The Two Small Luxuries That Add Value To Your Home, According To The Property Brothers

Two changes to your home's layout can make a remarkable difference in your daily life. Going up and down the basement stairs to do the laundry or mastering the art of doing your laundry at the laundromat are tedious tasks whose only rewards are a little exercise and a basket of clean clothes. Sending guests or your kids upstairs to use the bathroom is, at the least, an inconvenience. In Season 7, Episode 6 of the Property Brothers' HGTV program  "Brother vs. Brother" (via YouTube), Drew Scott vowed to "add value to the house with a full laundry room and a brand-new powder room, two things I know buyers will love."

After redesigning the main living areas in the two homes the Property Brothers renovated, they turned to the remaining laundry room, guest room, and bathroom in Jonathan's house, and a guest room, laundry room, and powder room in Drew's house. Both went for the wow factor, with Jonathan choosing a timeless design with marble tiles in a subdued color in his full bath. Drew chose to use the same tiles he used in his kitchen redesign in his newly-built powder room, matching muted tile tones with vibrant contrasts. Both brothers chose bold wallpapers for their laundry rooms, but Drew upped the importance of the laundry by placing it in a large room dedicated solely to the task. 

The combination of pleasing design and practical applications adds value to your home, for both resale and your own livability. On average, your return on investment (ROI) on a laundry room is between 60 to 70%; the ROI on a bathroom could be as high as 74%. If you have an entry into your house directly from the garage into an area that could be repurposed as a laundry, consider giving the area a double purpose as a combined laundry and mud room. Divide the room into laundry and mud room zones, but if you only have space for the most basic laundry room, using upscale storage solutions to declutter, hanging elegant wallpaper or using bold paint colors, and building the appliances into a cabinet make the room seem luxurious.

Adding a main floor powder room to a home without one can be a game-changer, and even the smallest room demands good design. Using the same color scheme and tile as you have in the kitchen or adding a chair rail with dramatic wallpaper above and a solid color below on all four walls is, as the Property Brothers say, "on-trend and timeless." If none of these options suit your style, they also recommend color blocking powder rooms with light colored paint above and dark paint below. You probably don't need luxury items the Brothers prefer, like heated towel racks or LED mirrors in the powder room, but picking the perfect plumbing fixtures and vanity lighting can make a big difference.