candor and agree 100% on understanding costs. I am have other resources on that. My intention in posting on Houzz was to get design advice, and I greatly appreciate that.