# Is there a real estate "code" for more than one half-bath? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 28, 2005, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-real-estate-code-for-more-than-one-half-bath/310279 "2005-06-28T21:57:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2005, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-real-estate-code-for-more-than-one-half-bath/310279/1 "2005-06-28T21:57:53Z")
The real estate listing for a house with three bedrooms, two full bathrooms, and one half-bathroom might start something like this: _Lovely 3BR, 2.5BA with sunny kitchen…_ The house I rent has two full bathrooms and two half-bathrooms … but that does not equal “3BA.” 😉 Is there a standard way to indicate more than one half-bathroom (besides spelling it out)? ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2005, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-real-estate-code-for-more-than-one-half-bath/310279/2 "2005-06-28T23:52:07Z")
What do you mean by “half bathroom”? Just a sink and a toilet? or a shower? Shower, toilet, sink but no tub used to be called “3/4 bath” but now they just call it a “bath”. ---
**Author:** ![Metacom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ecae2f/32.png) [@Metacom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Metacom)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-real-estate-code-for-more-than-one-half-bath/310279/3 "2005-06-29T00:00:18Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Shower, toilet, sink but no tub used to be called “3/4 bath” but now they just call it a “bath”. I think what he’s asking is how he can honestly convey the presence of multiple fractional bathrooms without inadvertently advertisting an additional whole bathroom. ---
**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-real-estate-code-for-more-than-one-half-bath/310279/4 "2005-06-29T00:10:31Z")
The tax assessor said if it has 3 water devices (stool, sink, shower) they call it a full bath. (tho he said something about as long as there was one bathroom with a tub). This is in Minnesota. I would spell it out: 2 full, 2 half BRs Brian ---
**Author:** ![CaveMike](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cavemike/32/16379_2.png) [@CaveMike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaveMike)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-real-estate-code-for-more-than-one-half-bath/310279/5 "2005-06-29T00:16:24Z")
On many of the MLS listings I have seen in Illinois, each half-bath counts as 0.1. A house with 2 full-baths and 2 half-baths is listed as “2.2”. A house with 2 full-baths and 3 half-baths is listed as “2.3”. However, when there is a single half-bath it often still gets listed as 0.5. So a house with 2 full-baths and 1 half-bath might still get listed as “2.5”. ---
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-real-estate-code-for-more-than-one-half-bath/310279/6 "2005-06-29T00:27:46Z")
Around here, just a sink and a toilet means “half bath,” while sink, toilet, and either shower or tub means “full bath.” This house has one bathroom with a tub, one bathroom with a shower, and two bathrooms that are just toilet + sink. (Way too many toilets for someone living alone – even a woman – but that’s a different thread for a different forum!) > [@CaveMike](#): > > On many of the MLS listings I have seen in Illinois, each half-bath counts as 0.1. A house with 2 full-baths and 2 half-baths is listed as “2.2”. A house with 2 full-baths and 3 half-baths is listed as “2.3”. Wow, that even makes sense! 🙂 Thanks! I guess that would let me say “2.2BA,” then. At least, if I were in Illinois. 😉 I should probably look at more of the listings in my area, but if I’d seen “2.2BA” I probably wouldn’t have figured it out (“two-tenths of a bathroom? what is that, like half a sink??”). ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-real-estate-code-for-more-than-one-half-bath/310279/7 "2005-06-29T02:13:33Z")
> [@N9IWP](#): > > I would spell it out: 2 full, 2 half BRs > > Brian Yes, this is best. It makes it very clear. ---
**Author:** ![Reply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reply/32/15952_2.png) [@Reply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reply)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-real-estate-code-for-more-than-one-half-bath/310279/8 "2005-06-29T06:39:29Z")
What about 2 R, 2BA, 2x 1/2BA? ---
**Author:** ![Reply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reply/32/15952_2.png) [@Reply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reply)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-real-estate-code-for-more-than-one-half-bath/310279/9 "2005-06-29T06:40:32Z")
(the first part should be **2BR** , not **2 R** ) ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 10:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-real-estate-code-for-more-than-one-half-bath/310279/10 "2005-06-29T10:26:47Z")
> [@](#): > > What about 2 R, 2BA, 2x 1/2BA? 2R, 2&(2)1/2BA ? ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 11:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-real-estate-code-for-more-than-one-half-bath/310279/11 "2005-06-29T11:23:09Z")
I thought **BR** meant bedroom. ---
**Author:** ![postcards](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8e8cbc/32.png) [@postcards](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/postcards)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-real-estate-code-for-more-than-one-half-bath/310279/12 "2005-06-29T12:46:03Z")
> [@](#): > > I would spell it out: 2 full, 2 half BRs > [@DrDeth](#): > > Yes, this is best. It makes it very clear. If you’re talking about half-_bedrooms_. ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-real-estate-code-for-more-than-one-half-bath/310279/13 "2005-06-29T13:39:35Z")
I think a lot of it varies from city to city. I’ve encountered code like 3/2/2 in some ads, meaning three bedrooms, two full baths and two half baths. Regional variations in real estate terminology isn’t unheard of. In Cleveland, for instance, a “bungalow” means a 1950s-era suburban one-and-a-half story house, usually with the second floor attic converted to useful living space. In many other cities, it’s a Craftsman or Arts-and-Crafts-inspired single family hosue built in the 1920s. In Denver, studio apartments are called “buffets.” Houses in Buffalo have “Florida rooms,” but in Florida they’re called “lanais”. Cleveland has “three season rooms,” which is a fully enclosed addition that usually has no heating. I’m still wondering if there’s an official term for the “[Polish porch](http://www.cyburbia.org/gallery/data/6147/1cheektowaga_020.jpg)” or “[Polish family room](http://www.cyburbia.org/gallery/data/6147/1cheektowaga_040.jpg)” - a phenomenon common in Buffalo’s eastern suburbs, but rare elsewhere in the region – where garages have two doors; a normal solid door and a screen door. During the summer, the garage screen door is kept lowered, and the [garage is converted into a living area](http://www.cyburbia.org/gallery/data/6147/1cheektowaga_006.jpg). ---
**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-real-estate-code-for-more-than-one-half-bath/310279/14 "2005-06-29T14:01:43Z")
Ok, then say 2 full, 2 half BA Brian ---
**Author:** ![ScoobyTX](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@ScoobyTX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ScoobyTX)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-real-estate-code-for-more-than-one-half-bath/310279/15 "2005-06-29T14:15:11Z")
> [@elmwood](#): > > I’ve encountered code like 3/2/2 in some ads, meaning three bedrooms, two full baths and two half baths. Usually, the second 2 in 3/2/2 would refer to a two car garage. ---
**Author:** ![Caffeine.addict](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f475e1/32.png) [@Caffeine.addict](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Caffeine.addict)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-real-estate-code-for-more-than-one-half-bath/310279/16 "2005-06-29T14:46:36Z")
I’ve seen it referred to as 2.55 baths. 2 full and 2 half. ---
**Author:** ![Madd\_Maxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Madd\_Maxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Madd_Maxx)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2005, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-real-estate-code-for-more-than-one-half-bath/310279/17 "2005-06-29T16:08:24Z")
I’d list it like this: Beautiful townhouse in great neighborhood for sale. 3 Bedrooms, 2.5 bathrooms and if you act now I’ll throw in an extra 1/2 bath for free!