Where does the "Kitchen & Bath" adage come from?

Question

I often hear that the kitchen & bath is most important but have no idea where this information came from; anyone know?

David Niles · Answer

They are the most important rooms to women and the wife/gf are the deciding factor in whether or not the house gets purchased.

Will Barnard · Answer

Pat makes a good point regarding changing inerior flow and layouts of non laod bearing walls, etc. Doing so can dramatically inbcrease value in a home.

I have seen and owned many homes that had poor flow or layout, then after remodel and money spent, the layout was fantastic and helped sell the property for top dollar.

Pat L. · Answer

In addition to the K&B renovations....
When I go in to rehab a property I look for ways to increase closet sizes & add a half bath.
I took one old home that sat for 4 months & flipped all the closets from each room into the adjoining closet. That effectively doubled the closet space in ea room. But I lost a closet in the master. BUT I found space off the master bath & added above the garage a 20x10 walk in closet. We also took a walk through between the basement door & living room that created useless dead space & made it a walk in pantry.
What a difference. 
Another thing we do for ranches is add a cedar lined very well sealed walk in closet in the basement for the seasonal clothing storage.
Another trick we do (ranches) is add a large walk in closet as an abutment to the master b/room if architecturally feasible.

David Turner · Answer

I think the reason that Kitchen and Bath's are so important is that there is that much more to them than the other rooms.  Aside from a new coat of paint and maybe new flooring, what are you gonna do for the bedrooms?  Most of a house is just walls with some doors and windows.

How else do you set your house apart from the others?  You can't change location or lot size and its very costly to change square footage.

When it comes down to it, there is just more "design" that can be done in these two rooms than in the others.

John Mireles · Answer

It's really just common sense. If you're going to fix up a property, where are you going to put your money? Everyone needs a kitchen. Everyone needs a bathroom. You can put a pool with waterslide in the backyard but we all know that's a waste. Or you can pimp out the garage, but what if your buyers are a couple of computer programmers who just park the hybrid in the garage and shut out the lights? If you've got a killer kitchen and bathroom, people will overlook barebones landscaping and other flaws. But if your kitchen and bathroom aren't up to snuff, you've got a fixer on your hands - and the price goes way down.

David Niles · Answer

Heres another study, look up who has the most input in important financial decisions like buying a home.  That would be the women.

Huggy Baird · Answer

Here is a link to what Steven Straughn is brought up:
http://www.remodeling.hw.net/2011/costvsvalue/national.aspx

I've never found their research useful in changing the way I do business.

Xing Zhu · Answer

On  resort websites, 1/2 means 1 bed and two baths.
If this fad continues, we'll see more houses with more baths than beds.

Steven Straughn · Answer

The idea that kitchen and bath upgrades are most important comes from many studies conducted by groups like the National Association of the Remodeling Industry (NARI), who put out figures on how much money you are likely to "get back" upon sale. They survey realtors and other RE industry pros and compile lots of data. I can't speak to how accurate their reports are, or to how whether or not their methodology has biases. Of course, kitchen and bath remodelers latch on to this information and run with it. Hence, it has become conventional wisdom.

Will Barnard · Answer

I am not sure it is an adage or exactly what your question is. If it relates to the value of a home is based in large part to the bed bath combination, I would disagree. While hey are certainly factors, size of home, lot and location are factors that weigh more to value.

Where does the "Kitchen & Bath" adage come from?

Most Popular Reply