Q. I’m currently refurbishing my one-bedroom apartment and have decided to remove the bath and replace it with a double shower instead. Given I intend to rent the property at some point in the future I was wondering if this may affect the chances of renting and possible resale much later on? I’m thinking it’s the modern approach and most people would prefer a great shower to a bath, am I right?
A. Given it’s a one-bedroom apartment I don’t believe this will impact any future resale or rental of the property if the rest of the apartment is renovated to a high standard and benefits from good quality furniture throughout. For rentals, most tenants are looking for a property that’s in a great location and is finished to a high standard, something that stands out form the crowd when they are browsing the portals basically. Potentially if someone is buying the property they could have an issue with this if they happen to enjoy taking a bath but it would certainly not be something that would put buyers off if everything else was ticking their boxes, given most buyers like to put their own stamp on the property once they become the owners. However, if in the future you were to considering doing the same to a larger property with multiple bathrooms I would advise keeping a bath in at least one of the bathrooms as this could prove to be a problem when someone is purchasing a larger home given they are usually looking for versatility, and most would consider a bath in a least one of the bathrooms to be a given. Of course, there are some very good options on the market today where you can still benefit from a powerful standalone shower head that is fitted over a bath. All in all, its most important to ensure your home is comfortable so you enjoy the pleasures of living there as long as you don’t impact the space, e.g. knock one bedroom into another to create a larger room but lose a bedroom in the process. Reducing a three bedroom into a two bedroom would never be a smart move and reduce the value of the property overnight.