When I look at new developments or watch too much million dollar listing, I get the impression that people really want a master bath that has both a shower and a tub. My husband finds this absurd bc it's hard to imagine a situation in which one person wants to take a bath while another is showering. He thinks a bigger shower is better (so long as another bathroom has a tub. What do people think?

I think the majority of buyers would like both in their master suite. There is nothing like taking a long soak in your own master bathroom tub. But that's not everyone as your husband proves, but in my opinion as a broker most clients would not be happy with just a large shower.

Keith Burkhardt
TBG

Thank you, Keith.

When we were looking, an item at the top of our "must-have" list was a big walk-in shower. As people who never take soaks (long or otherwise), a tub just seemed like a huge waste of space. Our 2nd bathroom has a tub, but it's only been used for.....guess what?....taking a shower.

To each his/her own, your mileage may vary.

kids dont take showers. they need tubs.

Good point, Alanhart. I like the idea, myself. Honestly as it is a loft and not the conventional master-bath situation but rather the larger of 2 or 2.5 potential bathrooms, I'm trying to figure out how valuable it is to cater to that idea of luxury. What about one bathroom where the tub is a nice, full, non-shower tub and one where the shower is a nice, big shower? Given that neither is exactly en suite (here's where turning commercial space into living space really pays off;) is it still a negative?

In my first condo that I purchased pre-construction I had option of a nice massive shower or soaker tub and shower combo. I have not taken a bath since I was 6, so immediately went with shower, which is way nicer to look at. People said I was an idiot after, due to resale and fact that a lot of people, mostly women apparently, enjoy taking baths. Who knew? But I love the big shower and don't miss the tub.

The one I don't get is the need for two sinks in a master.

"The one I don't get is the need for two sinks in a master." This need arises from the need to remain happily married.

Check out penthouses A and E at 180E79, as originally constructed: http://www.columbia.edu/cgi-bin/dlo?obj=ldpd_YR_0501_MH_001_001&size=large

Each main bedroom has two baths, so no scheduling issues, knocks on the door, other people's junk, etc.

I get the two sink thing, because I end up carting my stuff over to the kids bathroom while my husband reinvents the art of shaving.

Is it better to have 2.5 baths or 2 baths with one being a shower & tub (presuming none are "en suite"). I feel like for practical purposes 2.5 is clearly better, but I sense it's not perceived as such...

Three bedroom apartment. Can be four, but then two of the bedrooms are small. I don't think I can squeeze in 3 baths. Could do 2.5, though.

As for the familyguy handle, it's a shared account.

Thank you, aboutready. I will mull that over. My fear is that if I try to cram in too many baths, they will all feel cramped. I'm sort of the two-clean-pirouettes over three-sloppy-pirouettes mindset, but I get your point about the market.

That's an idea.

Coming from someone who never uses bathtub, it is an absolute must have for resale as every woman dreams of having a bath with bathsalts, flowers and aromatherapy candles. Whether they actually do that is a different story.

Most important question is "what do you (and husband) want?". If you don't need a master bath plus master shower, feel free to maximize space for yourselves. I have no data, but doubt (contra Keith) that "most" buyers want both in master, as a great many buyers don't care about a master tub at all. "Most" buyers do want a tub somewhere, however, so if your 2nd bath has one you can check off that box.

But a lot of buyers who do not have small children do not care about tubs. Depends on your overall layout: a 2,000SF loft that is very sophisticated might be set up with one true bedroom (and maybe a guest sleeping area). A full 2nd bath w/o tub can fit in fine for that buyer group.

Having both in the master is a luxury that might take budgetary room from something else you want. I would suggest you spend your dollars where they give you the most smiles, and let the resale market take care of itself down the road, even if that resulted in a no-tub layout. You cannot predict what aesthetic or design choices will shrink some future buyer pool, except that some of your choices *will*. Again, trade your dollars for your smiles, and the longer you are there before testing the market the longer you will have the benefit of some of those smiles.

And if you go for a really large shower and no master tub, you can deal with the resale issues down the line (if they arise) by offering a credit to replace the huge shower with a shower+tub. You may still shrink the buyer pool with that set-up, but you win back some of those buyers with a cash concession. You can't please everybody ....

"Coming from someone who never uses bathtub, it is an absolute must have for resale as every woman dreams of having a bath with bathsalts, flowers and aromatherapy candles."

Woman here, and I've never dreamt of having a bath with bathsalts, flowers, yadda yadda. Every time I get such an item as a "hostess gift", it sits around collecting dust, till I finally throw it out.

I concur with SMattingly above, on all points.

The op's question is "what do people want?" I assume they know what they want.

SMattingly, loft guy is that you? If so, i'm a fan of your blog. I take your point. I have kids so I need to have at least one tub, but maybe don't need to cram a second one into the "master." It is tough to predict a future market since it's oddly bedroom-friendly for a loft (families) but not in a particularly family friendly nabe.

But hoping I still have your attention, if this is loft guy, do you know anyone who restores steel windows?

If only I had any quaaludes or party guests to steal them...most of my guests are too short to reach the medicine cabinet and, I suspect, already well-supplied with ritalin.

Small one bedroom. Considering doing a bathroom renovation. Keep the tub or put in a shower stall?

Thanks Alanhart. I was considering a stall since the demographic for a one bedroom doesn't include buyers with kids.

AR, I think it's like the imaginary entertaining people have in mind when they buy apts or the never-used Viking stove. Lately, I see NYC kitchens with Agas, which we had in UK when I was little but mostly bc it was a boon in a cold, damp climate when you had lacked good (or any) central heat.

Agas generate a lot of heat, if memory serves. It's an oven that's always on. Great in Scotland but maybe not in NYC.

Alanhart, you're starting to sound like something from Lewis Carroll;)

i've had chronic back pain and often take baths to treat it.

When I was looking to buy i was surprised at how many bathrooms didn't have tubs. For me it was an automatic deal breaker.

Yup, "Guy", that's me. But I don't know of a steel window restorer. Will ask around and post a "to Family Guy" note here if I find one, but you will probably get a good response yourself asking in a new SE thread.

THX for reading the blog. If you'd care to share some of your renovation story, email me at the address on the blog. Regardless, good luck!

Thank you! I'll be sure to send pictures. It's going to be quite a process.

"My husband finds this absurd bc it's hard to imagine a situation in which one person wants to take a bath while another is showering."

That's not the reason why you'd want to have both.

Quite often, when you're in between bathroom cleanings, you really really really NEED to take a nice long hot soak after a brutal day at work, but you really don't feel like pulling out the cleaning supplies to scrub the tub back to its pristine shine before taking your dip.

Also, many soaks involve oils and bath salts that require you to rinse off *after* the bath. Being able to step right into a shower from the bathtub saves the 10 minutes of standing there, dripping, waiting for the bathwater to drain before you rinse off in the shower.

Any issue with lending when a tub it added to a bathroom without DOB permits?