2 Bedrooms + Den vs 3 Bedrooms

[shrubberyvaluation]

Subject: ~2500 SF GLA 1 story with no basement. Appears to originally of been built as a 3 bedroom, but a rear addition has been put on by the current owner which took away the egress from the one bedroom, making it a 2 bedroom + den. The "den" is located next to a full bath.

All the comps have 3 or 4 bedrooms.

My instinct is that a typical buyer would see it as a 3 bedroom house, much like when there is a room in the basement with some tiny window without meaningful egress next to a full bath that a buyer would see as a bedroom even though I report it as a den.


Would you just report the subject as a 2 bedroom and explain that a typical buyer would consider the den to have utility as a bedroom (assuming this is so) or something different? Obviously it would be nice to find something similar but its not always possible.

 

[CGinMN]

Conventional - 3 BR
FHA - 2 BR

Conventional there are no requirements so it’s your call. This is what the HUD handbook says.

 

[shrubberyvaluation]

Conventional - 3 BR
FHA - 2 BR

Its conventional, I'm curious on why the loan type matters.

 

[alebrewer]

There is no requirement for closet - just for two means of ingress/egress. As such, and assuming the market does primarily demand 3br relative to 2br, it seems it would be functional as a 3br - assuming the home did, in fact, have two living areas.

 

[Joe Flacco]

I report it as 2 bedrooms and a den. How to deal with the comps depends on what's available.

 

[CGinMN]

FHA is more concerned with safety, so they don’t want you to call something a bedroom if it doesn’t have safe egress. Fannie doesn’t really care, they don’t have any requirements, so it is how the market is most likely to perceive it, which is sounds like is as a bedroom. 2500sf is a lot for only 2 bedrooms. How many baths? Show us the floorplan.

 

[shrubberyvaluation]

FHA is more concerned with safety, so they don’t want you to call something a bedroom if it doesn’t have safe egress. Fannie doesn’t really care, they don’t have any requirements, so it is how the market is most likely to perceive it, which is sounds like is as a bedroom. 2500sf is a lot for only 2 bedrooms. How many baths? Show us the floorplan.

Not my sketch, and not saying measurements are correct or not, but the general floorplan can be seen here. The "bath" at the bottom right is a half bath. The sunroom is not an enclosed porch, it is similar quality to the rest of the dwelling. There is a doorway to the hallway or the sunroom for the bedroom/den in question.

 

[Joe Flacco]

Is that a window to the sunroom?

 

[shrubberyvaluation]

Is that a window to the sunroom?

Its a door. Was explained elderly person living there, was for emergency reasons to go through the sunroom to get out, person wouldn't be able to get through a window.

 

[CGinMN]

That is a weird floorplan, even without the addition. What year was this house built?