resale value: walk in shower vs whirlpool bath

House Repair Talk

Help Support House Repair Talk:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

snoopcat

New Member
Joined
Oct 15, 2013
Messages
3
Reaction score
0
My wife & I bought a house in southern Utah 5 years ago. Our master bedroom has a bath area containing a whirlpool bathtub (not in the floor) & a stall shower. In the 5 years since we moved in we have not once used the bathtub, we always use the (cramped) stall shower. I have always wanted a walk in shower (not a stall) & I want to remove the tub & stall shower & build a tiled walk in shower in the space. There is a standard bathtub in another area of the house, not inside a bedroom. My wife refuses to consent to the renovation claiming that getting rid of the tub will lower the resale value of the house. I claim that we are both in our 70's, moved here to retire & be near our children, will never sell this house & the renovation will probably increase the value of the house anyway.
My question: is she right?
 
Last edited:
As long as there is a tub in the main bathroom I would be more concerned with whats going to make your stay there more enjoyable. We have a tub in the main bath and 2 other baths with showers at our house. Good luck changing her mind.
 
Hi Olddog***
You get the picture. Appreciate your comment.
I think her argument is a smoke screen for something else. But, if I could show her that it is not accurate, it would put me 1 step closer to changing her mind.
 
Call the real estate agent that sold you your house and get their opinion of what and how it would effect your resale value.
 
How big is the tub including the suround? If you change that to a 5ft tub could you get a somewhat bigger shower. If you need a short wall between the tub and shower you only need 63 1/2" for the tub and wall.
 
Hello
I always tell my customers that you need at least one bathtub and make sure that it is in the hall bath. Many homeowners are stripping their old master bathrooms down and remodeling with a new sink toilet and a large walk in shower.
A lot of elderly customers area also having a custom shower built because they feel later in life, they may not be able to lift themselves into a tub area. You may want to even consider creating your large shower stall with an opening that is wheelchair accessible for the future.
 
The house we just bought and are remodeling was owned by a couple and the woman was wheelchair restricted. They had just put in a new handicapped bath for her and a month later she passed away. The shower is the type that has a very slight lip that a chair can roll over and was set up with duel shower heads a fold down bench and wands and such. The rest of the fixtures were handicapped designs also. We didn’t know what to do with this bathroom and also the fancy ramp that was just built outside. After using this bigger shower and having the seat in there we both love the concept with the duel heads and the only problem we had was with the lip being so low water wants to find its way out. I fixed it by building something that raised the opening about 5 inches and could be easily removed if either of us ever needed wheelchair access. Likewise I left the ramp outside during building to bring appliances and material up alone. And fell in love with having the ramp and its staying as well. We are doing landscaping to hide it a bit is all. IMO all new houses should be set up like this and resale value is not that great a concern over having what we like and need in the house. Others have said a few times now how smart it was we left the bath alone and have it there if ever needed.

As long as you have one tub in the house that should comply with the “resale” thing. I used to be a person that liked a soak in a big tub even and I find it just as relaxing maybe even more so sitting on the bench seat under the waterfall head I installed on that end of the shower.
 
Sorry for the delay in my replies, we've been away for a few days. Thanks for all thoughts from everybody. To:
Nealtw: My wife has suggested that we install the shower without removing the tub. There might be enough room for that if we extended the existing shower into the large closet area next to it but a) it would be very awkward because the area was not designed for such a kludgy use & that would probably lower the value of the house & 2)I want to get rid of the tub because it takes up space that has no purpose whatsoever. It actually offends me to look at it.
Pangioni: We have a standard tub in the hallway bathroom between the 2 guest bedrooms.
Bud: I like your take on the situation.

Snoopcat
 
Resale value should only be concedered breifly, the most important thing is what you and the wife will enjoy while you are there.
 

Latest posts

Back
Top