For the best resale value, keep at least one bathtub in your home. While modern walk-in showers are highly desired for primary suites and accessibility, removing all tubs can limit your buyer pool, as families with young children often require a tub.
Do houses sell better with a bathtub? Homes with at least one tub often attract more family buyers. At the same time, buyers increasingly value accessible, modern showers. Keeping one tub and converting another bathroom to a shower gives your home flexibility and broad appeal.
A walk-in shower generally does not decrease your home's value, provided your home still has at least one bathtub elsewhere. In fact, modern, well-designed walk-in showers are highly sought-after features that often boost appeal.
Walk-in tubs offer excellent accessibility, but they come with notable downsides. Key drawbacks include high upfront costs (often $5,000–$15,000+ installed), the "wet wait" (sitting in cold water while the tub fills and drains), large water usage, and potential long-term issues with door seals and water heater capacity.
Yes, buyers still want bathtubs, particularly families with young children. While oversized walk-in showers are highly desired in primary bathrooms, real estate experts strongly recommend keeping at least one bathtub in the house. Removing all bathtubs can shrink your buyer pool and impact your resale value.
The biggest hits to property value typically fall into three categories: structural neglect, poor location/market flaws, and unpermitted or hyper-customized DIY work. These factors act as major red flags for buyers and appraisers, severely reducing offers.
If your home has a particularly large or luxurious bathtub, it may be worth more than a smaller shower. And if you live in an area where most homes have baths rather than showers, your home's value may not be affected as much by whether or not it has a shower.
The average cost to purchase and install a walk-in tub ranges from $5,000 to $15,000, with most homeowners spending around $10,000 in total. This includes $2,500 to $10,000 for the tub itself and $2,500 to $5,000+ for professional labor and structural modifications.
People put Dawn dish soap in the bathtub as a highly effective, low-effort cleaning hack to dissolve oily body grease, soap scum, and hair dye stains without harsh chemical fumes.
While many homeowners prefer the look and function of a walk-in shower, bathtubs continue to play an important role in resale value. Families with young children often consider a bathtub essential. Even buyers without children sometimes view at least one tub in the home as a practical feature.
Adding physical square footage (like an addition or finishing a basement) and upgrading kitchens or bathrooms typically increase house value the most. While massive overhauls can be costly, high-ROI updates (Return on Investment) like fresh paint, new garage doors, and modernized hardware deliver the best financial payoff.
A reasonable price for a standard, professionally installed walk-in shower is between $6,000 and $12,000, with a national average of about $9,000. This includes the removal of your old setup, basic waterproofing, new plumbing, materials, and labor.
Hotels are removing bathtubs to maximize room efficiency, lower maintenance costs, and meet changing guest preferences. Surveys show the vast majority of modern travelers prefer quick, spacious walk-in showers over baths.
Replacing a bathtub with a shower is an excellent idea if you rarely take baths and prioritize accessibility, modern aesthetics, or extra floor space. However, it can negatively impact resale value if it eliminates the only tub in a family home, making it crucial to weigh your lifestyle and long-term plans.
January is generally considered the hardest month to sell a house, bringing the longest days on market and the lowest sales volume. Combined with late fall months like November and October, these winter periods see significantly fewer active buyers and lower seller premiums.
The single most expensive part of a bathroom remodel is labor and plumbing, specifically if you change the bathroom layout. Relocating toilets, sinks, or showers requires opening walls, installing new drain lines, and ensuring strict code compliance, which easily drives up costs.
The "lazy" shower cleaning hack involves keeping a soap-dispensing dish brush filled with half dish soap (like original Blue Dawn) and half white vinegar directly in your shower. You simply scrub down the shower walls, tub, and glass in under a minute while already in the shower or waiting for your hair conditioner to soak.
Why Dish Soap Can Unclog a Toilet. Dish soap has the ability to lubricate and break down the bonds of fats and grease. When poured into the toilet, dish soap helps lubricate the waste causing the clog, while also breaking down its structure, allowing it to easily flow down the drain.
Yes, vinegar is a fantastic, natural, and inexpensive way to clean your bathtub. Its natural acidity breaks down soap scum, dissolves hard water stains, and removes mildew.
Lowe's generally charges between $1,000 and $5,000 for the labor to install a walk-in tub. When you factor in the cost of the tub itself and necessary plumbing or electrical upgrades, the total project cost typically runs from $4,000 to $15,000+.
Are walk-in tubs tax deductible? Yes—but only if the tub is deemed medically necessary by a medical professional (e.g., your doctor). The IRS may allow you to deduct the cost of a walk-in tub as a medical expense when it's prescribed by your doctor to prevent falls or accommodate a condition (e.g., arthritis).
Walk-in tubs provide safe bathing for seniors and individuals with mobility challenges, but they have notable downsides: the "wet wait" (sitting naked while the tub fills and drains), higher upfront and installation costs, increased water usage, and the inability to easily take a quick, standard shower.
Adding livable square footage, such as finishing a basement or adding a bedroom/bathroom, yields the absolute largest increase in a house’s market value. For the best return on investment (ROI), prioritize updates to kitchens, baths, and exterior curb appeal.
In most cases, a bath uses more water than a 10-minute shower. However, the exact winner depends on the size of your tub and the flow rate of your showerhead.
A $50,000 budget gets you either one high-end major renovation (like a kitchen or a primary bath) or a series of targeted cosmetic updates across multiple rooms. Because material and labor costs vary, this budget is all about strategic prioritization.