What to do with space?

Hi all,

I am currently working on a potential 6 unit development in Melbourne. Reversed living (living room & kitchen upstairs) 2 bedrooms, 2 toilets. Space is very tight.

Some statistics:

Age Statistics
20 to 39 30%
40 to 59 27%
5 to 19 22%
60+ 13%
0 to 4 7%

Education
Not Attending (Working) 74%
Infants/Primary 9%
Secondary Education 8%
University or other Tertiary Institution 3%
Technical or Further Education 3%

The architect has come back with the same design for all 6 units.

My questions are:

1. Currently there is a separate toilet from the bathroom. Would it be wise to remove the bathtub in the bathroom and replace it with a toilet? Then use that extra space for a walk in wardrobe or potentially have a bigger bathroom or study?
2. Would it make sense to vary the layout of each units?

e.g

- 2 with no bath tubs, but bigger bathrooms or study
- 2 have no bath tubs but have walk in wardrobes
- 2 have bath tubs and separate toilets?

Thanks,

Derrick
 
Bathtubs provide wider appeal to families (young kids take baths), separate wc is a waste of space imho (unless it is a powder room totally separate from the bathroom, the space saved can be used for storage.

Where's the laundry? You don't want to be carrying wet laundry down stairs. Utilise the space created from shifting the toilet.
 
Personally, I'd rate a separate toilet higher than a walk-in-robe, though walk in robes are great.
I think that families like baths and separate toilets.
I suspect that the toilet will be tucked away from toothbrushes and baths in times to come.
 
Hi all,

I am currently working on a potential 6 unit development in Melbourne. Reversed living (living room & kitchen upstairs) 2 bedrooms, 2 toilets. Space is very tight.

Some statistics:

Age Statistics
20 to 39 30%
40 to 59 27%
5 to 19 22%
60+ 13%
0 to 4 7%

Education
Not Attending (Working) 74%
Infants/Primary 9%
Secondary Education 8%
University or other Tertiary Institution 3%
Technical or Further Education 3%

The architect has come back with the same design for all 6 units.

My questions are:

1. Currently there is a separate toilet from the bathroom. Would it be wise to remove the bathtub in the bathroom and replace it with a toilet? Then use that extra space for a walk in wardrobe or potentially have a bigger bathroom or study?
2. Would it make sense to vary the layout of each units?

e.g

- 2 with no bath tubs, but bigger bathrooms or study
- 2 have no bath tubs but have walk in wardrobes
- 2 have bath tubs and separate toilets?

Thanks,

Derrick

I'm far from an architect so can't give you any construction advice but you've got statistics that should help you make your decision.
The majority of people in that suburb are aged 20-39 (aka child bearing age). So based on that there is likely to be a big chunk of your buyers being young couples (yes 39 is still young!) or young couples with a child. They will likely be professional couples due to the stats that show the demographic is mostly employed and not currently studying.

In a 2 bed property for this market it is my thoughts that one bathroom would be an ensuite (shower, vanity and toilet) which is for the adults and the other bathroom is the main bathroom containing bath, shower, vanity and toilet. This would be either the guest bathroom or the kid's bathroom depending on the individual buyers. In my view it's neither here nor there as to whether the toilet is in a seperate room but ideally the bath and shower should be seperate (ie avoid shower over bath scenario), if, to achieve that then the toilet has to go into the same room then so be it.

Floor plans should be designed to capture the best possible aspects. I personally don't like bedroom windows that face west, they get too hot in summer. Balconies, gardens, courtyards etc would ideally be off the north part of the building. So, it seems logical if the floor plans are all slightly different unless they all have exactly the same aspect. Have you considered this?

If you were a young couple let's say no kids yet but possible in the future and you were looking at your property then IMHO they would still prefer a property with at least one bath. The only time I think no bath is necessary is in small inner city properties where the bathroom is too small or the primary demographic is young singles.

Can I please ask why you are using a reversed living plan? These are quite polarizing and may turn off a lot of people.

Good luck
vtt
 
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I'm far from an architect so can't give you any construction advice but you've got statistics that should help you make your decision.
The majority of people in that suburb are aged 20-39 (aka child bearing age). So based on that there is likely to be a big chunk of your buyers being young couples (yes 39 is still young!) or young couples with a child. They will likely be professional couples due to the stats that show the demographic is mostly employed and not currently studying.

In a 2 bed property for this market it is my thoughts that one bathroom would be an ensuite (shower, vanity and toilet) which is for the adults and the other bathroom is the main bathroom containing bath, shower, vanity and toilet. This would be either the guest bathroom or the kid's bathroom depending on the individual buyers. In my view it's neither here nor there as to whether the toilet is in a seperate room but ideally the bath and shower should be seperate (ie avoid shower over bath scenario), if, to achieve that then the toilet has to go into the same room then so be it.

Floor plans should be designed to capture the best possible aspects. I personally don't like bedroom windows that face west, they get too hot in summer. Balconies, gardens, courtyards etc would ideally be off the north part of the building. So, it seems logical if the floor plans are all slightly different unless they all have exactly the same aspect. Have you considered this?

If you were a young couple let's say no kids yet but possible in the future and you were looking at your property then IMHO they would still prefer a property with at least one bath. The only time I think no bath is necessary is in small inner city properties where the bathroom is too small or the primary demographic is young singles.

Can I please ask why you are using a reversed living plan? These are quite polarizing and may turn off a lot of people.

Good luck
vtt

Hey VTT,

Thanks alot for your input.

The reason I have went for reversed living is so that i am able to fit more units on the site. Reverse living does not require the 30 m^2 open space requirement as a 8m^2 balcony is sufficient. That saves alot of space and hence why i am able to fit 6. The other reason is that it is a 7min walk from the station and a 30min train ride to the city. I would assume it would appeal to young professionals.

I understand that this may turn off alot of people, and there is only 1 comparable reverse living build in the whole suburb that i have found. All renting for $300+. Therefore i have decided to go with 2 standard builds and 3 reverse living. My goal is to keep 2. I shouldn't have an issue selling the 2 standards and selling 1 reverse living wont be impossible either.

I have also decided to go with 1 ensuite and 1 bathroom for all town houses.
 
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