Do your New Year’s resolutions include that bathroom update you’ve been putting off?
If you are considering a bathroom overhaul — either for your own use or in preparation to sell your home — it’s a smart investment. A bath remodel can yield as much as a 62 percent return on resale value, according to an article in U.S. News and World Report. Plus, the bath is the room most prone to look outdated to potential buyers.
“Buyers like the higher countertops, want double sinks with lots of light over the sinks, and tile on the floor,” says Vicki Trapp, a Realtor with Crye-Leike and president of the Greater Chattanooga Association of Realtors.
“They want the large, glass walk-in shower with multiple shower heads, like the rain head and a regular shower head. People who are remodeling are taking out those gigantic Jacuzzi tubs with jets to get more shower space and putting in a soaking, or standalone, tub.”
The standalone tub is one of 10 trends predicted by Houzz.com, the online community of design and home improvement ideas, to be strong bath design influences in 2015. We’ve listed the trends followed by the opinions of area home specialists on whether they will make a splash locally. The professionals are Jackie Howard, owner of Scarlett’s Cabinetry; Sarah Rapp, interior designer for Louisville Tile; and Cathy Bissell, design department head at Lowe’s on Gunbarrel Road.