p.s.
If in question about anything research with your local, county or state ordinances. (which ever is the most stringent regarding the issue) Also regarding Ruth's question, Realtors never make any determinations regarding codes. That is a big liability for the seller and the agent. The building dept. make the rules.

Sun Sep 23 2007, 10:52

A small warning. If the property is on septic vs. public sewer, be sure that the septic supports the number of bedrooms. Often a two bedroom house with two bedroom septic capacity has added a third bedroom without the septic being upgraded to a three bedroom capacity septic.

Be sure to check on that before you upgrade the number of bedrooms in rural areas.

Sun Sep 23 2007, 10:26

In my area, If it is an original bedroom when the property was built, it is a bedroom. If it is a dining room or basement etc. and the owner uses those rooms as a bedroom then it is not a bedroom. There is an active listing in my city right now where the agent is advertising it as a 3 bedroom. When I looked at the permit history of the home with our city, the room the agent is calling a bedroom was permitted as a family room, therefore it is not a bedroom. A room can only be called a bedroom if it is an original bedroom at the time the home was built or the owner added or modified a room with a permit through the city or county (if property is located in an unincorporated area) and the permit states that it will be a bedroom.

Sun Sep 23 2007, 10:02

More importantly than building codes is whether the local appraisers will call it a bedroom. If you sell it as 3 bedroom, and the appraiser disagrees, the financing won't go through.

I have a house now where the basement is used as the primary bedroom and the two bedrooms on the main level, that ARE bedrooms, are not used as bedrooms.

I doubt the appraiser would agree. If someone sleeps in it on a regular basis, I call it a bedroom, because it is the highest, best and most honest use.

Sat Sep 22 2007, 22:36

Isn't there a difference between what the building department says and what local Realtor boards say? For example, it's not the building department that defines a half vs 3/4 vs full bath.
Ruth

Sat Sep 22 2007, 22:30

The best bet to see what qualifies as a bedroom is to check with your local municipal bulding and permits division.

Sat Sep 22 2007, 12:07

It is very interesting how everything varies from state to state. Thank you Paul for your info re: AZ.

Jean
Northern CA

Sat Sep 22 2007, 11:30

A closet is required in AZ. Without one, it is legally considered a den.

Sat Sep 22 2007, 10:44

Wow, Thanks Jean! I better recheck this, since I am in Silicon Valley Ca. It's been so long ago I heard this I don't even know where I heard this, I really thought I took this info from School?
See Realtors are always learning new things :-)
Thanks again,
Denise Stuart
Coldwell Banker

Sat Sep 22 2007, 09:15

If a closet was a requirement for a room to be a bedroom, we in CA. would not be able to sell homes that were built in the 1800's and early 1900's. CA building code states that in order for a room to be a bedroom, it does not have to have a closet.

Sat Sep 22 2007, 08:24

A bedroom must have a closet legally, (I am a Mother of Triplets) in my house it could be any floor with the kids blanket and pillow on it :-)

Fri Sep 21 2007, 22:19

A room with a closet that I never visit anymore due to young children and Trulia!

Fri Sep 21 2007, 22:08

I can only answer according to my area of expertise. My city does require that smoke detectors are required in every sleeping room. (even rooms that are not bedrooms but where someone is routinely sleeping in that room). All cities, counties and states vary on the requirements of a bedroom.

Fri Sep 21 2007, 20:45

All answers are helpful. Thanks. I was looking for clarification on what the standards are across the country -- this has been a controversial topic for me because even in MD it varies from county to county. In some a closet is not required. Fire exit seems to be a consistent requirement -- hence some rooms in basements did not qualify. Doors leading to the outside qualifies as a fire exit but most county codes are silent about doors being required for privacy. I have seen people define rooms that required going through another bedroom as a bedroom and I always questioned that but have no idea what the rules are on that. Have not seen county codes talk about that around here. If anyone else has, knowing that would be helpful. Heating is required in MD but I know cooling is not -- but I see it is required is other parts of the country. I am not dealing with a converted loft right now -- Ruth I will find your question and read through those answers as well. In MD smoke detectors are required per floor. CO detectors are probably going to be required soon -- as of October 1, 2007 sellers will need to disclose whether one exists or not.

Fri Sep 21 2007, 20:24

According to the California building code a closet is NOT a requirement in order for a room to be a bedroom. In my area we have many Victorian homes which for the most part were built without bedroom closets. Many agents think a bedroom must have a closet but this is not true. A bedroom must be at least 70 sq ft, have heating, a window must be a certain size (can't remember exact size) so one can get out in case of fire, the ceiling height I believe must be at least 7'10" and the room cannot have a door leading to a garage.

Fri Sep 21 2007, 20:16

I hadn't seen Pam's post yet. When I referred to privacy I was referring to seeing through the door and a lock. Yes, we require a door. I was thinking of a wood framed office type door with a large window and not sliding doors. It's interesting how people think. I'm guessing Pam is visualizing a 1950-1960 home with a porch that was converted to a bedroom. I'm visualizing a 1920s bungalow that a main floor bedroom had the closet removed and the door changed to create an office. I'm guessing that Mansur is dealing with a contemporary converted loft. Am I right?
Ruth

Fri Sep 21 2007, 19:28

Privacy? That's a new one for me. I don't think that should have anything to do with it. Locks are a personal issue and glass can have curtains.

In our area (Western suburbs of Chicago) it varies town to town but typically a closet is required for the MLS but not for descriptive advertising. What is frowned upon even more though is calling a tandem room, two bedrooms. If you have to walk through one to get to the other, only one of them is a bedroom.

Egress windows and smoke/CO detectors are required for all bedrooms according to building code but there are so many grandfathered bedrooms these criteria are not a rule for selling a home unless the town requires updated codes for all sales.

I think I had a Cicero bedroom that was only 7' x 9'. I've seen many converted bungalow attics that were even less because you couldn't count the floor space if the wall was less than 5' tall (might be 48" but you get the idea).

Mansur, did you see my question about bathroom fractions? We all learned a lot there.
Ruth

Fri Sep 21 2007, 19:18

A bedroom should have heating, ventilation, natural light (window) and a closet. A sliding door is acceptable as a window and the glass should be safety tempered. The window or sliding door is an ingress/egress access. Yes the bedroom should have a door and the door does not need to lock.

Fri Sep 21 2007, 18:59

In the state of Delaware, a bedroom has to have windows that meet egress standards and it must have a closet. As far as I know there are no size standards.

Fri Sep 21 2007, 18:48