Adding en-suite bathroom

[Daniele404]

Hello! I'm considering adding an en suite shower/wc to a double room that I've listed on Airbnb for over a year. Obviously it's a big expense, and I'm wondering how much difference it's likely to make to my Airbnb income. ie. Is it worth it? (Other local rooms with and without en suite vary in price a lot so aren't very informative.) Would love to hear from anyone with insight into this!

[Moira21]

@Daniele404  I converted wardrobe space to an en-suite 6 yrs ago. I don't think I'd have had as many bookings had I not. The majority of my guests work in the area and just want their private room and bathroom at the end of the day. Costwise I believe it's worth it as I'm staying on Airbnb for a few more years.

If it adds value to your property then go for it.

[Stephanie365]

If I am reading your listing correctly, you have a basement apartment with 2 rooms and you rent each room separately, correct? And there is a single shared bathroom for both rooms, plus other shared spaces?

IMO, if this is an improvement you want to make to your home *for you*, then it would be something to consider. 

If you are making this improvement solely for the purpose of your ABB listing, it is unlikely you will recoup the costs anytime soon. Will you charge a higher price for the room once you've added the bathroom? Or are you simply hoping for more bookings at the same price?

I see you charge $45/night. So, say after you put in an en suite, you charge $60/night. The $15 is the difference in value of your bathroom.  How many days of earning an extra $15 will it take to recoup your costs just to break even?

If you add the bathroom, you will not be able to list your space while construction is taking place. Allow 2 months minimum so plan it during your slow season. 

Since the rest of the space (kitchen, eating area, etc.) is still shared with the other room, I'm not sure that having a separate bath will increase your volume or price point significantly.  I don't know your area, though, so I may be totally off the mark on my assumptions. But to me, it seems to be an unnecessary and very significant expense.

[Daniele404]

Thanks so much for looking into my case, I appreciate your feedback - all very relevant points!

[Paul154]

@Daniele404 

During my low season, I experimented a little.

I linked my 2 bedrooms that shared a bathroom so they could not be booked simultaneously.

I then advertised "Room with private bathroom" and raised the price $15/night.

I thought this was a resonable price differential. My bookings went down significantly! 

A 35% -  40% drop. Plus I was giving up the possiblity of double booking 2 room instead of just one.

I was shocked at my experience. 

People want a private bathroom, but are unwilling to pay for a private bathroom.

[Daniele404]

That's very intertesting Paul. Thanks for sharing the results of your experiment!

[Sarah977]

@Daniele404  I do rent a private room with private bathroom and many of my guests have told me that the private bathroom is something they look for. A far as how long it would take to recoup the costs, I'd say you can't think of it that way- you just have to think of it as adding value to your home when it comes to resale value, and if it increses bookings, and you can charge a bit more, that's bonus. 

Also, if you now have a shared bathroom between 2 unrelated guests, I assume you make sure to keep it clean on a more or less daily basis? If they each have a private bathroom, you eliminate that chore- the guest is responsible for their own bathroom, and you don't have to worry that one guest is going to be upset that the other left it nasty.

[Daniele404]

Thanks Sarah, less chores is a good thought!

[Niel3]

I have both a double room with en suite and a double room sharing the main house bathroom. There is a £10 difference in price per night and the shared double room booked up around 3x more than the en-suite one does. Definitely not worth it if your room isn't already, leave it as it is and guests will appreciate the more space in their bedroom. 🙂

[Daniele404]

Ok, this is useful info. Many thanks!