Showers Reign in Master Bathroom Remodels Says Houzz Study

Master bathrooms are making extra space for showers, according to the 2019 U.S. Houzz Bathroom Trends Study. Four in five homeowners upgrade their shower during master bathroom renovations (83%) and over half increase their shower size (54%). However, only 22% expand the square footage of their master bathroom during renovations. For many master bathroom renovators, shower expansion alleviates the pre-project pet peeve of a small shower (38%), which is second only to having an outdated space (59%). Almost one in four renovating homeowners remove their master tub (24%) and more than four in five of those choose to enlarge the shower in its place (84%).

Homeowners are making substantial investments on their master bathroom renovations. The space commands the second highest median spend in home remodels at $8,000 nationally, a 14% year-over-year increase from 2017 to 2018. Median spend also increased for major master bathroom remodels, from $10,100 to $12,000, respectively, as well as for minor remodels, from $2,000 to $2,300, respectively. Among the top 50 U.S. metropolitan areas by population, San Francisco and San Jose have the highest median spend on master bathroom remodels ($15,000 and $13,000, respectively), while Orlando has the lowest ($3,760).