Maybe accessible isn't the best word given the circumstances. Usable maybe? This is the only bathroom we have to work with because the only other bathroom on the main floor is our ensuite which will already be fully tiled and has a long narrow water closet where the toilet is. The layout in there is awkward for a wheelchair as well unfortunately. The main floor is open concept and there are no stairs entering the house. We bought this house with her in mind so she could comfortably visit that's why townhouses were out of the picture and so many resale homes were too narrow, split level, had too many stairs or closed off overall. A new build offered more of what we needed, but there were just no better main floor bathroom options to work with. I even called as many of the main builders in our area as I could and asked if any of their homes had any ADA compliant options ( I assumed in 2021 that wouldn't be impossible to find) but was told time and time again that unless we were looking into a retirement community I probably wasn't going to find anything usable as is.

She/we came from a Tudor home that was built in the 1930s that was such a challenge for her so when we moved out of state we had a good idea about what kind of home we needed but the bathroom was an obstacle in every home we looked at. Initially our thought was we could borrow some space from the room next to it if we needed to (the guest suite) but after the fact when we met with the builder we were told it was a load bearing wall on that side. The other side is where the kitchen is so the cabinets and refrigerator is right on the other side of where the toilet and sink is shown. That's why I was hoping that the main area shown in the pictures if the toilet is moved over to the area where the shower insert will be and the pedestal sink is replaced with a tiny wall mounted sink that main area will be empty and similar to when she uses handicapped stalls in public restrooms. We'd also switch how the door swings so it goes out as opposed to going into the bathroom. She uses a manual wheelchair with the large wheels so she can get herself around on her own but we very well may need to leave a "visiting wheelchair" at our place that is slightly more compact to make it less bulky. I also would have to leave a shower wheelchair for her to use so I'd be helping set her up when she comes over to shower anyway (she'd live 5 or so minutes from our house) My main concern is will she be able to use the toilet. There will rarely if ever be a time she'd be alone at our place so if I have to help position the wheelchair then I would. But because it's being built on a concrete slab I'm just concerned that there's other unforseen issues with switching the toilet where the shower is and vis versa.

It's just so hard to envision without being able to see it in person since they have no homes that were built or photographed with this shower addition.

Sorry but there is no room for a wheelchair to manuever in that space . The toilet is a huge issue and the shower is too small to work. There is great info online as to size of space for ADA bathrooms so I would advise looking at those. Could you at least post a floor plan of the home showing where this bathroom is.

Our ensuite has a glass shower stall and pan on one side of the room and a garden tub on the other side and the toilet is in a narrow water closet next to the tub. We added the tub for me and had it tiled to our liking so we aren't going to give up our bathroom or remove the tub and wall for the water closet and then we'd still have to rip out the tiled glass shower as well.

I know this tiny powder room isn't ideal, far from it and the turn radius has always been the #1 issue I consider when we bring her places to visit or even when we were finding an apartment for her. I already have to assist her getting into bathroom stalls that are supposedly "ADA compliant" but still too tiny and off center for her to use herself and I always have to stand outside the door to keep it closed for her since she doesn't even have room to close the door behind her. She's been in a wheelchair for 20 years so weve faced many of the obstacles of going places that just don't factor in people with disabilities and it's why we were trying to be mindful when choosing our home. We brought up our concerns to the sales associate many times and asked as many questions as we could about making any kind of changes possible to make it easier. We did not find out until after we signed the contract that the wall we had planned on knocking into was a load bearing wall.

She will not be living with us, this is just a space where she can actually access a toilet since our ensuite won't work how it is, and also have the option where she can take a shower without worrying about any ledges or steps or glass doors. She was able to use our shower at the old house by sitting on a shower bench and this open space is bigger than the size of the stall we had at our old house. She has used toilets in powder rooms of relatives homes with assistance, so this is one of those less than ideal situations where she will not be able to turn herself freely but I will need to assist her in placing her where she needs to when she needs to use the facilities. This is why the only solution I could imagine is placing the toilet in the alcove where the shower is and leaving the main area you walk into a tiled wetroom area.

If it truly isn't a possibility the only other area on tbe main floor we can possibly consider is the laundry room. It's not particularly large either but it's one solid rectangular shape as opposed to the awkward shape the bathroom will be. But we'd need additional drainage in the laundry room so I'm sure that also would be a big/expensive undertaking. Our house went up $50k from the time we selected it back in February which means we had to put a higher down payment than we expected to keep the mortgage payments affordable so while we still have money put aside for these renovations, it's not as much wiggle room as we initially hoped for. If we had endless money we'd do whatever we had to but for now we're just trying to do the best we can.

I feel for you. I had a best friend who used a 3 wheel scooter, and believe me, the turn radius with that is much wider than any wheelchair. There are so many places that consider their restrooms to be "handicap accessible" if they just add a grab bar and a taller toilet. Not so. Many times I had to stand in front of the restroom stall door to provide privacy.

Is she able to get up out of the wheelchair and transfer at all? Have you considered using a "Hover Round" type power chair? They have a smaller turn radius. I think it might work (but I'm no pro at all) if you put the toilet where the shower is and put the shower where the toilet is. Ask the builder if they would put in a drain in the middle of the floor and pre-plumb it for later conversion into a wet room. Then when you do renovate to make the wet room idea, all you would need to do is tile everything and take out the shower frame. You could still use the shower head. Or is there an option now to tile all the walls, up to the ceiling, with waterproofing for a shower? You could then wheel her into the room and when she is done, you can wheel her out backwards. No turning required. To go to the toilet area, if she is able to transfer herself using a walker, she wouldn't need to turn around either.

You might look into how they do things in Europe. They don't use large spaces so their fixtures are different. They also use a lot of wet rooms. You might find a wet room idea that could be done in your space.

Please label all the load bearing walls around the bathroom.

You could borrow a wheelchair and go back to the model home to try out the space in the powder room. Also try out the space in the laundry room. It will be enlightening.

Has this house already been started and is it nearing completion?

Not a pro. I do understand being on a budget and having handicapped relative.

Get the builder to build what you want as it is built rather than doing an immediate remodel -- will be cheaper in the long run ... and you can use the end result if you keep the new home as your forever home.

Essentially ... turn the ENTIRE small bathroom -- or most of it -- into a shower with a wall hung sink -- space beneath it -- and a toilet with rails beside it -- to the right of it since most people are right handed -- actually in stalled within the shower.

Consider using either a pocket door or a frosted glass door that opens outward or even bi-- fold closet doors as the bathroom door rather than a standard door that opens inward into the bathroom..

Put the separate switch for the bath exhaust fan beside the light switch and you might consider a small high window or sidelight even with an exhaust fan.

Here is a site with some valuable info for you. https://wetroommaterials.com/blog/how-to-create-an-accessible-wet-room-for-disabled-people/

What about making the total toilet area and 3x3 area a shower. In many places in Europe the entire bathroom is a shower and toilet. You can sit on the toilet and shower.

You may find that using the laundry room is better, if it is bigger than the half bath. Get a stackable laundry set and put them where the builder wants your shower in your half bath. Ask for a floor drain and sloped floor in the laundry room. You can put a wall-hung toilet on one wall and it will not interfere with the wet floor draining. Be sure that the builder puts appropriate waterproofing under the tile on the floor and walls. The floor has to be sloped so that the water flows to the floor drain. You will also need a toilet waste pipe.

If the powder room is 5’ x 8.5’ and you put the toilet in the space where the shower was, you would have the room needed to turn her chair and such, but I worry about how she is going to get into that 39 x 39 cubbyhole to use the toilet! Not to mention you would have to remove the concrete slab to replumb for the toilet removal to the shower stall and adding a sloped main floor.

Depending on the size of the laundry room, you might be able to use the Kerdi shower sloping system to get the slope you need. My builder put in a wheelchair accessible shower stall for me, then added a floor drain to the bathroom floor outside of the shower just in case of overflow. I am glad we did that, as I have flooded it twice in three years, already! To get the room floor to slope, he bought a shower sloping kit from Kerdi. It made my bathroom floor into, essentially, another shower. It was made of dense foam forms that added the necessary slope for a 5’x5’ shower. That raised the room floor, so to make the room floor meet up with the hall floor, we had to have a ramp made of the same foam. So as I enter my bathroom there is a slight rise for the first two feet, then the room floor slowly (almost imperceptibly) slopes to the drain. That entry rise is quite noticeable, and if I set my wheeled walker there, it rolls downhill and out the door. My bathroom has a pocket door. Kerdi membrane covered the entire bathroom floor (except the shower, which was a pre-formed pan made out of something like Corian) and 5” up the bathroom walls. You could do the same thing where your half bath is, but I don’t see how your mom will use the toilet! If the laundry room is bigger, at least you can have a wall-hung toilet in the “wet room” area.

No matter what, if you are going to move plumbing, you are talking about jackhammering up at least a portion of the floor in order to install plumbing. In either room. Unless you can get a center floor drain installed in the laundry room and a waste pipe for the toilet. Is your slab already poured?

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Thank you all so much for your input!! You've given me some much needed food for thought going forward and a lot to mull over with my husband.

The tough thing about the house we chose, (well any of the builders in our area) is these are TRUE cookie cutter homes. Once you select one if their floor plans they will not allow a single change or accomodations to be made even if you want to pay for them. So no tiling in any bathrooms other than the ensuite, no swapping fixtures, choosing different fixtures, widening doorways, moving doors down etc etc. The only option we were given was to add this tiny walk in insert to make this powder room into a full bathroom. If we had at least a tub option it would have given us much more space to play around with. I personally wasn't a fan of new builds for a while for the reason of not being able to customize anything during the building process. We tried for quite a while hunting for resale homes but the houses in our budget were much too far from my husband's job, or just needed way too much work overall, including still converting a bathroom for my mom. Add in how the market has been the last several months and how homes around here (Raleigh, NC area) have dozens up to 100 bids per home, we gave up trying for a resale at this point in time. We figured going with a new build overall would give us everything we needed for ourselves and for my mom and we'd really only have to figure out converting a bathroom.

That teeny alcove area where the shower would be, the only reason I thought the toilet might be best in there is because not only would it free up the main area, but when my mom transfers to the toilet she prefers having the wheelchair directly in front of it where the wheelchair faces the toilet head on. Her arms are fairly strong so she holds onto the grab bar on the wall and sort of pulls/slides herself onto the toilet. Since that's her method I feel I would be able to position her wheelchair in front of the toilet where she's be able to use it how she normally does.

Currently the house only has the framework on the first floor and the concrete is poured. We wouldn't be able to go in with a contractor until after everything is fully finished and we close. Once the red danger tape is removed and we can walk through the framework we are absolutely going in with one of my mom's extra wheelchairs just to get a slightly better idea about how even a compact wheelchair would fit in that space. Our laundry room is roughly the same size but doesn't have that annoying cut out L shape so it might be a slightly better option. We have to buy our own washer and dryer as the house does not include them, so maybe we should hold off until we meet with a few contractors first in the event we might be switching their locations.

Have been researching how to add accessibility features to a small bath with corner shower. I found shower/toilet chairs that will fit through my 24 inch door plus they are like a portable toilet or have access to move over toilet without disrupting user. I'll remove a small linen cabinet and expand the shower with a 25” door that opens on the right side. Curbless shower will give easy access to larger shower. Will have on/off handle located for easy access with being sprayed with cold water. Shower will include sliding bar for hand held sprayer head.

I would recommend that both room door and shower door open the opposite direction. This will make it easier to move about.

I have mobility, fatigue AND balance issues so I am talking from experience There are under 25” wide special wheeled chairs specifically for short transport I.e. Bedroom to bathroom. They are designed with the intent that they will be getting wet. Some can be self propelled while others require a caregiver. Some even fold for easy storage. I have trouble walking with a cane and stepping into a shower even with 3 grab bars is a feat of strength and endurance. Being able to wheel in will mean I can shower daily. My bathroom already has the typical safety features.

It will be cheaper to buy the special size equipment than to make major structural changes to the bathroom or laundry room.

@User yup those are the exact walls we were counting on knocking down to slightly extend the room and when we met with the builder we found out that's where the load bearing wall is 😞 We did not anticipate that area having a load bearing wall so I was pretty crushed when we found out after the fact because that limited our options even further. I know we still *can* have it removed some how but then we'll have to work with an engineer and that's going to become even more costly. I'd feel safer and better not entertaining doing anything to anything load bearing but that complicated our plans quite a bit.

@Sharon Fullen if there's anything we can still do, it will definitely be swinging the door out into the hall. We had hoped (once upon a time) that we could have a pocket door installed but now knowing that it's so close to the guest suites door entrance on a load bearing wall, and the other side has a built in cubby, we can't even do that. Swinging the door out we can manage I think 😅

This is the shower wheelchair I was looking into for my mom. Seems like it's pretty narrow and most importantly waterproof so I think this would work well. I'm itching for the framework to be finished on the first floor so it's safe for us to do a walk through with a wheelchair to see exactly what we're working with. I'm already accepting that she won't be able to use the bathroom completely independently but I'm hoping with my assistance positioning her by the facilities it can still be usable for her. The good thing is no matter where the shower goes whether it stays in it's place (minus the insert) or becomes a wetroom in the main area, we don't plan on adding a door anywhere so she won't be closed off or have to worry about chair handles or even her legs blocking a shower door from closing.

@Kris May. Good luck on making daily tasks better for your Mom. It seems like this shouldn't be so hard but after trying to live an able life I've come to realize architects and builders don’t get it. Even those businesses that profess to be handicap accessible don't realize what a joke their efforts are. Wheel chair ramp out fromt but halls to the bathroom that are too narrow.

@Sharon Fullen you have my full sympathy truly. I get so frustrated seeing how many limitations there are and how unaware and unaccommodating people and places can be. It adds so much unnecessary anxiety going places for both my mom and myself to a lesser extent because I feel responsible and have to figure out solutions without putting her on the spot. One time we were both stranded in a NYC subway because our train was evacuated and the unplanned station we were left at had NO elevator or even an escalator. We had to wait hours for another train to come back into the station to get back to the one we were trying to get to originally.

With this builder and all of them really, I'm just surprised and angry that in 2021 with all of the possible options you can get like adding a loft, creating a "bath oasis" where you can add a garden tub to the ensuite, gourmet kitchen, screened in porch etc etc of all the options there are NO options to turn one of the bathrooms into something accessible for people with disabilities? It made me even more angry when the sales associates kept trying to redirect me (a 37 year old ) to retirement communities if I was looking for ADA options. As if disabilities only happen to individuals in their older years? What a flawed and non inclusive mindset to have. The one place my mom shouldn't have to worry about visiting is our home and even if this set up kind of sucks to be frank, we'll figure it out one way or another. But boy am I bitter about the process this is taking us go get there all because builders don't think ADA options are important.

@Kris May I've been thinking about your latest, eloquent post. Is the development you are buying into all single story or mixed single and two-story? There could be a profitable upcharge for an ADA bathroom or of course more than an upcharge for a full ADA house. I can't speculate constructively on what the builder thinks their customer base is because I don't know anything about the location, price point, local regulations, and so on.

@apple_pie_order the development we're buying into offers I'd say at least 7 or 8 different floorplans, with all kinds of further customizations per floorplan, however ADA options are not on that list! How crazy is that? It's 2021 there is no reason or excuse to not have ADA options on their list of customizable options. After all, there are absolutely people who would happily pay the upcharge to save the headache and out of pocket expenses after the fact.

The builder in this development specifically offers 2 different ranch options but the one we selected was not a ranch, however it is considered a main floor living plan since there are 2 bathrooms on the main floor and the master bedroom is on the main floor as well. We chose this floor plan because it suited all of our needs (my mom's included) but gave us an extra loft space upstairs since these houses do not have attics or basements. There is a possibility in the future my mom may have to live with us full time and if that day comes we will most likely lose our 2 car garage and convert it into a modest fully accessible apartment for her. We bought this house with our past obstacles in mind and trying to be better prepared for the "what ifs" of the future. All that being said, if the builder offered ADA options in their ranches only, without a question we would have selected a ranch and made do with the space we had to work with. Unfortunately its not just this builder, I called so many of the other popular builders in this area and they all tried to redirect me to retirement or 55+ communities telling me I'd have better luck finding ADA options with them instead. I've been trying to reach out to my builder (their actual corporate headquarters) to speak with someone about their lack of inclusivity options. I've gotten responses from them on their social media accounts and have been told "we'll have a team member give you a call soon" but weeks later I'm still waiting. It's shameful.

You don't have to be aged to need your home to work for you. 61 million adults are disabled in the U.S. That’s 1 in 4 so this isn't a rare need. Most struggle with spaces that don’t meet their needs. This is actually a form of discrimination. You would think that serving those 61 million (plus children) would be an economic bonus plus the good PR.

And with proper design, homes with disability features don’t need to be unsellable “freaks.”

Sadly, the reason builders don’t care about accessibility is because they don’t have to. I have often thought that a company that focused on exactly what the OP is requesting-remodel/build ADA guidance-could be profitable and do the world so much good. Maybe they do exist but are just so far out of reach? I have spina bifida and belong to many online/local SB groups. The appeals of so many parents/adults with SB for help with just having an accessible toliet in their home will break your heart. We need to do so much better.

That is a good point too that different disabilities come with their own standards and chances are a generic ADA floorplan won't be absolutely perfect for everyone in need of one. However there are certain ways of designing the bathroom that could certainly work for most and would require minimal customizing after the fact. Adding grab bars to walls or removable toilet aides is much easier than knocking down walls, moving plumbing, removing tubs etc. At the very least if they'd allow for bathrooms to have a widened turn radius for enough room for people in wheelchairs or walking aides to get around or to have room for the individual and caretaker in the same space if need be, and allowing for a widened shower area with a roll in shower pan, it's a good start and easier for those with unique disabilities to work with if there needs to be any additions made as opposed to only offering bathrooms where the toilets are in narrow water closets or the rooms are the size of linen closets.

What frustrates me even more is their statement regarding accessibility on their website. This is a direct quote from their website (Mattamy is the builder) : "Mattamy Homes Limited (the ‘Company’ or ‘Mattamy Homes’) is committed to treating all people in a way that allows them to maintain their dignity and independence. We believe in integration and equal opportunity. We are committed to meeting the needs of people with disabilities in a timely manner, and will do so by preventing and removing barriers to accessibility"

Now I'm not clear if that statement is regarding just the accessibility of information on their website or even their employment opportunities. But regardless, for a company to make a statement regarding how committed they are to meeting the needs of disabled people and caring about individuals maintaining their dignity and independence, it's laughable that absolutely none of their floor plans like their ranches include any ADA options that are at least better starting points for people living with physical limitations. There are so many of us who would gladly pay their upcharge for less headaches after the fact. It could be quite profitable for them even!

We live in an older home and our problem is the narrow doors and hallways now that my husband is in a wheelchair and his mobility getting from chair to stool and chair to recliner is very limited. He has to use a small transport chair to get to the bathroom and that is just in and then backing out. Not ideal and makes a lot of work getting his needs met. I hope you can make your doors wider in all the rooms. That will help a lot.

@erinsean I totally understand your struggle! Before we moved here to NC I lived in my mom's home with her which was a Tudor built in the 1930s and she spent nearly 20 years there while in a wheelchair. We had the same struggles with narrow doorways, hallways and steps. That is one of the main reasons my husband and I opened up to living in a new build. You lose some of the character older homes have, but we will have an open floorplan where my mom will have an easy time getting herself around the main floor. We're hoping we can at least have the bathroom door widened since that's the only room on the main floor she'll need to access regularly. I wish there was an easier solution for those who have mobility struggles I know it can be so hard for them as well as the caretakers.

Can you post a little more of the floor plan in that area? Maybe there is something that's being overlooked??

Perhaps there are legal issues advertising ADA relative to building a home. They might need to meet all ADA codes: driveway, path, doors, kitchen, appliances, baths, etc. The house would need to be bigger and probably more expensive. Then, if they charge more for the ADA house, will someone sue them for discrimination.

This is just a guess, but they may perceive it as a minefield.

You could contact a designer who is a CAPS (certified aging in place) designer and have them come do a consultation with you. I'm not sure what website to use to search. Perhaps someone on here knows.

Hi, reading thru & trying to see how far along the construction is. Is the floor slab is poured already?

Adding a structural beam to open up the space under the load-bearing wall might actually be cheaper than some of the other things you were thinking about, like converting the laundry room into a bathroom. I would get a quote before you discount it!

This was a teeny tiny bathroom. The shower stall was fiberglass corner job that DH's shoulders barely fit in. This is now a roll in totally accessible bathroom and yes a wheel chair could maneuver nicely. If we add a shower seat a transfer would be a piece of cake. The entire room is a wet room sans the wall to the right of the sink--but it has never gotten wet. This was a DIY job and in the design process we realized with the small dimensions the only way to make the space large enough was to remove any wall or impediment in the shower area. It can be done just takes some thinking through.

Can anyone suggest a not too expensive bathroom vanity that can be used by a wheelchair user? Query why "ADA" compliant bathroom vanities have full bases . . .

I think you can find a wall mounted sink w/o a base of any sort that would be better than a vanity for rolling up to.

Check out The BathOutlet

Zulu Spillane, I gave up on a wheelchair-base vanity and designed my own. The ones offered for sale to the homeowner cost at least $3000, then are wall-hung with little storage. I dislike wall-hung because I still walk, with failing knees. I sometimes grab furniture and lean on it. I want things I lean on to have legs that contact the floor and to be sturdy enough to take the weight.

Many wheelchair accessible vanities extend far out from the wall. That is so that if a person using foot rests with their legs elevated tries to wash their hands, they can reach the sink before their legs hit the wall. My bathroom did not have room for a deep counter as well as room to maneuver a wheelchair. Pick one, it became for me. I chose the floor space and a 16” deep countertop with a semi-recessed sink that comes out a bit from the counter’s edge on one end of the vanity. My vanity depth was also driven by the fact that increasing the door width to 36” took away depth from my counter space area.

You can begin to see that each disabled person is disabled in their own unique way. One-size-fits-all solutions like ADA guidelines, therefore, do not tend to work well for individuals in standard sized homes. You do your best to meet current needs and try to predict and meet the future needs, as well. Store-bought wheelchair vanities often do not fit into our spaces. That leaves even fewer buyers for them, making them almost a custom item, with a custom price. I simply took the next step, and designed a truly custom vanity for my own needs and my space.

Wall sinks like the ones above can be a great solution, as long as the disabled person can reach the controls and the water flow without smashing their knees, toes, or extended legs into the wall.