City and county building codes are typically consistent, yet the real estate market has adapted (ADUs, for example).
That Often Creates “Pricing Issues“
“Let’s just list at (“?”) and see what happens,” a seller insists. This seller tactic of living in “LALA” land” puts agents in a bad position.
For example, “We have a 4-bedroom house, claims the seller” (when the “bedroom” is a really converted den closet, etc.).
Then what? An appraisal comes in “low,” creating headaches for agent(s)
This may help the next time you meet with a seller to seal a deal.
The 4 Requirements for a Room to Be a Bedroom
Ryan Lundquist
Does a bedroom need a window or not?
Four things a room MUST have to be considered a bedroom:
1) Entrance: A bedroom needs at least two methods of egress, so it should be accessible from the house (commonly through a door) and then have one other exit (window or door).
2) Ceiling Height: A bedroom ceiling needs to be at least 7 ft tall. It’s okay if some portions of the ceiling are below this level, but at least 50% of the ceiling needs to be a minimum of 7 ft in height. Most ceilings are at least 8 ft tall, so ceiling height is not usually an issue (R305.1).
3) Escape: A bedroom must have one other method of egress beyond the entrance point. An exterior door and a window work as exit points.
According to the International Residential Code, a bedroom window can be between 24 and 44 inches from the floor, needs at least 5.7 square feet for the opening, and must measure no less than 24 inches high and 20 inches wide (R310.1).
4) Size: The room should be at least 70 sq ft, and more specifically, the room cannot be smaller than 7 feet in any horizontal direction (sorry, that 1’x70 ′ room won’t work) (R304.2 / R304.4).
Size, access, light, and ventilation all matter when defining a bedroom (IRC). However, we should also discuss one more issue.
The Closet
Are closets required? A bedroom should probably have a closet since most buyers expect one, but technically, the International Residential Code does not mandate it.
So, the lack of a closet does not necessarily mean a room cannot be a bedroom, but “what the local real estate market expects and what the local city/county require.”
Would buyers consider a room as a bedroom if there is no closet?
Having no closets is probably a bigger deal in newer tract subdivisions, but it’s likely not an issue in older classic homes, where bedrooms are sometimes not built with closets.
Ultimately, closets are not technically mandated by the international definition, but they may be expected and/or required by local code.
