Laundry upstairs or down?

Question

We bought a foreclosure that has the laundry room downstairs. The home has 4 bedrooms(3 upstairs, 1 down). I'd like to move the laundry upstairs into the smaller of the 3 bedrooms and make the downstairs laundry room into a bathroom where there's a bedroom and family room. My question is from a resale point of view- is it worth going through all that if we plan on selling within a couple years.

Cher D · Answer

I HAVE REHABBED OVER 36 HOMES IN MY LIFE...and i feel that a lot of ppl want the laundry upstairs a lot easier....but make sure you have a contractor put in an overflow pan with a drain under the washer and dryer.. so in the event the washer ever did overflow and or form a leak it will go down the drain... is your house only a 1 bath now never mentioned if so yes put it in

Diane Woods · Answer

I'm a Realtor in the Nashville area. The general rule of renovation is if you plan to be in the home 5 years or less, do not spend what you feel you can't recoup when you sell. It is extremely rare to make over 100% of the money you invest. Downstairs laundry is sometimes preferred if the owner suite is also downstairs. If a family is downsizing their plan may be live on the main floor and have upstairs as extra space for guests. If they only have to go upstairs for laundry, that would be a negative. On the flip side, if the downstairs bedroom is not a suite and can be a flex room used as a study, TV room, etc, then the laundry would make sense upstairs. It depends on the layout and size of your house. If there is no bathroom on the main floor, that is a negative. It's a balancing act, for sure. Having a few rooms sparkle and the others lookig 'eh', wouldn't only point out what hasn't been updated. Like the saying goes 'It's like putting lipstick on a pig.' The biggest caution, whatever you decide to do, is don't overspend yourself out of future income from the sale of the home later. Keep the whole house, at the same level of polish. Good luck!

The Garden Frog with C Renee · Answer

I have 2 areas for laundry! And it is great. I have a small stackable unit in the fullbath and in the 1/2 bath downstairs which is about 8' x 8' space. there is a stacked top loader washer in the full bathroom. The downstairs washer handles dirty clothes, towels, and jeans whereas upstairs front loader handles every day clothes and sheets. It is so nice to be able to do wash 2 loads at a time. I would not take out a bedroom to add a laundry room because many people want that extra room for home office or bedroom. I know here it is the number of bedrooms and number of bathrooms that count. Laundry room up or down is a personal thing for many in my opinion.
Diane is right-do not overspend! We had neighbors put in a $30,000 master bath renovation and they have a $230,000 home and the realtor said they will lose money if they ever sell. It was for them and they had planned on living there forever. I did my renovations for a few hundred dollars and I could not be happier. I took out the double vanity and put a single in and the machines divide the vanity from the toilet. i can post a pic if you want an idea. good luck with your decision!

Fay Sessions · Answer

upstairs mine is downstairs and now that I am retired it has become very hard for me to get the wash down and back up when it is done .Most people will not buy a house with washer in basement

Jennifer Olson Rasmussen · Answer

Thanks for the reply Cher! There are two bathrooms upstairs, a master and main bath but they are very small. My husband is a licensed plumber so we will save a lot by doing that part ourselves. Thanks also for the advice about the overflow pan. :)

Chloe Crabtree · Answer

It is probably still worth it to move it upstairs.

Chloe Crabtree · Answer

This recipe, made with simple ingredients, makes 1 gallon of homemade soap.

1 cup borax (freshens, deodorizes, and lifts dirt and stains)
1 cup washing soda (freshens and deodorizes)
1 cup liquid castile soap or Sal Suds (the main cleaning agent, lifts dirt and cleans)
50 drops essential oil (optional for a scent)
15 cups water (distilled water, found in any grocery store, is best as it doesn’t contain containments found in tap or filtered water)

Laundry upstairs or down?

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Laundry upstairs or down?

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