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So, the bonus room is an addition to the original building, very well lit, and measures 12 x 21. It has a double door sized entrance from the house - this could be closed off to a single door, with the closet being put in on the side where it is closed off. This would leave a door going out to the back yard, which could be left or closed off. Conversion of the bonus room means someone would have to go through the living areas.
Sorry, but that's a patio that has been enclosed. It's never going to be appraised as a bedroom no matter what you do to it.
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Originally Posted by Divine_Madcat
All that craziness aside, another "saving grace" is that the home has a full 3 car garage (the overall roofed building is 2100sqf). From the floorplan, i can carve out a 24x20 for additional room, and still leave a 11x24 1 car garage.
No, no, no, never do that to a 3 car garage. Your future sale value will be in the toilet if you do. A 2/2 with a 1 car garage. That's 1940s and nobody is going to want it. A 3 car garage will make your 2/2 a lot more attractive in the future.
A 2 bedroom house will appraise lower than a 3 bedroom house, everything else being about equal. A 2 car garage house will appraise higher than a one car garage house, everything being equal.
I do think that if a 3 bedroom nearby just went for 300K, and you're under contract on a 2 bedroom at 294K, you're very likely to run into appraisal issues. On the other hand, the seller might drop the price for you.
Clearwater?
Going from a 2bd, to a 3bd, is about $28,000 appraisal wise.
EDIT~ Keep the 3-car garage. (Although, you might want to wall one stall off, then A/C it.)
1 stall for your pick-up, 1 stall for your golf cart. DONE!
There's a technique that you may be able to "pull off" with regards to your appraiser. Be pro-active. Supply "comps" in your area that have sold recently for a number that supports your offer. Then, eliminate the comps that don't support your offer...
Last edited by NORTY FLATZ; 11-22-2020 at 03:00 PM..
Reason: added stuff, ya know?
I think the point about the bathroom is probably the most valid in this case, as right now, conversation of the bonus room means someone would have to go through the living areas. Can't argue that.
My frustrations come from the idea that one house with the same number of physical rooms, could somehow be discounted and marked down, simply as a matter of what you can call them.
I could see a home with less actual room being less desirable, as I discounted smaller homes regardless of the room number.
How the rooms are bigger.. I would have to say that it just a well planned original home. There is very little wasted space with odd corners or hallways, so the rooms themselves are maximized well. The bonus room is built in a logical spot, and adds to the openess of the living area.
As for WFH - been doing that since March, with no problem in my two bed (rented) condo. We could use garage space for the toys and bikes, which is why I feel good about the home with 250 more living, and 750 extra storage/workspace).
I am hoping that what you say is how the appraisal out here will happen in the end. I look at the house there doors down, and see an identical unit, and feel optimistic. But since that last room is marked AS a bedroom, everyone here feels that it in no way could possibly compare...
Keep in mind, most appraisers don't want to stand in the way of a deal, unless it's grossly overpriced for the market. They understand that a meeting of the minds has taken place and that there is not only a desire to sell, but a desire to purchase at the price agreed upon. This, if it's close to market value, will keep most appraisers from interfering with the value of a home.
Sorry, but that's a patio that has been enclosed. It's never going to be appraised as a bedroom no matter what you do to it.
No, no, no, never do that to a 3 car garage. Your future sale value will be in the toilet if you do. A 2/2 with a 1 car garage. That's 1940s and nobody is going to want it. A 3 car garage will make your 2/2 a lot more attractive in the future.
No, then it would be a 3 (at least)/2 with a 1-1.5 garage. If I did any conversion, it would be done in a way so that it could legally be called a bedroom.
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Originally Posted by parentologist
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I do think that if a 3 bedroom nearby just went for 300K, and you're under contract on a 2 bedroom at 294K, you're very likely to run into appraisal issues. On the other hand, the seller might drop the price for you.
But that mindset makes no sense. It is the exact same sqft, except the one I am buying has more garage room! How is it sane that it could be worth less?
As it is, I found a 2/2 that sold two months ago, for 280. It is ~200sqft smaller, 2 car garage, and the same lot. Another 2/2 for 285, also smaller, and 1 car garage.
Damn, this process is freaking broken.....
Quote:
Originally Posted by NORTY FLATZ
Clearwater?
Going from a 2bd, to a 3bd, is about $28,000 appraisal wise.
EDIT~ Keep the 3-car garage. (Although, you might want to wall one stall off, then A/C it.)
1 stall for your pick-up, 1 stall for your golf cart. DONE!
There's a technique that you may be able to "pull off" with regards to your appraiser. Be pro-active. Supply "comps" in your area that have sold recently for a number that supports your offer. Then, eliminate the comps that don't support your offer...
Again, how could it possibly drop THAT much because of a closet???
Anyway, I want the garage space, because it is so freaking usable.
Sigh...
Good call on the comps though. I will be pulling 3/2 though, since those homes are comparable frankly, looking at room count and sqft..
Again, how could it possibly drop THAT much because of a closet???
I hear you. However, having a closet makes a room, a bedroom legally. (Probably a long time ago, this argument was settled in court, somewhere. Since then, this has become a legal requirement to be called a bedroom. Silly? It may be. But, it's the legal definition.) Since then, the industry has accepted this ruling, so there you have it.
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Anyway, I want the garage space, because it is so freaking usable.
Can't say I blame you, there. If COVID has taught us anything, it's that "space indoors is golden."
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Good call on the comps though. I will be pulling 3/2 though, since those homes are comparable frankly, looking at room count and sqft..
Any chance in adding a bedroom and keeping the 3-car garage? Would an "ADU" suffice as an add'l bedroom?
having a closet is not a legal definition. It's the standard in many places, but in others, like Massachusetts with many historic houses built before closets were normal to have, bedrooms are still "legal" bedrooms without one.
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Contrary to popular belief, a bedroom does not have to have a closet (or a walk-in) to be considered official (forget the en suite bathroom). Your significant other might disagree, but legally, at least in most states, it does not.
But that doesn't mean it's not an expectation of many buyers and a usage common to the real estate community in a particular location. And it sounds like it's more than the of a closet that makes the extra room in this house not seem to be perceived as a bedroom - esp. if as seems to be the case, it may have been a converted porch or something along those lines
having a closet is not a legal definition. It's the standard in many places, but in others, like Massachusetts with many historic houses built before closets were normal to have, bedrooms are still "legal" bedrooms without one.
But that doesn't mean it's not an expectation of many buyers and a usage common to the real estate community in a particular location. And it sounds like it's more than the of a closet that makes the extra room in this house not seem to be perceived as a bedroom - esp. if as seems to be the case, it may have been a converted porch or something along those lines
It is a legal definition in Florida, where the OP is buying a house. That is all that matters for this thread.
I hear you. However, having a closet makes a room, a bedroom legally. (Probably a long time ago, this argument was settled in court, somewhere. Since then, this has become a legal requirement to be called a bedroom. Silly? It may be. But, it's the legal definition.) Since then, the industry has accepted this ruling, so there you have it. Can't say I blame you, there. If COVID has taught us anything, it's that "space indoors is golden." Any chance in adding a bedroom and keeping the 3-car garage? Would an "ADU" suffice as an add'l bedroom?
Where is it that this "legality" appears in an actual law for purposes other than sewage capacity?
No, then it would be a 3 (at least)/2 with a 1-1.5 garage. If I did any conversion, it would be done in a way so that it could legally be called a bedroom.
But that mindset makes no sense. It is the exact same sqft, except the one I am buying has more garage room! How is it sane that it could be worth less?
As it is, I found a 2/2 that sold two months ago, for 280. It is ~200sqft smaller, 2 car garage, and the same lot. Another 2/2 for 285, also smaller, and 1 car garage.
Damn, this process is freaking broken.....
Again, how could it possibly drop THAT much because of a closet???
Anyway, I want the garage space, because it is so freaking usable.
Sigh...
Good call on the comps though. I will be pulling 3/2 though, since those homes are comparable frankly, looking at room count and sqft..
The market is overheated and supply is artificially low right now.
Odds are extremely good that life and the market returns to normal at some point in the future - you can’t count on selling this place in the future in an overheated market with basically 0% interest.
All the effort you’re expending to justify calling a 2 bedroom a three-bedroom-ish home will be exceeded by future buyers who will have proof that real three bedroom houses are worth more than two bedroom houses kludged into three-bedroom-ish houses. Garage conversions and nice porches converted to bedrooms aren’t viewed the same as homes cohesively designed to have three real bedrooms.
The easiest way to define the market is to step back and pretend that you’re the buyer. “I have $xxx to spend, and I want three bedrooms, what can I buy *today* for $xxx?”. That’s the market. Today, the market doesn’t have enough real three bedroom houses. Tomorrow, the market most likely *will* have a normal supply, because markets always normalize.
So, while a “nice” two bed at $294 might be appraisable *today* versus a three bedroom at $300k - that won’t be the case in any rational market. $6k for a real bedroom? How many dollars per month does that work out to for the buyer? Most are going to pay the $6k and never even see the two bedroom that is “only” a few $$ less. They’re *not* going to expand the search to include something they don’t want - a two bedroom kludged into a three bedroom-ish, kinda sorta.
This is a bad financial move for you long term. Buy a two bedroom based on two bedroom comps. They’re different animals and they don’t play well together.
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