----- Original Message -----
From: "Owain"
Newsgroups: uk.d-i-y
Sent: Tuesday, December 28, 2004 9:27 PM
Subject: house layout vs. return on investment ??


"brugnospamsia" wrote
| I have a rather inconveniently laid out victorian terrace with the
| stairs in between the two rooms upstairs and down which means that
| you have to walk through the back bedroom to get to the bathroom -
| unless you halve the floor area by making a corridor around the edge
| - thus spoiling the better bedroom.
| http://uk.geocities.com/gentlegreeng...outchanges.JPG

I think exactly this problem came up on Property Ladder and the advice was
*definately* make the bathroom accessible not through a bedroom. The
property isn't really a *two* bedroom house without it. In that case the
solution was to put a corridor down one side of the bedroom.

For the rental market, two house-sharing adults will not tolerate the only
bathroom (and loo) being through a bedroom, and most families will be put
off it as well. This will also affect the resale value.

I would suggest not using a 'folding screen' between the back bedroom and
the corridor but a proper wall. It will probably be required for B Regs
compliance anyway.

thanks mate - my intention was to fit a permanent wall if I ever had to sell
or rent out the house.
I handnt thought about building regs - I was half planning to fit fire doors
in any case - prefer the appearance too - though no doubt the buying public
will require I swap them for cheap panelled (fire-rated) doors if I were to
sell.
(Or if my made-over house lumbered me with a social life improved to the
extent of regular house guests !)


Bear in mind, however, that replacing the staircase with a new one in a
different location / orientation may require full compliance with current
Building Regulations for the staircase, as well as for the new walls etc.

On the ground floor, I would suggest that the layout of the rooms is the
wrong way round; the dining room should be closer to the kitchen. What
many
people will prefer is a larger lounge and a kitchen-diner.

I plan to be so mimimal and organised that I can reverse the room functions
in a flash if I were selling. I cause less annoyance to my neighbours by
having HIFI and TV in back room. I currently have plasterboard nailed over
the old glazed door and an attempt at soundproofing in the alcoves.
Formal dining for me is a very low priority. I currently plan to move most
of the kitchen functions into the front room. Coming up with a worthwhile
kitchen for resale purposes will be a real challenge with the existing one
being only 6 ft x 8 ft 6" internally. I can see I'll have to have to plan
for a future "selling layout".


What you might consider is putting in a U shaped staircase, with its head
in
your proposed 'new' location to serve the bedrooms and bathroom; but with
its base towards the rear of the house, i.e. taking the dividing wall
between the downstairs and back rooms backwards to give a larger lounge.
Open up between the kitchen and the back room to make a kitchen-diner with
a
french door to the garden. Drawback to the U is making an alcove in the
upstairs room to accommodate the non-straight-line headroom.

Sample rough-up diagram is at (5.3kB)
http://www.stirlingcity.co.uk/ofc1/houselayout.png

thanks mate ! - looks great but it's a bit more rad than I had in mind - the
house is a centre valley so I can see structural engineers and tonnes of
steel involved here ! (and no doubt underpinning of the single brick party
walls - I'm hoping to avoid having to consult the neighbours ! )

you certainly get great service in uk.d-i-y :-)

Jeremy


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