When people are looking to buy a home, there are a three pieces of information they always want to know: how much square footage there is, how many bedrooms there are, and how many bathrooms there are. A common misconception is that bigger (and more) is always better. That’s wrong – some people want smaller homes with fewer bedrooms to clean and worry about.
But what about bathrooms? Many homes only have one bathroom – is that a problem? Or, more to the point, if my home only has one bathroom, will it definitely sell for less money than a multi-bathroom home?
Not necessarily. The general rule of thumb is that a home you should have no less than half as many bathrooms as it does bedrooms. So a two bedroom home is fine to only have one bathroom, but a three bedroom home should have at least one and a half bathrooms (a half bathroom is one with a toilet but no shower/bathtub), and a four bedroom home should have at least two bathrooms. Again, those are the minimums. More bathrooms are always better.
However, many people have three bedroom homes with only one bathroom, particularly if the home was built 30+ years ago. Will having only one bathroom be a problem when the home is sold? In other words, is the lack of a second bathroom something that will cause the home value to go down?
The answer, generally speaking, is: yes – the home value will be diminished by the lack of the second bathroom. These days, if a person is looking for a three bedroom home, it is likely because they have children or plan to entertain guests. No one wants to have to share a bathroom with their entire family or with guests. It is inconvenient and can cause problems. Heck, when I was a kid, I didn’t even want to share a bathroom with my two siblings, let alone have to share it with my parents and any guests as well!
If you’re looking to sell your three bedroom/one bathroom home, you have essentially two options: a) sell the home for less than what it could be worth with multiple bathrooms, or b) have a contractor add a bathroom to your home in order to increase its value.
Adding a bathroom can sound appealing, but most people simply can’t afford it. If everything goes right, you’re probably looking at a minimum $25,000 expense to add a second bathroom. Where will that money come from? Most people don’t have $25,000 lying around, but a contractor isn’t going to let you open a line of credit on his dime. So you will need that money up front. And once you spend that money, what happens if it doesn’t add the value to your home you thought it would? Nothing is worse (at least not in real estate) than spending money on your home that you end up losing when you sell it.
If you have a home that needs work and/or needs additional bathrooms but don’t have the money to tackle the project, this is where Upstate House Buyers comes into the equation. We love buying houses that need major updates, and we aren’t scared by whatever condition your house is in. We will buy it as-is and take care of the headache ourselves. Send us your contact information and address of the house you need to sell by filling out our “Sell Your House” form. We are always looking to tackle a new project.
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