Author Topic: Squeezing in a bathroom?  (Read 1671 times)

Jon Bon

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1664
  • Location: Midwest
Squeezing in a bathroom?
« on: March 16, 2018, 06:45:50 AM »
So Currently I have a 5 bedroom 2 bath double, and I am thinking about adding a 3rd Bathroom

The house is set up like so:


3rd Floor: BR/BR
2nd Floor: BR/BR/BR/Full Bath
1st: Kitchen/Full Bath/Dining/Living

So folks on the third floor have no bathroom on their level, and have to tramp down 1 or 2 flights of stairs in a towel. Taking a shower on the main floor then having to walk back up stairs does not sound like the ideal situation.

Also both bathrooms are pretty small.  The third floor has 1 small bedroom, a common closet and 1 huge bedroom. I am relatively sure I can put a small bathroom in the closet, and steal some surrounding space, move the closet etc. So lets assume I can fit a small bathroom up there for a reasonable cost.

Has anyone done this? I am conservatively thinking this would raise rents by around 5-10% In addition to producing higher rents I just think it would make it a more functional and desirable unit to rent. Say the payback period is +-3 years.

What say you?

clarkfan1979

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 3352
  • Age: 44
  • Location: Pueblo West, CO
Re: Squeezing in a bathroom?
« Reply #1 on: March 18, 2018, 11:40:08 AM »
It probably wouldn't add enough value as a rental to be worth it. If you are looking to sell, it might sell faster with a 3rd bathroom.

Miss Piggy

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1549
Re: Squeezing in a bathroom?
« Reply #2 on: March 18, 2018, 04:05:44 PM »
So Currently I have a 5 bedroom 2 bath double, and I am thinking about adding a 3rd Bathroom


I've never seen a house described as a "double." What does that mean in this context? (Duplex?)

Jon Bon

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1664
  • Location: Midwest
Re: Squeezing in a bathroom?
« Reply #3 on: March 19, 2018, 06:00:03 AM »
So Currently I have a 5 bedroom 2 bath double, and I am thinking about adding a 3rd Bathroom


I've never seen a house described as a "double." What does that mean in this context? (Duplex?)

Yes duplex, 5 beds 2 baths each side.

So lets assume that it WOULD increase rent.

Paid: 300k
Current Rent: 1500 a side.
New Rent: ?????


What would it take for you to make them move? When would it be a good enough value prop to make it happen. Assume renovations would be $4,000-8,000 per bathroom.

Linea_Norway

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 8569
  • Location: Norway
Re: Squeezing in a bathroom?
« Reply #4 on: March 19, 2018, 06:05:59 AM »
Do you have anywhere to lead the water from the new to build bathroom? You'll need to connect it to your sewage system, which is probably a floow lower. I think the new bathroom should be above the bathroom on the second floor. You would need to build a narrow channel in the bathroom on the second floor to lead the water from third floor to second floor. And then you still need to connect it somehow to the sewage system that is in the floor. Normally those connections are build into the concrete floor, under the bathroom tiles. How are you going to solve this? Sounds like a very large job to me.

Jon Bon

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1664
  • Location: Midwest
Re: Squeezing in a bathroom?
« Reply #5 on: March 19, 2018, 06:34:02 AM »
Do you have anywhere to lead the water from the new to build bathroom? You'll need to connect it to your sewage system, which is probably a floow lower. I think the new bathroom should be above the bathroom on the second floor. You would need to build a narrow channel in the bathroom on the second floor to lead the water from third floor to second floor. And then you still need to connect it somehow to the sewage system that is in the floor. Normally those connections are build into the concrete floor, under the bathroom tiles. How are you going to solve this? Sounds like a very large job to me.

It would be a large job, and I am familiar with the aspects that you mentioned.

I am mainly looking for a payback that experienced RE investors would find acceptable. If it cost 4800 bucks to do, raises rent by 100 bucks, that's a 4 year payback. Is that good enough to do the project?

*I know I am leaving my labor out of the equation, but I am semi-fired so we can leave it out*




Katrina

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 5
Re: Squeezing in a bathroom?
« Reply #6 on: March 22, 2018, 07:34:48 AM »
Reading your post was like reading about the apartment I own with the exact same situation.  Three floors, bathroom on first and second floor, small bedroom and huge bedroom with closet on third floor with tenants having to tramp down one and two floors to use the bathroom.

I added a nice-sized bathroom on the third floor by demolishing the closet and bumping the bathroom into the huge bedroom.

For me, adding a bathroom on the third floor was all about increasing the apartment's rentability.  Tenants don't want to have to walk down a flight of stairs to use the bathroom in the middle of the night and they really like the convenience of having a shower on the same floor as their bedroom.  The goal of every landlord is to be able to rent out apartments to good tenants and the bottom line is the more bathrooms an apartment has, the more people will be interested in it and the easier it will be to rent to good tenants

There are the nuts and bolts issues involved with installing a bathroom.  Your proposed bathroom needs to be relatively close to the stack so that you can tap into it for your waste line.  You'll need to put pitch on the waste line from the 3" toilet line.  Our apartment was old and only had 2x6 joists so running the waste line was tight.  You also need to know which way your joists are running so you know if you'll be running parallel to them or through them.  You'll also need to grab on to water supply lines from the second floor so you'll need to know where they are relative to your new bathroom.

When we added the third floor bathroom we eliminated a big closet.  We replaced the closet with new closets to compensate.

Except for the drywall, I did most of the work on this project with a friend.  I don't remember the cost.  I'd guess it was around $5000.  Return on investment was not involved in my decision making although we did gain a modest increase in rent.  We plan to keep this apartment building for a long time. Our decision was based solely on making the unit attractive to renters so that we'd land good renters.

Jon Bon

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1664
  • Location: Midwest
Re: Squeezing in a bathroom?
« Reply #7 on: March 22, 2018, 08:26:16 AM »
Reading your post was like reading about the apartment I own with the exact same situation.  Three floors, bathroom on first and second floor, small bedroom and huge bedroom with closet on third floor with tenants having to tramp down one and two floors to use the bathroom.

I added a nice-sized bathroom on the third floor by demolishing the closet and bumping the bathroom into the huge bedroom.

For me, adding a bathroom on the third floor was all about increasing the apartment's rentability.  Tenants don't want to have to walk down a flight of stairs to use the bathroom in the middle of the night and they really like the convenience of having a shower on the same floor as their bedroom.  The goal of every landlord is to be able to rent out apartments to good tenants and the bottom line is the more bathrooms an apartment has, the more people will be interested in it and the easier it will be to rent to good tenants

There are the nuts and bolts issues involved with installing a bathroom.  Your proposed bathroom needs to be relatively close to the stack so that you can tap into it for your waste line.  You'll need to put pitch on the waste line from the 3" toilet line.  Our apartment was old and only had 2x6 joists so running the waste line was tight.  You also need to know which way your joists are running so you know if you'll be running parallel to them or through them.  You'll also need to grab on to water supply lines from the second floor so you'll need to know where they are relative to your new bathroom.

When we added the third floor bathroom we eliminated a big closet.  We replaced the closet with new closets to compensate.

Except for the drywall, I did most of the work on this project with a friend.  I don't remember the cost.  I'd guess it was around $5000.  Return on investment was not involved in my decision making although we did gain a modest increase in rent.  We plan to keep this apartment building for a long time. Our decision was based solely on making the unit attractive to renters so that we'd land good renters.

THANK YOU!

Ok so it sounds like you understand the issue. I actually have 2 bedrooms on the third floor. So a bathroom up there is even more needed. Yes getting the waste pipe mounted horizontally will be difficult, vertically, I already have a path for other utilities so I dont see it as a huge issue. Obviously it is going to be a big job and I might spread it out over 2 years. There is nothing in it that I have not done before so I am not concerned about the technical aspects of the job.

My rentals are in a college area, so sometimes they do more then 1 person per bedroom, with turnover ever 1 to 2 years so I could work on it then. Initially my though was to try to frame and drywall everything, that way worst case they tenants have 2 massive closets up there in the short term, then install all the fixtures.

I also am going to reach out to my tenant moving in this fall and see if they would hypothetically pay more rent for more bathrooms.