Is this in a planned development where you have to use one of the developer’s plans?

It is not planned development house is built. We are wondering if there is a way to reconfigure this layout to fit what we are looking for or if it’s too much of a stretch we would look for different house. Market is tight in NJ right now no inventory and this house is grey location

I don't understand why you can't just use the 15x11 bedroom? Seems like an enormous waste of money when everything you just listed is already there.

I guess first how many bedrooms do you need? I can see ways to reconfigure but to be honest the simple plan would be to give up the balcony on the left side for a great walk in closet . The rest seems pretty normal layout to me for a family maybe the youngest child in the bedroom near the master. I think we need more info to really help. Reconfiguring stair cases involves many things that sometimes people are not aware of since that change affects the min floor and often not in a good way. I think and change that involves that stircase is going to need an architect for sure. I think the main floor bedroom is perfect for guests and I would still have all my bedrooms on the same floor

Is it possible to bump bathroom in 15x11 room back to create larger master and build walk in closet and then the small room 12x9 extend out to get larger and just have 3 total rooms and 2 bath

You’d have to move plumbing, which is expensive. And I’m sure the upstairs plumbing is tied into the downstairs plumbing. Where are you going to “extend” the smaller bedroom to? I think you should probably just keep looking. I don’t think you have any clue how expensive this would be.

It’s a very good location so want to see if this could work. What kind of cost are you thinking for moving plumbing 10,20,50k?

Honestly best to just live in the place as is for now. You can use the upstairs master as yours and use the bottom right bedroom as your dressing room (think inexpensive closet system there). This way you are connected to your little ones that use the upper 2 bedrooms. If you live here long term you will more than likely like to use the downstairs master as your own separate space once the kids are independent.

I know it seems like a long time, but it's an amazingly short time that you'll want or need to be upstairs. You have an attached bath now, you have other closets upstairs, and you can still use your lovely master suite for its closet and bathroom even. Unless you shower very early, I would find it more convenient to have a ground floor showering and changing space close to where my kids are playing or eating, rather than run upstairs to my official bedroom .

You'd have to have a contractor give you an estimate.

Can you explain why the bedroom with a bath won't work as is? How much space do you think you will gain by bumping the bathroom back?

I think it’s too small for our needs we would need to build walk in closet

You mentioned widening the stairwell, do you mean the stairs themselves, or the hall landing? I think it would be nice to widen the hall at the top, shrinking that front bedroom a bit. And that's fine, if you use it as your closet.

Anything to do with the bathrooms? We remodeled two bathrooms and the only plumbing moved was to make the shower a foot longer. Just replacing everything I including tile) with standard stock was $8k, $10k in the bath where the shower plumbing moved by a foot, and that was 20 years ago near Chicago. So, if you can live with the bath as is, do it. Maybe steal the space to the right of it for more storage, that will just be demolition of a short wall and building a new one with door facing the bedroom. You could even leave that little closet for a linen closet.

Anything is possible. How much money do you have?

Use the other balcony room for a closet, and incorporate the small closet into a remodeled master bath.

There is always a way to reconfigure a house ... all it takes is time and money!

If RE is tight, then construction trades will also be tight, so expect to pay a premium for any work you want to do. Have you thought about increasing your house buying budget (by the amount you would be willing to spend on remodeling) and seeing if you can find a house that better matches your needs?

If you combine the two lower bedrooms and expand the connected bath (complete gut and rebuild), maybe you get all that for 40-50k? if you mess with the stairs, taht can spiral into multiples of that figure...

Thanks very helpful!