Adding Value: Why Adding an Extra Bathroom in your Home is a Winner

Do you own a home with a single bathroom? Are family members always competing for the use of one or two bathrooms? When a home does not have enough bathrooms to meet today’s demanding standards, the home will be hard to sell. It is nice to have one bathroom per floor of a home and to have a dedicated master bathroom as well as the hall bathroom that the children use. If the basement is finished with a family room or guest bedroom, it should also have a bathroom. Check with a local Realtor to see what the new local standards are for the number of bathrooms in similar homes.

Adding a Bathroom

If your home has too few bathrooms, contact a local plumber such as Maplewood Plumbing for an estimate to add a bathroom. The plumbing professional will be able to locate plumbing lines and the space to accommodate an additional bathroom. Some houses are easy to add a bathroom to and others present inconvenient obstacles. If the bathroom is not in a convenient area it will add little value.

Each bathroom should be located close to where it is needed by family members. A bathroom near a family room on the main floor or in the basement is a good choice. A bathroom off the hall in the bedroom wing is a necessity. A master bathroom off the master bedroom is becoming a must-have for homeowners. A powder room near where guests are entertained is another popular addition to the home. The right number of bathrooms will add to the functionality of a home as well as the resale value.

Finding the Footage

The space needed to add a bathroom is not as large as you might think. A half-bath requires a three by six-foot space and a full bath with tub and shower requires a five by eight-foot space or larger. Space can be found in an oversized closet or under a stairway. Also, a very large bathroom can be turned into two bathrooms. Bathroom footage can be found in an attached garage, an attic space with the addition of a dormer, or by bumping out a wall into the back yard. Space can also be taken from a large bedroom or other room with a few feet to spare.

Practical Considerations

The footage to use should be accessible to existing plumbing and electrical services. The new bathroom must meet current building codes. This addition might require updating outdated systems for the whole house. Bathroom additions in the upstairs, main floor, and basement all have special challenges that a plumber must deal with. There will need to be vent stacks, drainage, and bathroom ventilation to address. The septic system or sewer system must be able to handle an extra bathroom.

A new bathroom can be costly. This addition can cost from $3,000.00 to more than $25,000.00 depending on many factors. Be sure to cover all the contingencies with the plumber and building contractor before you sign a contract. Let the professionals know what your budget is. Ask them for the best solutions that fall into that budget. If there is not enough money, you may have to get a home improvement loan or save for a while longer before doing the project.

A well-thought-out and planned bathroom addition can make a house function better for the whole family, add value to the house, and be cheaper than moving to a new home. The value of a bathroom depends on its location and functionality.