Would a downstairs bathroom be a no deal for you?

hazyjo

Definitely a dealbreaker for me.

If kids are on the agenda, it's not a great choice. A friend of mine is in the process of having an upstairs loo & sink squeezed into a bedroom as her two young kids have had 'accidents' on the stairs several times now. Even worse if you (or family) are ill and throwing up/something worse. You just want your own bed and a loo nearby!

Also agree it puts people off and anything that restricts the number of people you can sell your house on to (especially in a market like this) isn't a great thing.

On the other hand, in some areas, it's fairly common, so just go with what feels right for you.

My ex's family had a downstairs bathroom off the kitchen. I hated coming out of the bathroom after showering if his mum was there cooking, or even using the loo, just awful. And even silly things like doing makeup, or having hair products on your hands and needing to wash it off is a pain as you have to go back downstairs again. You get very used to stocking up on wet wipes lol!

Jx

Annabee

It would be a bit of a pain, I think, and would put me off.

Growing up, my friend's house was like this, but she had a washbasin in her bedroom. (Very 70s I know, but quite useful if you don't have room for an en-suite!) This would be better than nothing. Any chance of having that put in?

kr15snw

I wouldn’t be keen on it, but I know people who are used to it and have no problems.

Think about the following:

*Are you happy going downstairs for a pee in the middle of the night?
* Do you / have you got kids? This can be a plus point having a toilet downstairs.
* Will you be having guests to stay? Remember they will also have to go downstairs in the middle of the night for a pee?

PancakeP

Thanks for viewpoints everyone - super helpful!

sismith42

I'd prefer only a downstairs loo to only an upstairs one to be honest (though a wc downstairs and a full bathroom upstairs would be ideal). Also, bear in mind regulations where you live (if you do end up buying one like this but with bigger rooms upstairs): in Edinburgh at least, accessibility needs to be taken into account when changing things, so I don't think you could just rip out a downstairs loo and replace it with an upstairs one.

JimmyTheWig

Our first house had a downstairs bathroom, past the kitchen again.
Was fine, other than when my wife was pregnant which made nighttime toilet trips annoying.

Was quite a big sticking point when we came to sell.

Just to clarify from your description of the layout...
1. You must have two doors between a toilet and the kitchen. This is a legal health and safety issue.
2. You don't really have to go through the bathroom to get to the garden, do you?

I'm guessing it's like ours was where the back door is off a "lobby" behind the kitchen, which the bathroom is also off. Thus giving access to the garden and two doors between kitchen and bathroom.
In which case the other thing to note is that you don't (other than from the bathroom) have a window looking out into your back garden.

PancakeP

My description of the layout is a little bit uncertain as there's no floorplan on the particulars.
This is part of the write up for it;-
Lounge/Dining Room

20' 3" x 12' 10" (6.17m x 3.91m) Feature fire surround with tiled hearth, wood effect flooring, understairs storage cupboard, radiator, secondary glazed window, door to....


Kitchen

9' 3" x 7' 0" (2.82m x 2.13m) Inc Units: Wall and base units, work surfaces, sink and drainer unit with mixer tap, tiled splashbacks, gas cooker point, tiled floor, stairs to first floor, single glazed window, door to utility room, door to....


Bathroom/WC

Suite comprising claw foot roll top bath, shower cubicle, wash hand basin with mixer tap, low level WC, tiled floor, radiator, extractor fan, two double glazed windows


Utility Room

18' 11" x 4' 11" (5.77m x 1.5m) Inc Unit: Plumbing for washing machine, sink and drainer unit with mixer tap, base unit, wall mounted boiler, radiator, double glazed window, double glazed door


So it sounds like there is a door direct from kitchen to bathroom? Rather than kitchen to utility to bathroom??

celyn90

My parents house has the bathroom at the end of the galley kitchen. The seperate loo is in a sort of outhouse also off to the kitchen through another door. It's a 1930's semi.


cel x

sismith42

yes, or the bathroom and utility room descriptions got switched in an edit/by mistake. It's hard to tell from here whether you're trying to talk yourself into or out of this place without even viewing it...? Just go see it, and then decide if it's too annoying or if it's fine :-)

JimmyTheWig

Technically from the description there are three doors off the kitchen. One back to the lounge, one to the bathroom and one to the utility room.

If it's a question of money, I'd say ours would have sold for £10k more if the bathroom was upstairs. If you're thinking in terms of selling it on, it's got to be a consideration. But it's not the end of the world.