Reasonable amount of space for a 4 bedroom house hack?

Question

Howdy y’all.

I just bought my first house that I am currently updating and remodeling. It’s not a big house, 2 stories tall 1600sf and 3bed/2.5bath. I’ve been going back and forth in my mind about the best way to handle this investment. I’ve been planning to delete the family room and laundry room and turn them into another bedroom and full bath, so that I would have 4 bed/3.5 bath.

This has been my game plan since I bought the house, but I’m starting to have second thoughts about it. I know that 4 people is a lot for such a small space. Basically the whole house will be bedroom or bathroom with the exception of the good-sized kitchen, large, open, dining room, and decent sized living room.

As of right now I’m planning to rent the two spare bedrooms upstairs and make the 4th bedroom an office, and see how the house hack goes, but I was curious if any of you have any experience or thoughts that you could share with me?

Thank you!!

Adam Wayne · Answer

I should have specified that the laundry machines are being relocated to the garage

Greta Clav · Answer

No one likes going to the laundromat. That will a negative strike against your property whether you are renting or selling.

Greta Clav · Answer

Along the line of a comment above by @Adam Wayne, I would take into account the location. What are renters' expectations for that location? Also do you plan to keep the house long-term ? If not, would a buyer see value in a small 4th bdrm ?

Andrew Postell · Answer

@Adam Wayne my general recommendation here is to follow what your comps are. Meaning, if you spend X amount of money on certain upgrades....but no comparable properties have those upgrades, then you will never recoup the money you invested in those upgrades. This is essentially call "over improving" a property. Same with "under improving" a property also. If your upgrades aren't up to the standards of the neighborhood/comps then that will hurt you in the long run as well. Our money is finite...so use it wisely.

Hope all of that makes sense.

Ryan Thomson · Answer

@Adam Wayne love the hustle! As long as you have some common space 1600sqft is big enough for four bedrooms. 2.5 baths is more than enough for 4 people. I think I would just convert the easiest room (or the one that makes the most sense). I would choose between the dining room, living room, or family room.

Its not too difficult to make an extra bedroom. Sometimes all you have to do is add a door and a closet.

In Colorado Springs, if you want the extra bedroom to show up on the county assessor's site you may want to consider doing it with a permit. However, that might not be worth the headache.

Tim Miller · Answer

@Adam Wayne Our house is a split foyer 1047 sqft 3 bd 1 full bath and 1 1/2 bath. We finished off the basement with a bedroom and full bath, added a galley kitchen. We rent that for $2k a mo and only rent 1 of our bdrms on the main floor for $800.

Living with others in the same space (year after year) wears on you and if you get a roommate that you can't stand after the 2nd or 3rd month. It can be painful.

I would stick with the current setup you have. If you have a basement, look to see if you can turn it into another living space and rent out.

Conner Olsen · Answer

I'd look at the cost to make it a 4 bedroom, the increase in rent, the neighborhood sales comps for a similar set up without a family room, and the cost to turn it back into a 3/2.5. From there you can look at the cost/benefit of the renovations.

Julian Colvard · Answer

The amount of space, whether you add a bed & bath or not, is enough. What really matters is the bed to bath ratio which you will have either way. So long as you have at least 1 bathroom for every 2 bedrooms/residents, you will be fine.

What's goal of the house-hack?

Reasonable amount of space for a 4 bedroom house hack?

Reasonable amount of space for a 4 bedroom house hack?

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