The question comes up quite often online.  Someone will ask a forum or message board to explain the definition of a bedroom.  There are always different answers on the boards depending on many factors.  Here’s the best definition of a bedroom in St. Louis area real estate, and keep in mind, this can change at any time.  Below is from our real estate board of directors.

“a bedroom must be up to code based on municipality, or local authority.  Reasonable room size, ceiling height, closets (exception for historical properties), egress/ingress, permanent heat source, and cannot be tandem (if tandem only one of the two rooms can be counted as a bedroom”

The Definition Of A Bedroom Is Different Across The Country

Just because we have a definition of a bedroom here in St. Louis, that doesn’t mean that it is the same somewhere else.  Some municipalities don’t require heat sources, some have more strict requirements.

The Definition Of A Bedroom For Real Estate Can Be Different Than In Another Field

Architects, engineers, municipalities, local customs can all influence the definition of a bedroom.  When I walk through a house, I’m usually looking for a closet and doors. I’m also looking for tax records and prior listing information to help determine what a bedroom is and what isn’t.

Don’t Confuse Bedrooms For Other Rooms

Oftentimes, in basements you will find rooms with beds, but because there is no egress, it’s not a bedroom.  It isn’t a bedroom, but it is still a room.  It just happens to have a bed in it.  Some home buyers will look at a listing and buy a home that says it’s a three bedroom, then turn around a few years later and market the home as a 5 bedroom thinking they got a steal of a deal when they bought the house.  That doesn’t work out so well over the long term.

Why Should You Care About The Number Of Bedrooms?

The biggest reason you should consider the number of bedrooms is because that is how a house is traditionally listed.  When home buyers are looking for their new home, one of the criteria they usually set is bedrooms.  If you have a 2 bedroom home, and the buyer criteria is 3 bedrooms, your house isn’t going to show up.

Can You Have ½ Bedrooms?

I’ve written about the definition of a bathroom previously.  While it is common to have a ½ bathroom listed in a home for sale, you aren’t going to see a half bedroom.  You can only really have a full bedroom or none at all.

Is Bedroom Count The Most Important Thing In A Home Purchase?

This is my opinion:  Don’t concern yourself with the bedroom count as much as square footage of the home.  Why do I say that?  It’s because people get really silly with bedroom count to the point where it takes away from the home.  Let’s go over an example.  Assume you are looking at two houses for sale in the same neighborhood.  Let’s say one house is 3 bedrooms and 2,000 square feet, and let’s say the other house is 5 bedrooms and 1,000 square feet.  Which house are you going to buy?  All other things being equal, I bed you would choose the 3 bedroom home.  Why?  Because it’s 1,000 square feet larger than the 5 bedroom home.  Do you know how small the rooms would have to be in a 5 bedroom home at 1,000 square feet?  The house would be terrible.

I understand that as we move along, kids want their own bedrooms, live in family members want their own bedrooms, and I’m not saying that carving up a house into more bedrooms than it should have is necessarily a bad thing.  All I want to point out is that buying a home based on the definition of a bedroom is probably not the best way to go about it.  You have to look at the total picture of the home.

Doesn’t The Amount Of Bedrooms Affect The Home Value?

If the question is whether or not a three bedroom home sells for a premium over a two bedroom home, I would have to say generally yes, but there are so many exceptions.  If you are looking at a home for sale in Clayton, a two bedroom home is going to cost more than a 3 bedroom home in parts of Lemay.  But there are so many other factors involved in the pricing that it isn’t solely about the bedrooms at that point.

You could have two homes next to each other, one a two bedroom home and another three bedroom with the same square footage.  The three bedroom home may not have as nice of finishes, may need a bunch of updating, may have a bad yard, and the two bedroom would sell for more.  So it’s not necessarily a bedroom count issue as much as a property maintenance issue.

Another Thing To Look For With Bedrooms

I always tell my buyers to look at the room count in a house.  That usually gives away small bedrooms when you combine it with square footage.  As an example, a three bedroom home with 7 rooms at 1,000 square feet generally going to have bedrooms that are really small versus a three bedroom home with 5 total rooms at the same square footage.

Marketing Your Home With The Correct Amount Of Bedrooms

I’ve lost listings in the past over bedrooms.  If a room isn’t a bedroom, best not to waste people’s time when you’ve decided it is, or made alterations that have made it into a room and not a bedroom.  That being said, I think the important thing is that when you work with Deerwood Realty, we work with you to develop a custom marketing plan that accentuates the positives of the home while we minimalize the negatives.  If you are listing your home with another real estate broker in St. Louis, keep the bedroom count in mind.  It’s important, but it probably isn’t the number one thing that is going to sell your home.

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