If I was a tenant looking to rent my issue would be walking right into the kitchen from the front door.

Yes I understand. Unfortunately it’s a slab and that’s where the kitchen stands currently. It would be cost prohibitive to move the plumbing.

And the front door has to be on that wall.

I thought about putting the kitchen on one side and dining on the other so you could enter between the two? But it is so tight

Who is your targeted renter? Long-term, or students?

Seems like you could put a lot of money into moving doors and windows that would take a long time to recoup?

Truthfully at the front door, I'd like to have someplace to put my stuff. I'd want to have a small closet(even 2x2) and some sense of not coming right into the kitchen.

Not sure if your pantry is like these, but they save a bit of space.

You might consider a mobile island for additional prep space, that the tenant might need/enjoy. These are just examples.

Is this for long-term rental (single/couple or student) or for an AirBnB-type short-term rental?

I would move the range to the right so there's more prep space b/w the sink and range. I'd put about 18" b/w the wall and range and all the other space b/w the range and sink.

Put in a 27"W sink base with a single-bowl sink.

what is the necessity of two entrances "front " and "back" ??

This is really a 1 bedroom efficiency. Have you priced it as such?

I find that having washer/dryer is an amenity that helps sell my apartments. Where are you? There are no closets in this space at all. From the looks it is mostly suitable for students. Not for long term living for most people. So you really need to pricing accordingly. Also, where are you advertising? Most tenants are not looking in newspapers for rentals. Try going to the Q&A section on MrLandlord.com and posing your question there. Very experienced landlords on there who can give you great tips on marketing your rental.

Could we see a layout of the ENTIRE Guest House? ALL rooms, including bathroom & bedroom and anything else there is (e.g., space/storage that you are reserving for yourself, if any, etc.)

Ditto about the laundry. Is there room somewhere for a stacked washer & dryer? It could be in the bathroom.

Maybe it's Code to have two exits? I know in my apartment days, there were always two exits, even if one was to an exterior balcony. If your windows are at least 3'x5', you might not need two doors.

Which reminds me, I do know that all bedrooms must have at least one 3'x5' window (at least in MD & WV), does the bedroom in your Guest House have that?

Hello!

this is the living/dining/kitchen room. The bedroom bath closet and laundry is not shown but I will post it.

I will resize sink base, move range and repost Floor plan. Really good idea.

Yes the bedroom has egress. There is a big window.

We are going to build a deck off the back Door. There is space for a small table and chairs.

This Is urban core. It’s tight!

We are transitioning from Airbnb to long term tenant. Most likely a single or couple professionals.

Thank you!

Those mobile islands are a great idea! I wanted to do an island but there wasn’t enoigh space. Great idea.

thank You!

The reason for two entrances is because there is a huge pecan tree on the side so you can’t get around it To reach the back. You have to have another door if we are to add a small deck area. The deck area will wrap around and be about seven feet wide.

The current windows are awful. It’s like a cave and it turns off tenants. I am adding a window over the sink and full size windows in the living room.

You said you could move doors/windows...

With a portable island, you will need to have a place to store it out of the way when not in use. You don't have much room for something like that to always be in the Kitchen as it will be a constant obstacle.

I see a lot of spaces in the kitchen for a portable island. Across from the sink and dishwasher, to help with prep. You can move it right next to the bedroom door. Push it across from the range - if needed. Heck, I need it next to the dining, so I'm going to push it there, etc..

It's an asset to the space.

Oh my gosh Buehl that’s amazing! at one point I had a very similar floor plan Not that polished. and a bench with storage at the door. I wish I had that in my house. So thoughtful.

yes I love the idea of a portable island. I have one in my house. So useful for extra counter space. And you can roll them around.

can anyone recommend a prepainted/ preassembled/ affordable cabinet? I am looking at Ikea and Home Depot but wondering if there are other options.

I was thinking grey cabinets with marble or white quartz countertops.

Portable island...that's fine if you want it. I'm just warning you that the space isn't that large and the vast majority of Kitchens we see and the Kitchens posters here have are bigger and don't have all three public rooms in such a small space. Just be aware that given how tight this space is because of the Living Room potentially being part of the Kitchen (depending on what furniture the renter has) that space may be limited and you will have to either dodge it while moving around the space or find a place to stash it...maybe in the bottom right corner below the table? Or, you could move the table down (although it would be tight for more than two people) and stash the island "below" the bedroom door.

One of the reasons that I decided to make it an "L" was to avoid the need for something that will have to be moved around to get it out of the way. I did one up with a single wall, but I realized that you weren't getting enough storage space in that layout. Everything was too small and trying to cram a pantry in along the refrigerator wall (even turned to face the Living Room) would force the Kitchen too far into the Living Room...even more than I show, assuming you want landing space next to the refrigerator and a place to put the MW so it's not in the middle of the prep space.

Just wondering, though, why would you provide a portable island for long-term renters? Or, are you renting this as a "furnished" apartment? If so, then you can provide furniture that will fit and make the space look larger than it is (e.g., a love seat or small sofa rather than a full-size and a small dining table that will fit the space with small chairs -- but don't go too small or it will, again, turn renters off.)

We are going to try to rent it furnished but may need to empty it out if tenant wants unfurnished.

What do you all think about a trash pull out for the 18" cabinet to the right of the range?

Should I do drawer base cabinets when possible? For instance the 30" and the 24"?

Yes we are going woth the plan you came up with Buehl! I’m making the cabinet list now.

we can do an after market pull out for trash under the sink. Perfect. We will do drawer base cabs everywhere possible.

Anyone have a reasonably priced assembled stock cabinet they like? Our kitchen is Conestoga but that’s going to be cost prohibitive here.

Outside "deck" to me means above grade, but then the room's a slab-on-grade. What are the "urban core" site constraints as far as the deck placement and sun/view? What is holding the central wall (separating the bedroom) from changing (bed/bath is 400sf of the 700sf)? Can the bathroom be open to access instead of going thru the bedroom? With an efficiency, an island/peninsula, if it can be worked in, is much better than having a separate dining area. Room for a desk space is optimal though. Storage is a real bonus.

And can the pecan be tunneled thru like the redwoods ;)

We are a mile from downtown so it’s about as urban as you can get. I can do a seven foot wide deck around the back of the living room. It’s not good but that’s all the space there is. I will post the whole floor plan when I get back to the computer. We designed a walk in closet with laundry off the bathroom and a study nook behind the bath.

bath access is off the bedroom and cannot be changed.

the whole one bedroom space is apx 600-700 sf.

That tree is so cool! Our pecan is a tad smaller at the base so sadly no tunnel!

I am struggling with the upper cabinets at the fridge and microwave wall.

They have a wall cabinet for the fridge:

30" Wide

24" High

24" Deep

But I cannot find a cabinet to go above the microwave. They have one that is:

24" Wide

30" High

12" Deep

OR

21" Wide

30" High

12"Deep

Sounds like you are looking at cabinets with a limited selection of cabinet sizes. You might have to adjust the width there to use a 30” wide bridge cabinet. I also noted that you are going to need a dishwasher end panel between dishwasher and pantry to support the countertop there. It will add 1 1/2”.

Correct these are stock cabinets from Home Depot. We are considering the Tremont Cabinets.

so yes limited in size. We can do the 30” wide x 24” Deep x 24” tall and the microwave below.

or we could do a microwave vent hood over the range and a regular cabinet next to the fridge.

I believe a vented hood over the range may be out of the budget. Of course I wanted a pretty wood hood but husband is balking at the price.

Tremont stock cabinet from home depot.

Here is the hall tree for the entry. It also comes in white. It’s the same manufacturer as the cabinets so I think it’s going to be the same color grey but no way to know for certain until it arrives

I would doubt it is the same manufacturer. Home Decorators Collection is a brand name for Home Depot and probably has many manufacturers. It is a better quality line than their Hampton Bay product.

You can get a range hood for $200. I would look at seeing if you can run the vent above the cabinets to the outside wall.

Ok thank you for the insight. I wonder if I should do a white tree since the grays may be different.

Here is the hood I was looking at. With the liner its going to at least be $2,000 and husband doesn’t want to spend the $$

IMO if you are going to spend that much money, have a layout that works. That may involve a little bit of breaking up the slab to shift the plumbing, which compared to a $2K hood in an efficiency rental is no big deal.

IMO, if you are renting this place, then a $2000 range hood is money poorly spent. Husband is right. Don’t let the kitchen costs spiral out of control. Generally, as a rental, you want to make it clean, functional, and as tenant proof as possible. An under cabinet hood in the $200-300 range that is vented will give the same function as the $2000+ model. It might be a bit louder, but you aren’t living with it.

$2,000.00 for a range hood for someone else to enjoy - GULP!

the Most practical thing to do would be a “micro hood”. A microwave with a vent hood and down lights. Then I can do a regular cabinet to the right of the fridge.

And since this is a rental, it might be the best way to go. You’ll have the hassle of whatever frequency it breaks down in replacing it. But it might be a really good solution.

Just remember that OTR MWs are not cheap, while countertop models can be had for < $100. OTR MWs are, at best, mediocre hoods (and often not even that good) and meh MWs.

If it were me, I would get an inexpensive hood, vented to the outside, and get a relatively inexpensive MW (1000 watts). The MW in the layout I did is mounted on a shelf under the upper cabinet next to the refrigerator, not sitting on the counter.

It would not only make it look more upscale (and maybe increase your ability to rent it out), but it would also help keep the gunk build-up down, which you will need to clean each time it changes renters. Get one that's the same width as the range with lights and a high/low setting. I would try for 24"D, but if that drives the price up too much, 21"D may suffice to keep most of the gunk away.

Flank it by uppers to help corral the FOGSS (fumes, odors, grease steam, smoke), and you should have a setup that goes a long way to making it look higher end overall.

Progress Pics! Your wonderful ideas coming to life!

( I will post a pic of the hall tree wall later. It is covered in plastic right now. )

Not sure what I'm looking at. Right next to the front door - you have a pantry? Last pic shows the ceiling?

Yes. These are progress pics. We went with Buehl's floor plan. We vaulted the ceilings.