Map Out Your Bathroom Renovation

Undertaking a major bathroom renovation can be intimidating. For one, the choices are
overwhelming.  If your plan is to update your home to sell it or to finally create a dream space for aging in place, get some help mapping your project by looking at the new 2019 U.S. Houzz Bathroom Trends Study  It gives you a read on what’s in and what’s out, what’s motivating home remodelers, and how much they’re spending on bathroom upgrades.

Spending

It turns out that homeowners are willing to make a big investment in master bathroom
renovations. The median spent on master bathroom remodels increased from $7,000 in 2017 to $8,000 in 2018 nationally, and from $10,100 to $12,000 during the same period for major master bathroom remodels.

Functional limitations

Maybe you’re finally planning a renovation because your bathroom just looks outdated. That’s a common motivator, and Houzz found that it was the reason 59% of renovators decided to tackle a bathroom upgrade. Functional limitations also were drivers, including small showers (38%), insufficient storage (37%), insufficient lighting (29%), limited counter space (28%), and poor ventilation (27%).

Showers vs. tubs

Nearly half of renovated bathrooms don’t have a tub: 20 percent didn’t have one before a
renovation and 24% of renovators removed it. Eighty-three percent of homeowners upgraded the shower and 54% enlarged it.

Style questions

A major renovation also is a terrific time for you to embrace an entirely new aesthetic.
Nine in 10 homeowners changed the style of their master bathroom during a renovation.
During the last two years, transitional and modern styles got more popular, increasing to 21% and 22% in 2019, respectively. Less popular were contemporary (16%) and traditional (9%) styles. Other style-related items included adding an accent wall (35%), new mirrors (77%), toilets with high-tech features (growing form 28% in 2018 to 34% in 2019) and installing vinyl/resilient and engineered wood flooring materials (growing from 6% in 2017 to 10% in 2019).
Medicine cabinets got more attention during renovations, with 31% homeowners upgrading their medicine cabinets. Forty percent chose custom or semi-custom cabinets (40%) and a majority recessed the cabinet into the wall (68%). Premium features on those cabinets included mirrors and lighting on the inside and outside, and anti-fog systems (12%). If you’ve had your eye on some luxury items, consider some of the most common splurges. They included rainfall shower heads (58%), dual showers (23%), body sprayers (16%), thermostatic mixers (12%), mood lighting (5%), digital controls (5%),and shower heads with LEDs (2%). Cleanliness, a lack of clutter, neutral tones, and gray or white flooring and walls all have worked in concert to contribute to a spa-like environment and to create a relaxing sanctuary for homeowners, found Houzz.

*Content From SRES NEWLETTER DECEMBER 2019