Add £40,000 to your home's value with a dressing room

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You might consider a dressing room as an indulgent use of space, found only in the luxury properties of the world's super rich and in five-star hotels.

But now they are soaring in popularity among ordinary homeowners who want to replicate the swish storage solutions of influencers and celebrities such as Victoria Beckham, who have opened the doors of their own dressing rooms on social media.

The convenience of having a dedicated space for clothing, shoes, and accessories adds efficiency to the daily dressing routine and is driving the trend, says interior designer Katharine Pooley. Dressing rooms are a feature of almost every private client project she works on.

Most homeowners would regard converting a third bedroom into a dedicated dressing room as folly, but estate agents say it can add up to £40,000 to your property's value.

For while it's been believed that the number of bedrooms in a property is key to determining its value, Felix Milns – founder of bespoke joinery firm Hux London – says buyers now look at square footage instead, as well as features.

'If you have a smaller space, you can create something really special,' he says. 'Whereas if it's left as a box bedroom, it's just a box bedroom.'

Cashing in: Most homeowners would regard converting a third bedroom into a dedicated dressing room as folly, but estate agents say it can add up to £40,000 to your property's value

While growing numbers of buyers have dressing rooms on their wish list, only six per cent of homes listed offer one, according to Marc von Grundherr, director of London-based estate agent Benham and Reeves.

'A dressing room can help you stand out from the crowd when looking to sell,' he says. 'If your property boasts a dressing room, you can expect to sell for around 14.5 per cent more as a result, which equates to almost £40,000 on the current average UK house price.'

A hotel-like finish is popular among buyers as they search for a hint of luxury in their homes.

Rachal Hutcheson, of furniture maker Sharps, says: 'Focus on thoughtful finishing touches such as soft ambient lighting, double hanging rails, shoe cascades, and elegant cabinets. These features help buyers visualise their own belongings in the space, compared to a room that feels cluttered and disorganised.'

If you want to design your own furniture to encompass these elements and make sure it fits your box room perfectly, you can opt for bespoke furniture.

Milns says this is around £2,000-£4,000 for just under 3.3 linear feet. For a box room with a length of almost ten feet, you could expect to pay some £6,000 to £12,000 for one wall of fittings – two walls will double the price.

Also consider adding a dressing table into your bespoke design as this can double up as a home office if needed, increasing value for potential buyers, experts say.

If you haven't incorporated one into the bespoke fitted furniture, a seven-drawer wood option from Next will set you back £650, while a simpler two-drawer option is £135. For a larger spare room, you could add a central bank of drawer storage. But of course, this will add thousands to your bill depending on its length if it is made to measure for you.

Plus, Pooley says high-end dressing rooms for homeowners with valuable collections will often have discreet in-built safes for security. A wall safe which can be hidden behind a painting or wardrobe door could cost as much as £1,700, with an extra £489 installation fees, according to trade website Checkatrade.

But this feature could seal a deal with a buyer who has an expensive collection of watches or handbags that their insurer insists is kept in a safe.

However, the money-savvy and creative can look to retailers such as Ikea that sell pre-designed fitted wardrobes, which can be slotted into your spare bedroom. 

A wardrobe with a length of 6.5 feet with shelving and rails can be bought for £556 each.

But Ikea also allows you to customise the doors, handles, shelving configurations, finish and measurements as added extras, which will give the cabinets a bespoke feel without the hefty price tag. 

For example, you can add a 20-inch-wide cabinet for £60, while sleek panelled doors will cost £62 each. These are self-build, but a labourer could fit a four-door wardrobe for between £800 and £1,100 if you are unable to do so yourself.

You can even build your own dressing room from scratch to keep costs to a minimum. Emma Nelson, a 33-year-old copywriter, did just that. 

She says: 'I'd always wanted a dressing room. I have a shopping habit, and I have always had a struggle getting all of my clothes, shoes and handbags into a wardrobe. I also have a beautiful 1970s mahogany dressing table, so I wanted somewhere for that to go.' 

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So when she and husband Charlie bought a three-bedroom house in Hertfordshire, the third bedroom – a box room – was the perfect size to transform into her dream dressing room.

Charlie bought MDF boards to create the storage space and built three sections along one wall, two of which were open cabinets fitted with heavy-duty hanging rails, and the third was a space for a set of drawers. They spent no more than £600 on materials and paint to colour-drench the room.

'It was amazing to have. Plus, when I sold the house, prospective buyers were really impressed. There were women who really remarked on the dressing room when they were being shown around.'

Pooley says if you're considering resale value when designing your dressing room, avoid dramatic colour schemes.

Hutcheson recommends popular earthy oak or walnut finishes for a classic, high-end feel.

But remember that it's still your home where you might live for many more years, so don't be afraid to showcase your personality through colour.

Your dressing room should also have ambient lighting for the ultimate luxury quality to appeal to prospective buyers.

Soft recessed lighting – which has no visible wiring and sits flush in the ceiling – will add a warm but practical glow. Adding six recessed lights to a room will cost around £200, says Checkatrade.

However, you may want to add back lights to your storage cabinets – here, LED light strips work well and are both cheap and use minimum electricity.

You can buy a 38-inch wardrobe LED strip, with a built-in sensor, for £15 each from Ikea. Four such strips to cover the top two sets of fitted wardrobes will tot up to £60.

A mirror is also an essential. A full-length one from Ikea can be bought for as little as £13 and fitted to a wall, while a free-standing mirror from Dunelm is £120.

And there's one other advantage to a dressing room – it frees up space in your bedroom and will make it look less cluttered when showing around potential buyers.

Von Grundherr says: 'It makes the other areas of your home more presentable and also shows your dressing room in all its glory when you have rows of neatly presented items.'