Can I add another bedroom?

Hi PC'ers,

Love reading the forum.

Planning on knocking down the kitchen wall to open up the living area, and would love to know if I can add another bedroom in the house to add value. It is an IP and would like to generate some equity in the house.



Thanks all!

 

HI @Mathew Tran

You'd first need to consult a builder about whether that wall is load-bearing or not.

To me, it looks like if you decided to manufacture another bedroom, there are two options:

Option 1

• Delete the kitchen wall that is home to the pantry, fridge etc.
• Add a wall between Kitchen and Meals area.
• Add a wall between Meals area and Lounge.
• Possible close off the doorway to kitchen near laundry in order to create somewhere for the fridge to live.
• Re-brand Meals area to become Bedroom 4.
• Understand that now your Lounge area is now lounge AND dining and it's quite a small lounge/dining zone for a 4bed home.

Option 2

• Leave kitchen as it is.
• Cut the lounge in half by closing off the entry to lounge from entry foyer.
• Add a wall at the mid-way point of the lounge to turn the top half of the lounge into BR4. Add a door somewhere to provide entry to BR3.
• Observe this may require reconfiguring lounge window into two windows (council permission probably needed). Also observe lounge/dining is small.

I would suggest looking at the sale prices of 4bedder homes in the area with small lounge/dining areas and check that you wouldn't be devaluing the property by this venture to create BR4.

 

I was thinking Option #1 (as per JacM's comment)
I would also close off the walkway to the laundry from the kitchen so I could fit a bigger U Shape kitchen.
Then create a bigger laundry with storage.

 

ps I dislike Option 2 since I think it is always best for the value of a home if you arrive into a living area rather than a dark hallway with rabbit warrens everywhere.

 

Yep option 1 per JacM. Less likely to worry about load bearing etc that way

Whats out the front? Does it have a balcony to easily close in to gain more space?

 

Another change could be to remove the laundry and put the kitchen cabinets against that wall backing onto the bathroom all the way from the back door to the hall. Put an island bench in front. The kitchen will be small for a 4 bedder but still usable. Take the laundry out to the garage (yeah, I know...).
If you're having fun, extend the back stairs past the existing kitchen windows and make a deck. Open up the kitchen windows to be french doors to that deck and put a dining/sitting area where the meals is now. Replace the old back door with a solid wall and add some more kitchen cabinets to befit a 4 bedder.
Remove all the existing walls "south" of the main bedroom/bathroom, so you immediately come into the house into an open plan lounge/kitchen that looks out onto the deck, with meals around the corner.
Half of the old lounge becomes a small bedroom - a "guest"/study.

What you're always going to lack is a second sitting/lounge area. I usually find one lounge for 3 bedders is ok, but for 4+ it's far better and usually expected to have a second sitting area. If you're canny, you may be able to design the guest bedroom in such a way as it looks like a second sitting area as well as a guest bedroom - at least for sale purposes.

 

Some great ideas there guys.
I was thinking the current bathroom needs to be renovated anyway is there a way to take the the bir space from bedroom 3, current toilet and bathroom to make a 4th bedroom? Would that be way to expensive for a IP?

But then where do you put the Bathroom and Laundry...

 

Get rid of the laundry, extend the kitchen.
How deep is the cupboard? Can you put the "laundry" in there? You just need a sink and washer dryer stacked

 

I don't think it is deep enough to put a washing machine and the house doesn't have a balcony.
I'd like to keep the living area's if possible though.

 

How wide is the corridor? Can you extend the linen cupboard a little so it's about 600mm deep, then put the laundry in there? Have a dryer over the washer, or washer only. You'd still have half of the linen closet left for storage. Forget a sink. I've not seen a combo washer dryer that would fit into a 600mm though - they seem to be about 670mm or so deep.

 

A lot of re-working but I would put the fourth bedroom were the current toilet/bathroom area is and then make a combined laundry/bathroom where the current laundry is stealing some space from the kitchen to where the window starts. Then I would leave the living areas separate but modernize the kitchen.

 

I was thinking something along the lines of this but will it be a lot of work and is it worth it for an IP?

I'd like to make it open plan living if possible...
Is the main bathroom too small?

 

Hey I just saw the reply kind of what I was thinking of

 

That new bedroom seems really small. What's the dimensions of it?

 

Personally, i think that a 4 bedroom house needs two distinct living areas. You could combine the bathroom laundry to make it more spacious. And steal some space from the two bedrooms to make the fourth seem bigger. Also here is a real rough re-work to also give you the two living spaces. Apologies for my terrible one handed drawing.

 

I've made it 2.3 x 2x3 is that too small for a kids or spare room?

 

That would be used as a nursery or a study. Should be OK.

I am concerned your new bathroom is too cramped given its a 4 bedroom house. I too would combine the laundry and bathroom so you can double-up on standing room in front of the washer/tub.
Are we talking about a suburb where the residents would not go for a tiny bathroom which includes the toilet.

 

Way too small for that to be even considered a bedroom.
Given its a rental, most would consider it to be a 3 bedroom and not a 4 bedroom.

In my opinion you would be wasting your money moving plumbing around to create such a tiny space.

Having a kid, I personally wouldn't consider 2.3 x 2.3 for a nursery. You've got a kid, look how much junk you have for them!

 

Could you see any other way to add more value to the house?

 

Would it be better if I just renovated the main bathroom to something more modern and open up the living area more.

Right now the main bathroom is passable but very old school. I have recently renovated the ensuite as it didn't have a toilet and was in very bad shape.

My thought is to enter the house and come into an open plan living and kitchen to give the house a much more open area.

Thoughts?