My parents are in their mid-70s. After my father had a fall on the staircase last year, we decided to renovate their Mississauga bungalow for long-term accessibility. I managed the project. Here is what we did and what it cost.
Starting condition: 1965 bungalow, already single-storey, which was the biggest advantage. Three bedrooms, one 4-piece bathroom, one powder room. The main bathroom had a tub/shower combination — completely inaccessible for my father who has limited knee mobility.
Scope item 1 — Roll-in shower conversion:
Removed the tub/shower combo. Converted to a 42x60 inch curbless (zero-barrier) shower with fold-down bench, handheld showerhead on sliding bar, and linear drain at the far wall.
The floor required modification — the existing floor structure needed a 2-inch recess to achieve the slope for a curbless shower without building up the surrounding floor. Contractor cut the slab section, poured new slope to linear drain. Waterproofing system: Schluter Kerdi-Board walls and Kerdi-Drain floor system.
Cost: $14,800 including all tile, fixtures, handheld shower, fold-down bench, and structural slab work. Permit required ($290).
Scope item 2 — Grab bars throughout:
When the shower walls were open, we installed 3/4-inch plywood blocking on all bathroom walls. Post-tile, we installed: 2x grab bars at shower entry, 1x L-shaped bar at toilet, 1x towel-style bar at vanity for stability. All BNBF-rated, properly anchored into blocking.
Cost: $620 (bars supply and install — blocking was $0 incremental since walls were open anyway).
Scope item 3 — Doorway widening:
Three doorways widened to 36 inches clear: main bathroom, master bedroom, and rear entry. Main bathroom required header modification (load-bearing wall — engineer review: $400, structural: $600 per opening). Other two were non-load-bearing: $350 each.
Total doorway widening: $2,050.
Tax credit: Canada Home Accessibility Tax Credit applied to shower, grab bars, and doorways — approximately $16,000 of eligible expenses = $2,400 federal tax credit.
**Total project cost: $17,760 before tax credit, approximately $15,360 after.